Water and youth: We need to be at the heart of climate change negotiations

This year the 17^th United Nations Climate Change Conference of Youth (COY17) gathered over 1000 delegates from 150 countries, and I was one of them. During three days of intense work, we participated in workshops, plenaries, and breakout sessions. We developed our capacities on topics such as the role of youth in climate adaptation, climate sensibilization and communication, and facilitation for climate change awareness. It was also a space for cultural exchange that broadened my perspective on the diversity of realities and contexts interlinked to a common challenge: climate change.

Recognizing emotions, triggering action

One of the questions that made me reflect the most is how climate change makes me feel in my daily life. Most of the conversation about climate change is on scientific data, which is fundamental for decision-making. However, emotions are a universal language and have the power to trigger actions. I realised that climate change makes me feel sad. Our poor choices are destroying the beauty of the world we live in as well as our livelihoods. But it also makes me feel motivated and empowered. Climate change impacts are felt the most through water. With my advocacy and work at SIWI, I am contributing to strengthening water governance and building resilience.

Youth engagement is indispensable to ensure sustainability and preserve the rights and needs of future generations, including access to clean water and sanitation. We have inherited many challenges, but we are committed to finding solutions and improving this situation for future generations.

Through this experience at COY, I have identified three key elements for successful and meaningful youth inclusion:

1. Horizontal intergenerational and intersectoral knowledge exchange
2. Secondly, transparent and timely communication
3. Education and awareness