On 31 August 2024, UNU-IAS and the AEON Environmental Foundation co-organized a side event of the Yokohama Biodiversity Festival as part of the International Youth Conference on Biodiversity 2024 (IYCB). Featuring participants of the new capacity development programme Global Youth MIDORI platform (GYM), the event discussed the role of youth in addressing global environmental issues and meaningful youth participation in decision-making processes.
Stressing the importance of engaging youth from an early age, Akio Takemoto (Head of Programme and Administration, UNU-IAS) noted that GYM offered long-term opportunities and support for young people to develop integrated solutions addressing biodiversity loss, climate change, decarbonization and circular economy.
Yuan Yoshinaga (AEON Environmental Foundation) highlighted that GYM draws from experiences and knowledge developed through its Asia Students Environment Platform (ASEP), a capacity building programme that has been conducted for ten years, adding that participants were continuously supported through follow-up activities.
Discussing her experience at a recent GYM training session, Mio Otsuka (student, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Chuo University) underlined the importance of outreach activities and social media to advance environmental solutions. She pointed out that although the training session had focused on biodiversity, its participants were from diverse fields including education and climate change.
Rintaro Tomita (student, Graduate School of Engineering, University of Tokyo) emphasized that youth activities and ideas are often seen as innovative and expected to drive new approaches. However, youth support for existing methods of environmental conservation is equally important.
Mr. Tomita also spoke as a panelist in the special closing session of IYCB, stressing the urgent need for collaborative networks and platforms to connect youth working on the interconnected challenges of climate change and biodiversity.
