Children’s rights and voices in the global response to climate change
Faced with climate breakdown in the next decade, it is children today and future generations who have the most to lose. During COP27, CRIN will be spotlighting what children have to say on the climate crisis, and why they need a seat at the decision-making table.
Why COP27 affects us all
With COP27 just around the corner (6-18 November), we are spotlighting children’s perspectives on the climate crisis, how it affects their human rights and what action they consider needs to be taken.
COP is important because it is the moment when the UN brings together decision-makers from countries from around the world to discuss climate change and the urgent action that’s needed to prevent further irreversible destruction of our planet. A new report from UN Climate Change highlights that the time to act with more ambitious actions is now. Yet while countries are making progress in decreasing global greenhouse gas emissions, these efforts are not enough. The report finds that we are on track for a 2.5 degrees Celsius global temperature rise, instead of the target 1.5 degrees by the end of the century.
The climate crisis is a children’s rights crisis
It goes without saying that humans cannot live and have rights if there isn’t a healthy planet to live on in the first place. Pollution, deforestation, unsustainable agricultural and fishing practices, and the overconsumption of resources by a small portion of the world's population are profoundly affecting the environment and the climate, endangering the quality of life of humanity and biodiversity on Earth.
The climate crisis affects humanity as a whole, but children are particularly at risk because they are exposed to these threats during sensitive periods of development and they will have to live with any consequences for longer. According to UNICEF one billion children are at extremely high risk of the impacts of climate change.
Children’s voices and perspectives in climate spaces
The lived experience of the climate crisis will weigh most on children today and future generations, as they have the most to lose. Yet they themselves and talk of their rights are often absent from and ignored in policy discussions and global climate and human rights forums. We believe that children and young people should be involved in climate and environmental decisions - they care, have rights and their ideas, passion and imaginations can inspire those with the power - like those at COP - to urgently act to preserve our planet from further ruin.
But there are many barriers affecting whether children can attend spaces like COP and have a meaningful experience. Access in the first place prevents many from having their say. Getting badges and funding to attend COP can be a huge challenge for many children, particularly those from Most Affected People and Areas. CRIN received many requests for support with accreditation from amazing young climate organisers around the world and it’s clear how much children and young people want to be present and influence the next steps.
There are many individuals and organisations out there (children and adults alike!) who are advocating for children’s voices and perspectives to be better represented in these huge decisions which affect their futures too. It’s time decision makers listen.
Spotlighting what children have to say
We are partnering with fellow children’s rights organisation Terre des Hommes to showcase the voices and perspectives of the children we work with. Over the next two weeks we will be sharing videos and written quotes from CRIN’s Climate Advisers and the Children’s Advisory Team to General Comment 26 (on children’s rights and the environment, with a focus on climate change). Here’s some of what they’ve had to say thus far:
“It is extremely important for children to attend COP27 so that our voice is heard by changemakers. Changemakers cannot know what problems children face without asking us.”
~ Olt, 15, Balkans
“I believe in the idea of the redistribution of power. We have seen how the Global North has built its prosperity through extractivist practices such as colonialism and climate imperialism. Global South communities are the ones that are suffering the most from these historical burdens. And it is those children from these communities that need to have their voices heard in political spaces.”
~ Santiago, 17, Latin America
“Climate change affects us children the most. We need to demand that we're going to be taken care of. Because we are a priority, not a choice.”
~ Maya, 16, Greenland
Our aim for COP and places where decisions are made about climate change, is to make children’s rights a priority and ensure that they are accessible for children, particularly those of the Most Affected People and Areas.
We’ll be sharing children’s testimonies during COP on our Instagram, Twitter, Linkedin. We welcome you to support this call and add your voice.
Resources
We’ll also be spotlighting some resources from others working on this issue, and ways to get involved. Please share with us if you have any additional resources you recommend!
If you are a child or a young climate activist
No voice in advocacy is too small to make a difference and every child and young person has a right to advocate for what meaningful climate action looks like to them. Here are some resources if you are looking for a starting point:
Our Rights, Our Planet: Stand Up for the Environment is a free training for young people to learn about and stand up for their environmental rights created by Children’s Environmental Rights Initiative (CERI), Terre des Hommes (TdH) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
A CRIN project that provides a breakdown of the environmental laws and policies in place in 43 countries so that children feel better equipped to access justice when their rights are violated. We would also like to develop resources for young campaigners, so please get in touch with us and let us know what you need to seek environmental justice.
The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child is preparing important guidance called General Comment 26. It will explain what governments around the world must do to make sure that children and young people live in a clean, green, healthy and sustainable world. Thousands of children took part in the first phase of consultations to inform the first draft. Click here to sign up for updates for when the second round of consultations launches.
Action for Climate Empowerment can be a great tool for advocacy if you are interested in climate education or public participation.
If you want to support children speaking out for their rights and and the planet
Whether you are a policy maker, a parent, an NGO worker or activist you can believe that children’s voices must be heard and that children’s rights themselves must be factored into these major climate decisions. And you can act at your level to create the space for this to happen. Here are some resources that can help shed light on the issue and what you can do.
A COP Fit for Children by Save the Children sets out how the organisers of COP and states involved in COP can make the climate summit inclusive for all children in the processes leading up to COP, COP itself, and in the follow-up process.
A position paper by the Children’s Environmental Rights Initiative (CERI) explores why designing climate action that protects children will ensure a safe future for all.
The How to Child Rights series by Save the Children offers practical, high quality, tried and tested tools and guidance on children's rights issues, including climate justice.
The Children’s Climate Risk Index by UNICEF uses data to generate new global evidence on how many children are currently exposed to climate and environmental hazards, shocks and stresses.
CRIN’s project Children’s Access to Environmental Justice aims to share knowledge on children’s access to environmental justice and build relationships with those advocating for children’s environmental rights. Learn how you can get involved.
“We are the future of our planet. We are the ones who will live with the consequences of decisions, either action or inaction that are made today. We are the future decision makers, the future leaders, scientists and community workers who will continue to face the climate crisis and find solutions to it. It would be unfair and short sighted to exclude young people from these vital conversations that directly determine our future and the future of our world.”
This story is part of CRIN’s work on Climate Change and Children’s Access to Environmental Justice.
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