GRANDCHILDREN'S SPACE
Some of the things our grandchildren are saying about climate change:
T. aged 22: "Seeing increasingly frequent heatwaves, floods and wildfires around the world makes climate change feel much more immediate than it once did. My concern is not just the environmental impact, but the economic and social disruption these events will increasingly cause if we don’t reduce emissions and improve resilience".
E (15 ) living in South Africa: "One of my concerns regarding Climate Change is the rise in sea levels that would highly affect low lying areas such as in my town, which would destroy infrastructure, residential areas, and would impact people and animals in those areas".
T. (16) and C. (18 ) "We have noticed that there’s been an increase in more extreme weather; heatwaves, flooding etc. This can Impact both human wellbeing as well as the natural world. Our concern lies with the extinction of possible species such as polar bears and giant pandas as climate change is impacting their habitats. We feel that perhaps the government hasn’t acted fast enough to reduce these impacts. Not only is this a concern for our generation but also our children’s generation, as they’ll be the ones living with the main consequences."
G (21 ): "I recently became aware from a university friend about the environmental impact of AI tools like chatgpt, that I know to be used by the majority of students I have met. She had read that it is estimated that each question asked to the service emits 4.32 grams of carbon dioxide. Since finding out this information I have been trying to spread awareness to friends and family about its environmental dangers.’
J. aged 20: "'Everyone has a favourite animal as a kid ,and everyone sponsors theirs through WWF. I still remember spending £3 of my pocket money each month and receiving my snow leopard cuddly toy in the post. Memories like that are such a wonderful source of imagination and fascination for children. But those memories are easily forgotten as a young adult as you come to understand the reasons why your favourite animal is endangered and why the natural world as a whole is so threatened. It is crushing to realise how money motivates the adult world as opposed to the innocent fascinations of one's youth. No more children should have to grow up and make that realisation; adults should be able to live out their lives with that same passion and appreciation of nature rather than having to accept this lost emotion as primary school naivety.'"
What are your grandchildren/young folks saying. Please tell us and thank them for letting us know. info@ourgrandchildrensclimate.org.
