COP19 (16/11/13) – Apur Gupta and Alesha Dhillon, United Nations Association, talk about the engagement of young people at the UN Climate Talks.

Gupta says that although young people have a significant engagement at the talks, the challenge of climate change should not be focussed on young people who are speaking about it, but those young people who are not because they are unaware of climate change and how to respond to it.

He says young people should share their experiences of the talks with young people in their home countries.

Dhillon adds that it is important for national governments to educate their youth about climate change because they will be the ones who will live through its effects.

Gupta says there is little for young people to do at the talks to influence national governments but that young people should still take their learning and experiences of the talks back to their home countries. He says if activism begins at the ground level, then national governments will change their stances when they come to the talks.

Dhillon concludes, unlike their adult counterparts, the young people who have attended the talks from around the world are united about the issue of climate change and their futures.