Green Venture’s stewardship program is devoted to supporting youth climate activists in the Steel City
C/O Emma Shemko
By: Emma Shemko, Arts & Culture Contributor
Climate anxiety is increasingly becoming a universal experience. In the face of severe climate events, there is a sense of impending doom weighing us all down. From the devastating floods in Pakistan to the wildfires in British Columbia and the degradation of Indigenous lands, many of us are beginning to wonder if we’re watching our futures go up in smoke. However, organizations such as Green Venture, a local not-for-profit, are providing ways to take action.
One way Green Venture offers youth to take action is through their stewardship program, YouthQuake. The program aims to engage youth aged 14 to 24 in leading environmental conversations and hands-on activities.
“The best way to alleviate climate anxiety is taking action and YouthQuake can be a great place to do just that,” said Heather Govender, program manager at Green Venture.
YouthQuake runs both online and in-person on the second and fourth Wednesdays of every month. Long-term commitment is not required to attend these meetings and in-person meetings take place at the EcoHouse on 22 Veevers Dr., the home base of Green Venture.
Youth are a critical component in the fight to mitigate the climate crisis. Although their concerns about climate change are often cast aside, they continue to fight, inspire and demand climate justice and young people often have far more influence on elected representatives and big corporations than older generations realize.
“I think it's important to give [youth] a platform to find and use their voices and to tell our elected representatives what they want to see if that's where things go and just learn how they can make a positive impact,” said Govender.
I think it's important to give [youth] a platform to find and use their voices and to tell our elected representatives what they want to see if that's where things go and just learn how they can make a positive impact."
Heather Govender, program manager at Green Venture
Giving youth a spotlight to express their concerns and always showing them their voices matter is one important step older generations can take to help create a healthier planet for all.
“Regardless of whether you consider yourself an environmentalist, you're completely dependent on the planet. This is where we get our food, our water. Good food to eat, clean air to breathe and clean water to drink is absolutely essential to every single person on the planet,” said Govender.
The Silhouette attended YouthQuake’s Sept. 28 meeting. Young activists—Aria Dalla Pasqua, Emelea Shaua, Isabella Goldner and Jasmine Montrichard—led a gardening activity to promote the idea of maintaining healthy forests and increasing wildlife diversity.
They practiced how to properly plant seeds to grow food from home and reduce energy consumption. They also made planter boxes intentionally designed to increase the variety of plant choices for pollinators. In previous meetings, activities and conversations were centered around gardening, supporting bee and bird populations, foraging, waste management and fast fashion.
There is lot of pressure is placed on individuals, particularly youth to change the world, but not everyone has the resources to do so. Sustainable consumer choices such as avoiding fast fashion brands, going vegan, or purchasing natural products are too expensive for many university students who are on a budget. But YouthQuake can be a great starting point for those who are new to environmentalism and want to kickstart their journey as activists.
"Remember to be forgiving of yourself. It does not rest solely on your shoulders to save the planet. We're limited by the options that are available to us,” said Govender.
"Remember to be forgiving of yourself. It does not rest solely on your shoulders to save the planet. We're limited by the options that are available to us."
Heather Govender, program manager at Green Venture
She also kindly encourages McMaster students to get involved.
“McMaster students should join YouthQuake because it is a safe, positive space to decompress and talk about whatever environmental topics are on your mind,” explained Govender.
Climate doomism doesn’t have to signify an ending. Instead, fears can be turned into positive action, through programs such as Green Venture's YouthQuake.
By Sam Marchetti, Contributor
On Sept. 27, I saw something wonderful. In the 10 minute drive from my house to the Oakville GO station on Friday, I saw a class walking the streets with their teachers holding signs up. I saw a group of four high school students at a bus shelter farther down the road, brandishing large signs with phrases like “don’t be a fossil fool” and “I’m skipping lessons so I can teach you one”.
That morning, I made my way down to Queen’s Park in Toronto. I, unfortunately, could not stay for the climate march. But I chanted and stood with those near Queen’s Park station for as long as I could. Anyone who knows me knows that I’ve been concerned about climate change for years. Those who know me best know that I’ve given up hope more than once. It was incredible to know that I was standing with just a small proportion of the millions of people marching around the world. There have been climate strikes and marches before, I have even attended a few of them. Eventually, though, I always ended up feeling defeated. For once, it felt like this time was different.
So, to all of you reading, let this time be different. Our climate emergency is no longer a problem that can be solved by our actions as individuals. We need the governments of the world to stand with us and to implement policies that will curb greenhouse gas emissions on a global scale and at an unprecedented rate. This isn’t an easy task, and it’s one that we certainly will not accomplish through one day of marching and striking in the streets. There are two things we need to do if we want these strikes to mean something.
