9th day of COP28: Youth at the center of climate diplomacy!
On the 9th day of COP28, on December 8, the central theme was “Youth Day, Children, Education, and Skills!”
Each generation, as well as each individual, plays a vital role in climate action, aiming to keep the global temperature rise below 1.5°C.
With this, today’s programming put young people at the center of climate diplomacy, addressing essential themes related to youth engagement in building a sustainable future.
COP28 runs until December 12 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Stay informed about the main events of the 28th United Nations (UN) Conference on Climate Change, with exclusive coverage from Grupo Myr!
Directly from Dubai, our directors Sérgio Myssior and Thiago Metzker continue to actively follow the Climate Summit. Check out our summary of this 9th day of COP28!
*Insert here the COP Dialogue/daily summary for 08/12/Edit
9th day of COP28: The Voice of Youth is Indispensable for Achieving Ambitious Climate Results!
To increase the participation of young people in climate issues, the 9th day of COP28 featured the “Dubai Youth Climate Dialogue,” the second youth-led climate forum at the COP.
This major event allowed direct interaction of youth civil society with negotiators, placing young people in the decision-making regarding climate issues.
Award: Youth Leading Climate Solutions
On this 9th day of COP28, two young women were honored, among hundreds of participants from 120 countries, as winners of the “UN Global Climate Action Awards,” highlighting their efforts to make their local communities more sustainable, resilient, and equitable.
They are:
Michelle Zárate Palomec, 27, from Mexico
Michelle leads initiatives at the Meeting Space of the Original Cultures organization, providing access to clean and sufficient water for highly marginalized indigenous communities in the state of Oaxaca.
In this region, where water resources are scarce and water pollution exacerbates social and gender inequalities, her work is fundamental!
Sebastian Mwaura, 35, from Kenya.
Mwaura is co-founder of Yna Kenya, an initiative dedicated to driving the adoption of electric vehicles.
His main focus is establishing a robust charging network, powered by renewable energy sources.
In addition, Mwaura launched the HerGo program, aimed at attracting women to the electric mobility transportation sector.
The goal is to create 12,000 jobs for women, both as drivers and as owners of charging stations.
Message from the COP28 Youth Climate Champion
Representative of the Government of the United Arab Emirates, Minister Shamma Al Mazrui, COP28 Youth Climate Champion, emphasized the importance of empowering young people to shape climate policies.
“When young people have a place at the table and a voice in decision-making,
they become agents of change.”
(Shamma Al Mazrui)
Children’s Rights
The 9th day of COP28 also included an intergenerational roundtable “From the Most Vulnerable to the Most Valuable: Putting Children’s Rights at the Heart of Climate Action.”
The meeting focused on how climate change disproportionately affects children and the need to integrate children’s needs into all COP decisions.
Launch of the Latin American Youth Movement towards COP30
At the panel for the ‘Launch of the Latin American Youth Movement towards COP30’, the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Marina Silva, received the ‘Megaphone Activism’ award.
Check out the minister’s statement during the event!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASrKxReJDZE
At the same event, Txai Suruí, an indigenous leader, also made her statement about the importance of youth engagement in climate issues. See!
Manifesto ‘For a COP for Children in 2025, in Brazil’
The 14-year-old Colombian activist, Francisco Vera Manzanares, led a call for a more child-centered approach during COP30.
He read the ‘Manifesto for a COP for Children in 2025, in Brazil’, highlighting the need to involve future generations in crucial discussions about the climate emergency.
Francisco stressed the urgency of the situation, mentioning the impacts on children’s rights due to extreme events, and also proposed the development of digital tools to empower students about human rights and climate change.
Learn more in this report from Agência Jovem de Notícia.
“We can no longer ignore that 1 billion children worldwide are having their lives impacted by extreme events, such as floods, prolonged droughts, pollution, and heatwaves. The time has come to recognize and include the voices of children at the COP, responding to their pains, especially those of the most vulnerable: girls, black children, quilombolas, riverside, peripheral, and children with disabilities.”
Francisco Vera Manzanares
(Colombian Activist, 14 years old)
Ministerial Dialogue on Climate Financing
This Friday, December 8, also saw the second high-level meeting of the Ministerial Dialogue on Climate Financing, focusing on reinforcing the provision and mobilization of climate finance.
The meeting aimed to strengthen the political dynamics in negotiations, addressing:
Predictability and delivery of climate finance;
Mobilization of climate finance from various sources, instruments, and channels;
Efforts to achieve a balance between adaptation and mitigation financing.
Panel “Reinventing Cities: Unlocking Actions for a Resilient Urban Future”
How to shape more resilient cities to face climate challenges?
Another highlight of the 9th day of COP28 was the important Panel “Reinventing Cities: Unlocking Actions for a Resilient Urban Future.”
This panel discussed the key role of cities, where more than half of the world’s population resides, in achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement.
The topics discussed were:
- Integrated planning;
- Multi-level governance;
- Integration into international processes;
- Access to international climate finance, exploring ways to overcome barriers faced by urban centers.
The event featured practical examples from the UrbanShift program, funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and led by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), in partnership with the World Resources Institute (WRI), C40 Cities, ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
At the panel, Ana Asti, Undersecretary for Water Security and Sustainability of the State of Rio de Janeiro, contributed her expertise to this enriching discussion.
Our director, Sérgio Myssior, who attended this important panel in person, had the opportunity to talk with Ana Asti. Check it out!
“We presented here today a study on resilience in urban areas, especially the role that urban gardens can have in these zones, where we can offer not only food quality but a series of other benefits to ensure this resilience. I shared here the example of the Socio-Environmental Innovation Park project in Rocinha”.
Ana Asti
(Undersecretary for Water Security and Sustainability of the State of Rio de Janeiro)
Yunus Arikan, Director of Global Advocacy ICLEI, also participated in this panel. See his statement!
Read also: Urban and Environmental Planning: 17 steps to build more sustainable and resilient cities!
Learn more about the global ‘UrbanShift’ Program
UrbanShift is a global program that supports cities in adopting integrated approaches to urban development, building a low-carbon, climate-resilient future where both people and the planet can thrive.
UrbanShift seeks to transform the way cities develop, ensuring a livable future for all, collaborating with more than 20 cities in Asia, Africa, and Latin America on local development projects.
Additionally, it offers training and resources for cities to redesign their urban areas, creating resilient communities where everyone thrives together.
Grupo Myr: Follow our exclusive interviews directly from Dubai!
Today, our directors, Sérgio Myssior and Thiago Metzker, also had the opportunity to talk with more authorities present at COP28.
Check out some interviews and testimonials!
Tiyua Napoleon Uyunkar Kaniras, Governor of Morona Santiago, Ecuador.
Almir Surui, another indigenous leader, also spoke with our directors. Check it out!
Braulio Díaz Castro, Manager of Institutional Relations and Advocacy of ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability talked with the Minister of Cities, Jader Barbalho. Check it out!
Stay updated on the main debates of COP28 with exclusive coverage from Grupo Myr!
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