Canadian youth want leaders at Glasgow climate summit to live up to the COP26 'hype' and take action now
CBC
Our planet is changing. So is our journalism. This story is part of a CBC News initiative entitled Our Changing Planet to show and explain the effects of climate change and what is being done about it.
Ahead of the 2021 UN climate summit in Glasgow that begins on Sunday, young people from Ontario's Waterloo region say they're looking forward to concrete action from the dozens of world leaders who will be at COP26.
Members of Eastwood Collegiate's IMPACT Environment Club spoke with CBC K-W ahead of the nearly two-week conference of the parties summit. The high school's environmental projects and initiatives are run through the club, as well as the Grade 12 Environmental Studies program.
"I would really like to see our leaders step up and sort of, as they should, lead the way in making a more sustainable life for us as a community and as a global community," Tatem Benninger said.
"I just really want our leaders to take the leadership and do the right thing."
The primary objective of COP26 is to nudge the world as low as possible within the target band of 1.5 C, which was established under the Paris agreement.
The 1.5 C target is considered the safest climate landing zone the world might still reach, and according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a slip of even half a degree would substantially increase the risks.
Benninger said the momentum being built in the lead-up to the conference should not end in Glasgow.
"We have a tendency, especially us, as the youth of this world to post about something on social media and then forget about it in a week ... this is the future of our whole world, like this is the future of humanity," she said.
"We can argue about anything we want, but if we don't have a planet to live on, then we have nothing. We can't just blame one generation for this, and we can't put it all on one generation because we as students, we're not the ones in power yet, we're not signing these treaties, and I think it's going to take all of us to make change and have it be permanent and effective."
Sinara Shaikh also spoke about "this tendency" among youth to make certain topics, like climate change, a trend.
"We like to hype things up and then eventually the hype dies down and we just forget about it," Shaikh said.
"Those that ... continue to care, and then those that don't, they just, they're like, 'OK, that hypes over, like, we don't care anymore,' basically.
"This is one of those scenarios and situations that I hope that does not happen, because it's not a trend. It's not something that we should just hype and forget about. It's something that we should be thinking about continuously, doing research on it and trying to find solutions. I hope that our generation takes this more seriously and we participate in certain actions that are put out."
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