Asia Pacific Youths in Different Faiths Unite on Climate Change Action
Youth is the last hope to save the earth from impacts of climate change. With high passion and courage to face the challenges, make youths as a brightest hope to protect this earth. But not enough people in this world believe that youth can make a change. Fortunately I met with people who believe youth can be agent of change, until I arrived in Nong Jok, Thailand, September 28-30, 2009. I represented Bali Collaboration on Climate Change and Indonesia to attend Asian Youth Training Workshop on Climate Change and Interfaith Consultation on Climate Change that organized by Asian Muslim Action Network, Asian Resource Foundation and Archbishop of Uppsala Primate Church of Sweden. 24 of great youths from 14 Countries (Australia, Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Japan, Philippine, South Korea, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Thailand) trained about climate change and how to do good advocasy. Each youth who have different faiths presented the relation between their faith and nature. Their thought was very wonderful although they are still young. No one show the exclusivism of own faith, their each presentation gave the inspiration and new information to all of us. We had conclusion that every faith teach us to respect and love the earth. Small thing in this workshop also reminded and taught me, when I and head of committee washed the dishes. Actually, all of the participants should be wash their own dishes but we saw many dishses left on the table. My friend, that was a head of committee said “How can we take care the environment if we can not responsible with ourselves, We had many Speaker but less who can become Practicer or both”.
Don’t wanna lose the chance, I also did World Silent Day (WSD) Advocasy, just when I putted WSD T-shirt upon my thigh. Suddenly everybody looked at that T-Shirt and asked how much the price! I was surprised my new friends were very enthusiastic to see WSD T-shirt and stopped the meeting for a while. I was so grateful to my friend from Nepal that helped me directly to do promotions. Other friends gave advice to our action plan to sell the T-shirt for campaign like I do. Glory WSD!
When my friends still focus on WSD T-shirt, I also spreaded signature forms, I got good responses too, many of the participants told me that they ready to help me spread the signature form to people in their own countries. When Cultural night show, I also told Pablo Neruda’s Poetry about Silence.
In the last of workshop, we had initiative to make new network among us and made the Youth Declaration to spread in UN Climate Talks. Our new Network Organization named Asia Pacific Youth’s Network on Climate Change (AYCC) (www.ayccnet.org: The Website just begin), with An International Coordinator and Our International Secretariate from/in Nepal. I am also as a Country Coordinator of Indonesia. Our declaration containing our statements about our existence and our concerned about many problem caused of climate change in our own country and some recommendation we suggested to United Nations and all of heads of Government in every country who attend Climate Change Talks.
The workshop was fantastic and full of spirit and joys, as our age which have high passion. Still with big spirit, after the workshop we attended “Interfaith Consultation on Climate Change” at Bangkok, October 1-3, 2009. Now is our turn to collaborate with elders and more seriously discuss about action plan and sharing about their researches and experiences or programmes they had. I as one of Indonesia delegation told our statement of conclusion from the workshop and my other friends told our declaration in front of all participants. Never forget to ask the signatures and selling the WSD T-shirt, I took the chance to do my campaign, and I got many signatures from elder participants. Other way of my campaign is promote Solidarity 21. I got 2 persons who gave me 21 of their money currency, one from Japan and one from India. Shortly, i can say that our (Bali Collaboration on Climate Change) efforts to tackle climate change by WSD action accepted with the participants of forum which I attended. I hope those steps will give much positive impact to sustainability of living things in the earth, not only promise and theory, but real action.
Let’s help the youth to do better mitigation and adaptation actions.
Before I forget, Important thing I got in Advocasy Technic Session by Sister Lydia is the question :
“ARE YOU READY TO DIE FOR WHAT YOU FIGHT FOR?”.
By G.A. Fransiska Kusuma Dewi
