Aside from being custodians of the environment, youths should understand the imminent threat of climate change on their collective futures. To manage what is unavoidable (adaptation) and avoid what is unmanageable (mitigation), youths must prioritise environmental studies as fundamental to their education.

I expect young people to be at the forefront of efforts to address the climate crisis. We should have the needs of young people at the forefront when it comes to climate adaptation and climate financing. We must also have opportunities for young Africans to innovate and provide climate solutions. For COP27, I am hoping there is a youth advisory board to ensure that the needs of young people are fully represented.

When the young people are not placed strategically to address the challenges especially environmental and climate change, then that nation is doomed. Young people are the strength of this nation; it is also, therefore very, imperative that youth can be pivotal to building social collation, economic prosperity, and environmental sustainability.

And this is probably a good place for me to end by just saying that the issue of climate change is a perfect example of why young people have to lead. Because old people, they've created a mess, and then they'll be gone. And then you -- (applause) -- you're the ones who have to deal with it. And also what happens is old people get set in their ways. So the older you get, the more likely you are to say, that's how it's always been so that's how I'm going to keep on doing it -- even if there's a better way to do things. Young people, they're asking, well, why do I have to do it that way? Let's try it this way. And that kind of willingness to accept challenges and try things in a new way, to not be stuck in the past, or to look towards the future, that's what all of you represent.

Climate change does not know the face of a woman, man, rich, or even the poor. We need to take environmental issues seriously. We need to plant trees; we need to make policies that touch human beings; we need to stop burning our bushes. The issue of wildlife is very important because we need to coexist with our nature.

It is deeply inspiring that young people around the world, such as the Ugandan, Vanessa Nakate, are taking up the cause of climate change, as it is their future that will be affected.

For me, seeing energy and organizing from young people is incredibly motivating. I grew up feeling ambivalent to the world. I knew things were wrong, but I saw no way to change it beyond writing and reporting. The next generation can't afford such feelings of defeat. They're tackling the climate crisis from all angles, and it's so inspiring.

(What advice would you give to young people who are currently concerned about the state of the world and who want to fight against environmental destruction and big business?) There are endless organizations that have sprung up since Trump entered office to fight many of his terrible decisions and appointments.There are also environmental organizations that have been around since the seventies. Join a group that appeals to you and work on the issue that most alarms or impinges on you. No one else can tell you what to join or what to work on. It has to be something that actually gets you excited, angry, and passionate, not something you think you should care about.

We can only better take care of the planet when we are also doing well. As we advocate and fight for climate justice, it’s really important that young people really prioritize their mental health and their own self care, to find out, what is self care to them?

People need to enhance their knowledge about the environment and demand action against climate change... We need to educate ourselves to understand the global processes linked to the climate crisis, to see what’s happening to our planet. People must learn as much as they can – there’s unlimited amount of information – and spread this information to create a social movement and shift the social norm. Because if we are enough people who demand change and advocate climate action, we will reach a critical mass and will no longer be possible to ignore. It’s not a small task but it’s something that we simply need to do because there’s no other option. Restoring Nature is not only a solution to the climate crisis, but also to the biodiversity crisis and so on.

Raise awareness among young people about this issue. Young people are the ones who need greater awareness of the problem; they are the ones who must participate actively in various activities.

So, first of all, you’ve got to try to get people involved. And a lot of people are busy in their own lives or they don’t think it’s going to make a difference or they’re scared if they’re speaking out against authority. And many of the problems that we’re facing, like trying to create jobs or better opportunity or dealing with poverty or dealing with the environment, these are problems that have been going on for decades. And so, to think that somehow you’re going to change it in a day or a week, and then if it doesn’t happen you just give up, well, then you definitely won’t succeed. So the most important thing that I learned as a young person trying to bring about change is you have to be persistent, and you have to get more people involved, and you have to form relationships with different groups and different organizations. And you have to listen to people about what they’re feeling and what they’re concerned about, and build trust. And then, you have to try to find a small part of the problem and get success on that first, so that maybe from there you can start something else and make it bigger and make it bigger, until over time you are really making a difference in your community and in that problem. But you can’t be impatient. And the great thing about young people is they’re impatient. The biggest problem with young people is they’re impatient. It’s a strength, because it’s what makes you want to change things. But sometimes, you can be disappointed if change doesn’t happen right away and then you just give up. And you just have to stay with it and learn from your failures, as well as your successes.

What's come up the most is youth livelihoods. They also want us to focus on accelerating efforts on tackling issues related to climate change and adaptability, climate finance, and climate education.

We must keep enlightening children on how their decision and daily activities affect the environment. We also must help them to build the knowledge and skills necessary to address complex environmental issues, identify simple, day-to-day actions to improve the environment for a sustainable future.