18 January 2021

Young climate activists demand action and inspire hope

As the impacts of climate change intensify with each passing year, more and more young people are joining the movement for positive change. By leading the discussion around climate change, they are also spreading awareness and motivating others to take action. UNICEF partnered with Fridays For Future , an organization founded by Greta Thunberg, to…, María, Mexico, Since childhood, María, 19, has seen the impacts of the climate crisis up close, especially the water crisis that runs throughout Mexico. While droughts and rising temperatures are causing forest fires, cyclones are causing flooding and harvests to be lost. To fight this, she became a full-time climate activist. She believes that the issue of…, Russell, Dominica, Russell Raymond, 17, is a reporter from the Caribbean nation of Dominica. When Hurricane Maria made landfall in September 2017, it devastated his country, submerging streets, blowing roofs off homes and schools and forcing his family to seek shelter. Since then, he has used photography to chronicle the impacts of the hurricane on the island he…, Mitzi, Philippines, Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Mitzi Jonelle Tan, an activist from Manila, has been campaigning for climate justice. As the Philippines was hit by two back-to-back hurricanes in 2020, her organization sprang into action – feeding the communities left hungry and asking them about their problems and how they felt after the storm. “This isn’t just…, Nkosi, Zimbabwe, Nkosilathi Nyathi, 17, is a UNICEF climate activist from Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. He walks us through changes he has witnessed first-hand as a result of climate change. He feels that although young people can see and feel the effects of climate change, many don’t know what’s happening and he wants to change that. “There’s no other time for acting…