Kids crave extra focus on climate
Youngsters say Government should be doing more to meet environmental goals
While thousands of Kiwis were glued to their screens to find out what Budget 2022 would mean for their wallets, young Northlanders had more far-reaching concerns.
They wanted to know what kind of planet they’ll inherit.
Evie Trotter, 13, and Ronan Leung, 12, from Springbank School near Kerikeri, spent last night poring over the Budget’s climate change initiatives.
Today they plan to present their views to their classmates and pen a letter to this newspaper.
Ronan, who lives in Waimate North, noted he would turn 41 in 2050 — the Government’s target date for reaching zero net emissions.
“By 2050 we’ll be in charge. We’ll be making sure the world is operating well and not going back to how it was before.”
Evie, from Russell, said if climate change wasn’t fixed now, by 2050 it would be too late.
“It’s our future and our children’s future.”
She had hoped to see a greater focus on education to make sure young people understood climate change issues.
That would make them more likely to play their part in restoring the planet, she said.
Evie approved of the nature-based solutions in the Government’s Emissions Reduction Plan — such as planting native forests to absorb carbon — as well as help for low-income families to swap gas-guzzlers for EVs.
However, she thought the scheme should be extended to young people because they often inherited the oldest, least-energy-efficient car in the family.
Evie also wanted more done to encourage cycling, car-pooling and public transport, especially in places like Northland where cycle lanes and buses were scarce and passenger trains non-existent.
She was also concerned climate change could have a bigger effect on the poor, especially in coastal areas.
If a poor family’s house was threatened by rising sea levels they might be unable to sell it and hence unable to buy another home.
Ronan worried about the effect on ecosystems.
Earlier this week he had seen a news item about sea sponges dying in Fiordland due to unusually warm seas.
“Every animal has its own job. If one is disrupted the whole ecosystem can fall apart.”
Ronan traced his interest in the environment to David Attenborough documentaries and following current events with his parents.
Evie’s interest in climate issues was sparked by Swedish activist Greta Thunberg and an aunt who encouraged her to organise Russell’s first climate change protest in 2019.