Athlone's Natasha leads panel at youth-focused climate event

Athlone's Natasha Maimba, who was appointed as one of Ireland's two United Nations Youth Delegates in September, was among the participants in ECO-UNESCO’s annual Earth Gala climate justice event in Dublin last weekend.

Natasha, a former Our Lady's Bower student and former resident of the direct provision accommodation centre in Lissywollen, was involved in hosting a youth panel discussion at the event held in the Irish Museum of Modern Art on Saturday.

Along with representatives from the Ombudsman for Children’s Office, she hosted a discussion on the topic of: 'Voices for Change: How Can Young People be Advocacy Champions?'

The Earth Gala climate justice event saw the release of interim findings from a survey about young people's attitudes to climate change.

Data from the 2024 Youth Climate Justice Survey was announced by ECO-UNESCO together with five other prominent national youth organisations – Feachtas, Irish Girl Guides, the No Name Club, Poppintree Youth Project and Young Irish Filmmakers.

The survey found that almost three out of four young people aged 14-29 in Ireland (73 per cent) were anxious when thinking about climate change, while one out of three felt hopeful regarding climate action.

Commenting, national director, ECO-UNESCO, Elaine Nevin said: “Our interim Youth Climate Justice Survey results for 2024 show that young people are feeling very anxious about climate change, including young people in Westmeath, but that one in three are also hopeful.

"This is important as young people can feel overwhelmed considering the climate and biodiversity loss, but it is important that organisations like ECO-UNESCO can provide a positive outlet and a channel through which young people can take action."

ECO-UNESCO said a new Youth Climate Justice Manifesto drawn up at the Earth Gala "brought together young people, scholars, policymakers, charity leaders and advocates from across the country to collaborate on solutions for a more sustainable and equitable future."

Discussing the Earth Gala event, Ms Nevin said: "We were thrilled to welcome over 70 young people from around Ireland to our annual Earth Gala, which is a fantastic opportunity for our Youth Climate Advocates to come together, to share their local action projects and to celebrate their achievements.

"This year, young people had the opportunity to speak with key experts and policy makers, and to develop a manifesto around climate and environmental issues."

The Earth Gala climate justice event is an in-person event which is part of the Youth Climate Advocate Programme at ECO-UNESCO, funded by the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, through the Youth Climate Justice Fund.

The event was attended by special guest the Deputy Lord Mayor of Dublin, Donna Cooney, while Stefania Giannini, assistant director-general for education at UNESCO, welcomed participants to the day with a video message highlighting the importance of youth participation.