Young people's role and its importance regarding climate change issue

Climate has become one of the files affecting all segments of society, and young people's participation in climate issues has become essential, as they are among the most vulnerable to climate consequences, such as deteriorating food security, water shortages and natural disasters.

Young people can contribute to accelerating climate action and making some changes by harnessing their efforts and skills in education, developing green technology and striving for a carbon-neutral future. The Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 called for the importance of young people's participation in policy-making that embraces the idea of moving towards green societies.

Over time, young people have become increasingly aware of the challenges and risks that can occur as a result of climate change. Many young people around the world seek sustainable development and work on how best to adapt to climate as well as adopting innovative solutions to solve that dilemma, especially after many attempts by the older generation on the issue of climate, having seen successes in some sectors and others that failed

The number of young people between the ages of 15 and 25 is about 1.2 bn, making up a reasonable proportion of the world's population, and the proportion, when compared to the ages of 35, may rise considerably.

Some organizations have made initial steps towards this, with UNICEF launching the "Youth Voices" Platform, It is a platform for providing an inspiring vision on many issues, the most important of which is the climate. Young people have done some experimentation on the ground, with young people trained to monitor the quality of polluted air occurring in Mongolia which causes health problems for many people and they used data obtained for Governments to improve the situation.

There are various ways to enhance young people's role which include raising their awareness by training and providing them with the necessary skills to adapt to climate, giving them the opportunity to be heard, as well as engaging them in environmental and climate decision-making.

In partnership with UNICEF and the United Nations in Egypt, the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Ministry of the Environment launched an initiative in 2022 to engage young people in addressing climate change issues and to promote their participation in climate action, to encourage them to participate in the discussion of climate change issues and to put forward innovative solutions to them.