The world is embarking on a green transition – a shift towards an environmentally sustainable and climate-friendly planet, which is critical not only for responding to the global climate crisis, but for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
A successful transition to a greener world will depend on the development of green skills, including technical knowledge to enable the use of green technologies in occupational settings, as well as a range of values and attitudes to facilitate environmentally sustainable decisions in life as well as in work.
Green skills have heightened importance for young people. For starters, climate change disproportionately impacts adolescents and youth. It most heavily affects poorer countries, many of which have the largest youth populations. These countries contribute little to global greenhouse gas emissions and also have the most limited capacity to adapt to the climate crisis.
Further, young people will suffer the impacts of climate change for longer than any other population group. Their reproductive lives will be particularly affected, with the warming planet expected to worsen maternal and neonatal health outcomes for future generations.
With this in mind, the theme for International Youth Day this year is Green skills for youth: Towards a sustainable world.
UNFPA champions the rights of young people and works to enable them to fulfill their potential. Girls in particular must be among the new generation of leaders building our sustainable future, as they are the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. In national commitments to increase green skills, men and boys are more frequently recognized as change agents than are women and girls. As world leaders call for a future of green skills among youth, girls must not be excluded.
Comprehensive sexuality education provides young people with valuable information and skills related to climate change, such as how to identify its impacts on sexual and reproductive health. Investment in comprehensive sexuality education and empowerment programmes is needed to build the skills of young leaders. Young people who develop green skills will also be better prepared to enter workforces amid a growing share of green jobs and opportunities – demand for green skills is outpacing supply.
Policy choices made today will profoundly affect future generations. Young people must be able to shape these decisions based on their rights and priorities. Young innovators are already defining a sustainable green future, contributing to efforts to adapt to climate change, including by identifying the needs of the most vulnerable. Inclusive and female-centred input must be prioritized to ensure that the needs of women and girls and other marginalized groups are addressed.
To mark International Youth Day, the Office of the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth will run a campaign to showcase young people’s resilience, resourcefulness and leadership in creating a better world for all. The office will “hand over” its social media channels to a different young person each day throughout the month of August, culminating in a first-of-its-kind takeover highlighting the many ways that young people are contributing to achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals around the world.
In addition, the Department of Economic and Social Affairs will organize a global webinar, in collaboration with the United Nations Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth and Generation Unlimited. The webinar will offer critical information and promote an exchange of ideas on green skills for youth, featuring perspectives from international organizations, national governments and young experts. You can find more information here.
