Children s statement on climate change

Children s statement on climate change

You have our future in your hands when you represent us at the UN Copenhagen Climate Talks in December. We have taken the time to tell you what we think, and so you have the big responsibility to make our voices heard. The decisions being taken by adults today will affect our future. We can t wait until we have grown up and taken charge before someone looks after our planet, because by then it will be too late. The things that worry us most about climate change are the earth getting hotter, making sea levels rise and causing flooding. We also worry that wildlife and animals will die. If the ice caps melt and extreme weather happens, there might be a lot of death and disease. Future generations will suffer. It might even mean human extinction. Food, water and fuel will run out, and pollution will be much worse. All the trees will be cut down, and there will be no fish left. It is your responsibility at Copenhagen to represent us, to make sure that all UN countries sign up to big cuts in carbon by 2050. We don t care about politicians being popular and winning elections. We care about our world and saving humans, animals and nature.

Please act like this is an emergency and not something to lock in a drawer and think about later on. Don t let our generation be the people that others look back on and blame. Listen to us, it is our lives that will be most affected and we are worried about I am most worried about the severe effects of climate change, like the increase in flooding in the UK and the very hot summers which we would get; this would cause crops to fail. The animals would not be able to adapt quickly enough to the rapid change so they would die St. Luke s Eco Group Pupils aged 11-15 from Blatchington Mill School Food might become very expensive and scarce, and more will have to be imported Pupils aged 11-15 from Ellen Wilkinson School Thomas, 14 If we don t reduce global warming we ll see more floods, droughts, food shortages, and endangered animals because the hole in the ozone layer will get even bigger The ice caps melting and polar bears and penguins becoming extinct from it Me. That I won t get to see other things and I may get sunburn Emmy, 6 Normality changing what is normal and good for us will not be there for the future Yr 5 & 6 pupils from Kirkby & Great Broughton CE Primary School

Climate change is not only an environmental issue: above all, it is a children s issue. Our opinions matter because whatever you decide will affect us. Make our lives tomorrow more important than profits today. To stop climate change, the government must lead by example and not take a backseat. We want you to Reduce the packaging around food as you only really need one layer, and it all ends up in landfill in the end. If you would cut down on packaging it would save the energy that you would have wasted making the plastic coverings in the first place and cut down the pollution on landfill sites Flavia, 14 Limit pollution and gases given off by factories and other industries Hayley, 14 Make public transport better by making the buses cleaner and tidier, and make the prices cheaper to encourage more people, especially in main cities with large populations Jack, 14 They should be able to limit the usage of energy etc. within homes, and fine people who overuse as an incentive to stop wasting resources Samuel, 14 Invest in carbon capture technology and carbon sequestration Pupils aged 16-19, Thomas Rotherham College

We know that lots of small changes together can make a big difference. We know that we have to do our bit and we are willing to do so. Together we can Recycle more, not leave electronics turned on when I don t need them and I could tell others to do the same Charlie, 13 I can buy organic food and also food from the local area, so that planes aren t flying all over the world for it Jessica, 14 Try and reduce my carbon footprint. I can also try and get my school more involved in saving electricity and heating around the school. I can get my family involved in helping me save energy around the house I could do my part by stopping overcharging my phone and consoles British Trust for Conservation Volunteers (BTCV) Evie, 14 Walk if I need to go somewhere Pupil, 13, Ashton Community Science College

We hope that our thoughts are listened to, and that they mean as much to you as they do to us. We are serious and we are passionate, and we want change. You can and must act now questions about climate change were asked of children and young people across England What do you think that you can do about climate change? What can people in your local community, government, and the international Copenhagen conference do about it? What worries you the most about climate change? With special thanks to all the schools and children and young people who took part. Put your gum in the bin. It costs 10p to remove every blob of gum on the streets. Turn the tap off whilst brushing your teeth. A running tap flows at 15 litres per minute. Brushing your teeth takes roughly 2 minutes, that s 15 x 2 = 30 litres. Calculate your carbon footprint. The average person uses 10 tonnes of carbon a year. This Children s Statement on Climate Change was presented to the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families by children from St Luke s CEVA Primary School, London. The Statement was also given to the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, and was sent to UK delegates of the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen to remind them that, above all, climate change is about children and young people s futures.