The Youth Advisory Group on Climate Change will be a cornerstone of U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres’ climate action.
Last week, the United Nations announced those selected for the Youth Advisory Group on Climate Change class of 2023. The seven young climate leaders, based throughout the globe and specializing in various environmental challenges, will be called upon to advise U.S. Secretary-General, António Guterres.
The move comes as the U.S. government and other powerful entities look beyond traditional hierarchical structures that favor older, more experienced politicians and advisors and toward the generation that will be most affected by the crisis.
“Climate change is the fight of our lives – and young people have been on the frontlines leading the charge for climate justice,” said Guterres, a Portuguese lawyer, and diplomat who has served as the UN Secretary-General since 2017 in a statement. Guterres has stressed the importance of climate action during his time in office, announcing on a visit to Tuvula in 2019 that “as Secretary-General of the UN, I have many battles, but as a grandfather, the struggle against climate change is the fight of my life.”
Those selected as this year’s Advisory Group include Polish energy transition advocate Beniamin Strzelecki, Gambian activist Fatou Jeng, Saint Lucian climate and development advocate Jevanic Henry, indigenous youth activist Josefa Tauli, Colombian/ Paraguayan social entrepreneur Joice Mendez, Irish Fridays For Future activist Saoirse Exton, and Pakistani-American organizer Ayisha Siddiqa.
“As an organizer and youth activist, I have been working towards pushing the intergovernmental space further on climate ambition. It is a great honor to continue doing this work as an advisor to the Secretary-General,” said Ayisha Siddiqa of her appointment to the council. Siddiqa is a tribal land defender and Co-founder of the global coalition Polluters Out and climate justice training course Fossil Free University. Alongside the likes of Ramla Ali, Cate Blanchett, and Angela Bassett, 24-year-old Siddiqa was appointed one of TIME’s 2023 women of the year, an accolade granted to 12 women “using their voices to fight for a more equal world.”
Council member and Irish activist Saoirse Exton set up a local Friday’s For Future branch in her home city, Limerick, at just 14 years old. Since she has worked tirelessly to incite climate action. According to the U.N., Exton (an Irish speaker) expounds that “the wealth of knowledge held in traditional languages and storytelling has the power to re-establish the vital concept of Earth as sacred within capitalism imposed mindset.” Correspondingly, the historical oppression of the Irish people informed Exton’s understanding of the climate crisis. “The climate crisis is the culmination of centuries of exploitative and extractivist policy and attitudes. It is vital that we, as young people, are brought into the fray of decision-making on climate change so that we may continue to represent our generation in protecting our planet,” she told the UN.
The members of the Youth Advisory Group will work alongside youth climate movements and leaders worldwide and directly consult the Secretary-General.
Images courtesy of The United Nations
