[Deleted User]

Howdy Climate Action and Climate Justice champions 🙂

As we mark International Youth day 2023, we acknowledge young people’s unprecedented mobilisation around the world showing the massive power they possess to realise climate action and climate justice. From youth on the front-line to youth in policy-making rooms, their message is clear: the older generation has failed, and it is the young who will pay in full — with their very futures, for a better climate.

KujaLink brings together climate action and climate justice organisations/initiatives/movements and leaders behind them to build meaningful connections. We support having youth be part of these organisations/initiatives/movements as valuable contributors of climate action and climate justice.

Hart’s Ladder of Participation (1984) is a useful tool for assessing the different levels of participation by youth in any climate action and climate justice organisation/initative/movement. Assess from the lowest to the highest ladder level :

1) Manipulation.
This step happens when adults use
young people to support causes and
pretend that the causes are inspired by
young people. This rung of the ladder
reflects adultism.

2) Decoration.
This step happens when young people
are used to help or “bolster” a cause in
a relatively indirect way, although adults
do not pretend that the cause is inspired
by young people. This rung of the ladder
reflects adultism.

3) Tokenism.
This step occurs when young people
appear to be given a voice, but in fact
have little or no choice about what they
do or how they participate. This rung of
the ladder reflects adultism.

4) Assigned but informed.
This step is where young people are
assigned a specific role and informed
about how and why they are being
involved. This rung of the ladder can be
embodied by community youth boards.

5) Consulted and informed.
This step happens when young people
give advice on projects or programs
designed and run by adults. The young
people are informed about how their
input will be used and the out comes of
the decisions made by adults. This rung
of the ladder can be embodied by youth
advisory councils or in climate-related workplaces.

6) Adult-initiated, shared
decisions with young people.
This step occurs when projects or
programs are initiated by adults but the
decision-making is shared with young
people. This rung of the ladder can
be embodied by participatory action
research.

” The world is home to 1.8 billion young people between the ages of 10 to 24 — the largest generation of youth in history. Young people are increasingly aware of the challenges and risks presented by the climate crisis and of the opportunity to achieve sustainable development brought by a solution to climate change”- Secretary-General of the United Nations,António Guterres

Discussion