The future is now

Only when justice is centered will we see a resilient future for our planet.

It’s finally here. After what seems like many years of delayed climate leadership, the 26th Conference of Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will take place in Glasgow, Scotland from 1-12 November 2021. With discussions still pending on Article 6 of the Paris rule book, the conference is expected to push for a consensus on the final text, as well as climate finance, loss & damage, and enhanced ambitions for countries’ updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) as submitted to the secretariat.

The fifth COP since the signing of the Paris Agreement, and the first COP since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, these two weeks will foreshadow what the coming years will hold for high-level climate leadership. While there is no time for business-as-usual, there is still time to act. And we at Youth4Nature are here to do just that.

Solutions to the intersectional crises of our time lay before us: with youth, with Indigenous and front-line communities, with nature positive actions, and with accountability frameworks. Only when justice is centred will we see a resilient future for our planet.

After 25 years of “climate negotiations” and no tangible effect, we are tired of world leaders romantising the ‘silver bullet’ miracle solution that will save us from the climate crises. Here is the truth: the climate crisis is here and we already have the solutions we need to respond. Solutions that go beyond the climate silo and address the intersecting crises that our communities and our planet are experiencing. Solutions that are already being implemented and led by grassroots and front-line communities around the world. Solutions that are as diverse and robust as our ecosystems and our societies. Solutions that will bring us to a just and resilient future for all.

At COP26, this is where we will be. Pointing to the solutions we already know, pushing for justice-centred approaches, calling for tangible and binding accountability frameworks, including nature as a tool in our toolbox, and taking up and creating space for youth.

This COP, perhaps more than any COP before, presents major challenges regarding representation and justice for Global South countries, for youth, and for Indigenous communities. Both in-person and online, our Youth4Nature team will be pushing for more space to centre youth and Indigenous voices at the decision-making tables and in on-the-ground action. We will hone the COP26 corridors and surrounding events to amplify the solutions already before us and the power that we - communities - have to show true leadership for people, for the planet, and for nature.