UK Youth committed to climate action.

The UK Youth Parliament (UKYP) held their annual conference, 'Climate Revolution' today (12 January 2010) at the British Museum. The event drew together some 200 UKYP members aged 11 – 25 from all over the UK, and was an opportunity for young delegates to reflect on Copenhagen and consider its outcomes in the context of what it means for young people, here and around the world.

Ed Miliband, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, joined the conference for a question and answer session, where youth asked questions ranging from high-speed rail development, youth involvement at COP15, energy from nuclear, and finance flows for adaptation in developing and vulnerable countries.

Concerns over the exclusion of youth and other NGOs from leaders' segment of the Copenhagen negotiations in December were voiced, with youth calling on a lack of transparency in negotiations that directly impact their futures. Ed Miliband agreed that the over-subscription of delegates to the conference had created issues and, more broadly, suggested that reform of the UN negotiating process was required to secure an agreement where the politics matched the science.

The conference was attended by leading youth organisations including UNICEF, the UK Youth Climate Coalition and Plan UK.

Youth voice in decision making

Youth played an active role in the lead up to Copenhagen. DECC is keen to continue working with young people on the criticial issue of climate change and is conducting a short survey with young people to help us shape our climate policies. Young people of today will inherit the legacy of decisions and actions taken on climate change, so it is only fitting that they should have a seat at the decision-making table. Complete the survey here.