Have young people given up the fight?

An economic crisis. Climate crisis. Resource crisis. Unemployment crisis. Poverty crisis. Ecosystem crisis. Energy crisis. Food crisis. Democratic crisis. Values crisis. Social crisis.

No matter what the particularly interest is, everyone can agree we’re in a crisis one way or another. Once again words of global crises echoed around the imposing SulAmerica Conference Centre in Rio at the Youth Blast by speakers and young people from around the world.

But while the reminder of our impending doom, social destruction, economic collapse and environmental suicide can be inspiring to some and help people feel they are not alone as we stare into the abyss, mutual recognition of our problems is not solving them.

The calm acceptance of a weak text at the Youth Blast is striking – a text that does not put us on a path of sustainable development, does not eradicate poverty, does not provide the basic elements of life such as water, food and a livelihood and does not transition us to a clean energy, low-carbon economy safe from harm and protected for future generations.

Have young people given up the fight?

Where is the anger?
Where is the unwillingness to accept that this is all ok?
Where is the energy and unrelenting drive to make a difference and achieve a change at Rio+20, back in their home countries and local communities?

And where is the youth campaign against this?

Over the past two years, we’ve seen this around the world. The Arab Spring and the Occupy Movement sparked a shift in the youth movement and brought all of this to the forefront of people’s lives. It was inspiring to see and reaffirming that a small minority can make a huge difference and that change is possible. We saw young people prepared to fight – sometimes losing their lives in the process – in the struggle to make the world a better place.

One of the world’s most famous environmentalists, Marina Silva, who spoke this morning at the Youth 

Blast said,

“People ask me whether I’m pessimistic or optimistic. That’s all I hear around Rio+20. But I answer that I am not pessimistic and not optimistic. But I am persistent.”

Youth are certainly persistent. After all, here they all are again at the next international conference. The youthful energy, however, is not here. The past few years appear to have taken their toll on the environmental youth movement, and yet there has never been a more needed time for young people to be enthusiastic, organised, strategic and determined to change policy.

How do we get that back? We may just have to stop saying all these words and get back to shouting, lobbying, challenging, provoking and ‘speaking truth to power’ in a way that is specific, targeted and focused on change and not the continued word bath of environmental buzz words.

Originally posted on youthpolicy.org 

Author: 

Alex Farrow