Guardians of the Planet: Asia Pacific Children and Youth Voices on Climate Crisis and Disaster Risk Reduction

The worldwide youth movement that brought over 10 million people to the streets in September 2019, is calling on people across the world to take part in ‘climate strikes’. In Asia and the Pacific, from August 2019 to January 2020, a total of 9,681 children and youth from over 12 countries voiced out their views and opinions on climate disasters. These children and youth represented Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines and the Solomon Islands. They participated through on-line surveys and face-to-face workshops to give voice to their concerns for the well-being of the planet.

Across the region, “Climate crisis” is ranked as the top concerns of all children and youth. 15% of respondents picked “Climate crisis” as their first concern for the future, followed by “Access to work or employment” (13.21%), “Access to education” (13.18%), and “Safe from disaster impacts” (10.65%). “Climate crisis” remains the top 3 concerns in all age groups and countries, except for China. Indeed children and youth see themselves as the “guardians of the planet” and they want to give voice and take action on Climate Crisis.

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