First and foremost, we need to keep marching. The next time you hear about a climate protest, march, rally or strike, go to it. Don’t second-guess it, just do it. It doesn’t matter if there are another 500,000 people there and it doesn’t matter if there are just five. Most importantly, it doesn’t matter who you are. Whether or not you have contributed so far to this cause, we need you. We need your activism. We need to see you in the streets, to hear you in the media and to help keep our politicians watching us. Keep the momentum going and scream as loud as you can.
The second thing is equally as important: you need to vote. Marching, screaming and getting our politicians to see what we want is meaningless unless we can hold them to it. If we don’t vote, they don’t have to listen to us. It is imperative that we show them that we have the power and that we will not allow them to sit idly while the Earth burns. Register to vote, right now (I’ll even give you the link - www.elections.ca). In October, show up to the polls. Don’t just make your voice heard, make it count.
The marches on Sept. 27, 2019 were incredible. This wasn’t the first time I’ve felt that kind of hope, but I think this time it might not fail me.
This is my plea to you. Let this time be different.
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By Morgan Parcells, Contributor
Sixteen-year-old Greta Thunberg agrees: hot girl summer was way too hot.
At the forefront of a global sustainability movement, Greta Thunberg seems to have lit a fire amongst younger generations. She inspired hundreds of thousands of individuals to take part in Fridays For Future, Greta’s very own climate strike, across the world on Sept. 27, 2019.
On Aug. 20, 2018, Thunberg singlehandedly began the development of her global movement with the very first Fridays For Future protest outside of her local parliament. The following week, her fellow students joined her in taking a stand for the environment. After only a few weeks, Fridays For Future became a weekly occurrence.
Thunberg’s ideas quickly garnered attention from neighbouring countries and Fridays For Future began to spread internationally. By February 2019, more than 30 countries across the world were participating. In August 2019, Thunberg attended the United Nations’ Climate Summit in the United States, and students in over 165 countries took part in Fridays For Future.
To some, the idea of climate activism is an entirely new idea. However, others may believe that an environmental political movement has been at play for a greater portion of history. The question stands: how long have we known about the climate crisis?
In 1896, the first scientific evidence of human-induced climate change was discovered: Swedish scientist Svente Arrhenius found that human carbon emissions have a direct contribution to the warming of the atmosphere.
In 1938, British inventor and engineer Guy Stewart Callendar posited that a correlation exists between the warming land temperatures and human carbon emissions. Callendar’s research was largely ignored by the scientific community of his time.
In 1960, American scientist Charles David Keeling — known for the Keeling Curve — found that carbon dioxide emissions were rising.
Clearly, the science has been in our grasp for over a century, but only relatively recently have we begun paying significant attention. Many credit Thunberg as the sole pivotal voice in the conversation around global climate issues. While her impact is nearly unmatched in the social world, the voice of Thunberg is not a lonely one. For decades, there have been voices of colour proclaiming the same message as Thunberg. Although her message is undoubtedly an important one, it would be disappointing to look past the second message Thunberg is sending — that the world only listens when white activists decide to speak up.
Despite doing the same work as Thunberg, climate change activists of colour are largely ignored.
Autumn Peltier, 13-year-old water advocate, addresses UN: pic.twitter.com/KaJ1aW5610
— Arlan 👊🏾 (@ArlanWasHere) September 28, 2019
Only 15 years old, Indigenous activist Autumn Peltier addressed the United Nations on the same day as Thunberg, urging the organization to protect the world’s universal right to clean water. She has been an advocate for these issues for the majority of her young life, having attended the Children’s Climate Conference in Sweden at only 11 years old and even personally addressing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about his broken promises regarding Indigenous Canadian populations. At the age of 14, Autumn was named chief water commissioner by the Anishinabek Nation.
Eleven-year-old Ridhima Pandey calls Uttarakhand, India home and has been a climate change activist for the past few years. When she was only nine years old, Pandey filed a legal complaint against the Indian government for their failure to reduce and regulate the emission of greenhouse gases that heavily contribute to climate change. Her petition reached the National Green Tribunal.
Greta has done amazing work in calling for action on the #ClimateEmergency.
But don't forget Ridhima, Kaluki, Aditya, Nina, Autumn, Leah, or any of the other incredible young activists working for the future of this planet. https://t.co/CgheGTYtaR pic.twitter.com/DyuY1cWjh9— Greenpeace International (@Greenpeace) October 5, 2019
Beyond the two bright individuals detailed above, there exists a world of young climate leaders of colour who face global issues at a harsher level than most white communities will ever see.
The choice to champion Thunberg as the leader of the global climate advocacy movement holds a large amount of political weight behind it, exposing our tendency to champion those with lighter skin in place of coloured individuals who work just as hard, if not harder.
It is not wrong of us to recognize Thunberg’s dedication, passion and undying mission to save the world. But it is most definitely wrong of us to fail to acknowledge and appreciate the voices of colour who have been pushing this conversation for decades.
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