Young leaders initiate regional network on climate issue

Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Bogor, West Java

The Asian Young Leaders Climate Forum (AYLCF) in Bogor ended Friday with the 35 participants from 14 countries producing an action plan and a shared, strong commitment toward building a network in the Asia-Pacific to address climate change issues.

Their commitment is set out in a communique, to be presented during a session of the ongoing United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC) conference in Nusa Dua, Bali, scheduled for Tuesday.

The communique is the result of a five-day workshop facilitated by the British Council, the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF).

The workshop, which ran from Dec. 5-8 in Bogor, was attended by representatives from China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

Although it is an "Asian forum" due to the importance of the issue, among the participants also were young people from Australia, New Zealand and United Kingdom.

"They share a strong commitment to work together for climate security. They have a lot of ideas, but what brings them together is the idea to work together to make changes in the region," said Christopher Palmer, assistant director for learning and creativity at the British Council.

"Through this forum, these young people have told us what to do and what we can do to help," Palmer added.

He emphasized that the communique would be a starting point for Asia-Pacific youths to become involved in promoting awareness on climate issues. The British Council has pledged financial support for youth and climate programs in the region for the three-year project.

The young leaders of the AYLCF will implement their strategic action plan in their respective countries, with the support of the British Council.

Apart from discussions held indoors, the participants also had an opportunity to look at the diversity of the tropical forest surrounding the CIFOR campus. They also planted trees on a roadside in Dermaga, Bogor, as part of the week-long forum.

"The only way to effectively mitigate the risks of climate change is to act together now," said Ibnu Najib, an Indonesian participant.

Aside from promoting common understanding on climate change and global warming, the forum also created an important step towards establishing a strong regional network.

During the forum, it was revealed that participants generally wanted to do something to help the planet survive climate change, but many of them did not know how.

"I have always said I would wait until I graduate, and then I would try to make a difference. But now I've become frustrated with my own inaction. So I tried to think of what I possible skills I might have that I could use to make changes," said Larissa Brown of Australia. "I realized that I was an expert in being a frustrated young person who passionately wanted to make a better world, but didn't know how."

Carrying the theme Tomorrow Together Now, the AYLCF provides a platform for young leaders to show the world that they are not merely concerned about climate security, but also are ready to take an active role in dealing with the global issue.