Youth Climate Movement

The Youth Climate Movement is an international coalition of youth organisations. The coalitions aims to inspire, empower and mobilise a generational movement of young people across the world to take action on climate change. The movement itself is supported by the charity UNICEF.

History



In 2001, United States youth attending the preparations for the World Summit on Sustainable Development formed SustainUS, whose members began to attend the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

In June 2004, the Energy Action Coalition of America was formed, with 30 coalition partners, including SustainUS. Similar to the other Youth Climate Movements, the organisation has the objective of working together to leverage their collective power and create change for a clean, efficient, just and renewable energy future.

A year later from November 28 to December 9, 2005, the United Nations (UN) Climate Change Convention (COP 11 or COP/MOP 1) took place at the Palais des congrès de Montréal in Montréal, Quebec, Canada. Youth delegations from member nations, including the United States and Australia, attended, to advocate on behalf of young people. As a result, the concept of the Global Youth Climate Movement was first coined.

Following on from this in September 2006, the Canadian Youth Climate Coalition was launched, consisting of 48 youth organisations. This was soon followed by the Australian Youth Climate Coalition in November, which itself was a coalition of 27 youth organisations from across Australia.

In March 2008, the Indian Youth Climate Network joined the Global Youth Climate Movement whilst in June 2008, the United Kingdom ambassadors to the WWF's Voyage for the Future programme, Emma Biermann and Casper ter Kuile, created the UK Youth Climate Coalition (UKYCC), after returning from the Arctic to witness the impact of climate change. More recently, coalitions in Africa, China, Japan and South Asia have been formed with the same mission statement as the global movement.

Campaigns

Since 2005, the each country that participates in the Youth Climate Movement sends a youth delegation to the United Nations Climate Change Conference to represent young people in their respective country. Throughout the year, there are other opportunities for the members of the International Youth Climate Movement to convene. For example, at the International Youth Summit on Energy and Climate Change in Beijing, China and the Conference of Youth, which this year will take place from the 4-6 December 2009.

At the same time, each coalition organises their own events on climate change.
Main article: Power Shift

Power Shift is the name of an annual youth summit which has been held in Australia and the United States. The United Kingdom's version of the conference is scheduled for October 9 to October 12 at the Institute of Education in London. Power Shift Conferences are also being organised by other members of the International Youth Climate Movement including Canada, Japan and India. The focus of the events is on global warming and climate change policy.

Members

National members of the Youth Climate Movement include: the AYLCF Climate Action Network (France); Australian Youth Climate Coalition; Canadian Youth Climate Coalition; China Youth Climate Action Network; Energy Action Coalition (America); Ghana National Youth Coalition on Climate Change; Hong Kong Climate Change Coalition; Indian Youth Climate Network; Japan Youth Ecology League; Nature and Youth Denmark; Nigerian Youth Green Coalition on Climate Change; Russian Youth Climate Movement, SustainUS, and the UK Youth Climate Coalition. Each of these national organisations affiliate to other national organisations. For example, the UK Youth Climate Coalition includes the National Union of Students of the United Kingdom, the Otesha Project UK and You, Me & The Climate (YOMAC). Similarly, the Australian Youth Climate Coalition has over 27 members.

Each Climate Coalition or Climate Network is affiliated to a regional or continental movement such as the African Youth Initiative on Climate Change; Caribbean Youth Environmental Network; European Youth Climate Movement; Nordic Youth Climate Action Movement; North East Asia Youth Environmental Network; the South American Youth Climate Coalition and the South Asia Youth Environment Network.

Consequently, these local, national and continental organisations come together to form the International Youth Climate Movement.

From http://en.wikipedia.org/