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Climate Change Is An Intergenerational Issue:  Hawaii youth must unite and show determination and perseverance toward creating a better future for all
Civil Beat - 11/15/2024
By Mia Nishiguchi & Olivia Sousa

We represent a group of high school students who are worried about our future. Not enough is being done to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gasses that are warming the Earth and fueling climate disasters globally, nationally, and locally.

 

However, when we ponder about our future, we imagine an environment that enables every one of us to reach our fullest potential.

We seek to collaborate with other youth who have the same outlook and want to take action to create a more livable future for all of us. Join us to make your voices heard and help shape a future that inspires hope, restoration, and endless possibilities for future generations. Together, we can make a difference.

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Nevertheless, at times, each of us fears a future of an environment so harsh that we must expend all our waking hours simply trying to survive. It is not a future that inspires hopes of positive endeavors, nor a future that we look forward to.

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From our perspective, our future is being undermined. Maybe it is unintentional, but anyone who keeps up with current events knows that climate-fueled disasters are becoming more frequent and extreme.

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The impact of climate change is all around. Pictured are shoreline stabilization efforts at Royal Kahana Maui condos. (Ludwig Laab/Civil Beat/2022)

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These disasters have affected the lives of everyone, of all ages, no matter where you come from, from the effects of the coastal erosion on the North Shore of Oahu to the increased wildfires in the meadows of Montana to the reduced snowfall in the northeast of the U.S. These clear signs of climate change are a desperate call to action.

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Without action, our future and the future of many generations are endangered.

Throughout our experience witnessing issues across our islands, such as sea levels rising, unpredictable weather, and native species going extinct, it’s clear that change needs to be made.

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Policies must be implemented, and communities must unite to save our country, islands, and homes. We must unite as the youth of our generation and exhibit determination and perseverance toward creating a better future for all.

 

At the current slow reduction rate of greenhouse gas emissions globally and nationally, we are plunging toward a worldwide climate disaster characterized by deadly heat waves, floods, wildfires, and droughts. Far too little has been done to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, even though people have known about climate change for decades.

 

Part of the problem is rooted simply in our economy and lifestyles. Climate scientists who have urged strong action to mitigate climate change have been ignored, and delay has left us in a critical and vulnerable state.

 

Fossil fuels are integrated throughout the economy and into our lifestyles. Individually, we can try to reduce our consumption of fossil fuels.

 

But after trying for a while and having limited success, we realize that it’s a systemic problem. Our economic system severely limits our choices, and it needs to be changed so that we are not so dependent on fossil fuels.

 

Climate change is an intergenerational issue, therefore, we need to work towards our goals, knowing that this is an issue affecting all of us.

 

A couple of years ago, the group that we represent organized the first Climate Future Forum to get youth involved in the legislative process. We worked together with Legislators and learned about bills and what must be done to get them passed and implemented.

 

Building upon the successes of previous events, we are holding another one this Saturday. All youth are invited to participate.

 

From our perspective, our future is being undermined.

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There will be sessions to learn about environmental bills that will be considered by the 2025 Legislature session. Participants will discuss bills, select the ones that align with their interests, track those bills, and learn how to testify on them.

 

Fortunately, the Legislature has a website that makes it easy, and we will learn to utilize it. Lastly, we have the honor of having senators and representatives at the event to help and answer any burning questions that come to mind.

 

We urge all our fellow youth to register for the Climate Future Forum, which will be held at the State Capitol on Saturday, Nov. 16, from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Join us to make your voices heard and help shape a future that inspires hope, restoration, and endless possibilities for future generations.

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To register, click here.

Empower Hawaii’s youth to take action on climate change
Honolulu Star Advertiser - Island Voices - 11/30/2023
By Sophie Pager & Audrey Lin

We represent a group of high school students who are worried about our future because not enough is being done to reduce climate disasters that are occurring globally, nationally, and locally.

 

With our current greenhouse gas emissions nationally, we are plunging toward a worldwide climate disaster characterized by deadly heat waves, floods, wildfires and droughts. If things keep going the way they are now, the global environment will become less livable, and those contributing the least to the problems will likely face the brunt force of them.

 

From our perspective, our future and the futures of generations to come are being undermined, as climate-fueled disasters become more frequent and more extreme. 

However, we are not without hope, and we are fighting for a more just, livable and sustainable future. We seek to collaborate with other youth who have the same outlook and want to take action.

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Despite the causes of climate change being known for decades, far too little has been done to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.  Climate scientists who have urged strong action to mitigate climate change have been ignored.

 

We understand that fossil fuels are integrated throughout the economy and into our lifestyles. Individually, we can try to reduce our consumption of fossil fuels, but we acknowledge that not everyone has the ability to easily reduce their carbon footprint, and we realize that the climate crisis is a systemic problem. Many of our economic and societal systems severely limit our choices; things must be changed so that we become far less dependent on fossil fuels.

 

Last year we, among others, organized the first Climate Future Forum, an event to empower youth in Hawaii to engage more effectively with our state Legislature and make our voices more heard in discussions of climate policy.

 

We had more than 80 youths, 25 nonprofits and more than six legislators participating. By holding workshops on distinct climate change policy angles, teaching youth how to track bills and submit testimonies, and teaching them how to make meaningful connections with their legislators, we gave them the tools to further involve themselves in future legislative discussions. By the end of the forum, the youths had come up with a legislative agenda that they could follow throughout the following 2023 legislative session.

 

Building upon the successes of this first event, we are planning another Climate Future Forum. There will be sessions on environmental bills and policies that will be considered by the Legislature in the 2024 session, with five main policy areas for youth to learn about: regenerative food systems, clean energy and transportation, climate justice and human rights, sustainable infrastructure, and climate and the economy. Participants will discuss the bills and policy goals and select ones they wish to support during the upcoming legislative session.

 

We urge all of our fellow youth to register for this year’s Climate Future Forum, to be held at the state Capitol on Dec. 9 from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. (see bit.ly/climateforum23). Together, we can work to create a livable future that supports our hopes and dreams.

 

Sophie Pager is high school senior and member of Citizens’ Climate Lobby; Audrey Lin is a junior and a leader of the Citizens’ Climate Lobby Hawaii Youth Action Team.

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