Minister with responsibility for culture in the Prime Minister’s Office Senator Dr Shantal Munro-Knight is calling on the youth to not only speak out about the climate change crisis, but to also fight for change.
Delivering the featured remarks at the opening ceremony of The Barbados Youth Climate Action Summit & Expo, at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre (LESC) on Friday, the Government senator said that while the fight against climate change could be deemed a challenge, it is not fair for the youth to have to carry the burden alone.
She said Government and leaders of agencies, including UNICEF and the United Nations must walk with the youth on the journey.
“It must not be a flavor of the month. Our commitment must be demonstrated by our willingness to bring them to the table and also to put resources where our mouth is. Very often we look at moments like these where we have conferences and where we can feel pretty, but it is what happens after we leave this moment that then tells us and shows us where our commitment lies.
“I want to challenge all of us, that again in the context of this climate crisis that we face, that there is no option to retreat. There is no option for us to fail. What we can do again is to go boldly, perhaps to shout loudly, but most importantly what we can do is to go together,” she said.
Dr Munro-Knight, who isworking on Government’s climate finance agenda, issued the reminder that between 2007 and 2017, natural disasters cost the region $47 billion in losses and damages. She added that annually, most of the economies in the region face a loss of over five per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which she said is fundamental for small-island developing states.
Minister of Environment and National Beautification, Green and Blue Economy, Adrian Forde who also delivered remarks at the event, appealed to the youth to find ways and engage in practices that will help to protect the environment.
He said the youth could get involved in planting trees, which are very useful to the preservation of the environment. Forde also suggested that the youth use their voices to speak out against pollution and illegal dumping which have a negative impact on the country’s physical infrastructure.
“All of these things that we do can affect our environment. So I want young persons to be able to speak out, to be the champions of this noble cause, to be the voice of the voiceless,” Forde said.
Executive Director of the Ashley Lashley Foundation and UNICEF Youth Advocate Ashley Lashley said that a recent report launched by UNICEF revealed that one billion children worldwide are at an extreme risk of the impacts of the climate crisis. She said worldwide, children’s rights to clean water, nutritious food, and access to good health are also being affected by the impact of the climate crisis.
“The economic impact in mitigating and adapting better to the climate crisis if left unchecked can have serious devastating consequences in securing a safe and healthy future for our children, especially those living in small-island developing states like Barbados. This is why I am consciously calling on all multilateral institutions to stop speaking about sustainability to climate resilience without providing small-island developing states with far greater access to grant funding and other resources,” Lashley said.
She noted that the Barbados Youth Climate Action and Expo will mobilize children and youth as future agents of change within Barbados through annual informative educational and intergenerational dialog while creating a designated Barbados Youth Climate Action Team.
