New Climate Youth Delegate appointed
The Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Eamon Ryan TD, in collaboration with the National Youth Council of Ireland, is delighted to announce that Ireland has officially launched its annual Climate Youth Delegate Programme and has appointed a new Climate Youth Delegate for 2023-2024.
Jenny Salmon, a Bachelor of Law student in Trinity College Dublin, has been appointed Ireland’s next Climate Youth Delegate to join the National Climate Delegation for 2023/2024. Jenny will join current Climate Youth Delegate, Oileán Carter-Stritch, as she completes the remainder of her term.
The purpose of the Climate Youth Delegate Programme is to ensure that the perspective and knowledge of young people, and their active participation in international climate policy and processes, informs the work of Ireland’s National Climate Delegation.
The Climate Youth Delegates will be tasked with promoting Ireland’s action on climate change through outreach, engagement and knowledge sharing with youth networks at home and abroad, including through a dedicated social media channel @climateyouthdelegate_irl on Instagram. Each Climate Youth Delegate will also be invited to attend international climate change negotiations as part of Ireland’s official delegation, including COP28 in Dubai later this year.
Commenting on the announcement, Minister Ryan said: “Our Climate Youth Delegate Programme ensures young people in Ireland have the opportunity to actively participate in Ireland’s national and international climate action decision-making process, including through attendance at international climate meetings as part of Ireland’s official climate delegation.
“It is critical we ensure that our young people have the opportunity to contribute their unique perspective, as the generation most affected by the decisions being taken on climate today. The launch of this programme demonstrates Ireland’s commitment to place our youth at the centre of the decision-making process.
“I am delighted to welcome Jenny as our new Climate Youth Delegate and look forward to working with both her and with Oileán.”
Oileán said: “It has been an honour to be the first Climate Youth Delegate and to represent under 25s on the National Climate Delegation. Combining grassroots work in my community with national and international responsibilities has strengthened the work I do on both sides. Young people want climate justice and a sustainable future — they do not have another option.”
Jenny said: “Having had the privilege of being NGO Concern Worldwide’s Youth Climate Ambassador at COP27, I’m really looking forward to using what I’ve learned from Concern’s work around the current impact of climate in the Global South, and what I’ve learned from those who I met at COP27, to motivate and inform me in this role. I hope to highlight that climate is not a ‘future problem’ — just because in Ireland it might feel that way; for so many it is a current reality. This year in particular, with Ireland sharing a seat on the UN Loss and Damage Transitional Committee, it’s a great place for us to start in terms of taking responsibility for climate justice.”
Further details on the programme and this year’s delegates can be found at gov.ie.
Climate Youth Delegate Programme
Each year, the Climate Youth Delegate Programme will appoint one young person from Ireland aged between 18-25 years to be part of Ireland’s national and international climate change efforts for a term of 20 months. The goal of this programme is to provide the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications with a channel to support the active participation of young people in international climate policy and processes and ensure Ireland’s official delegation to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) benefits from the perspectives and knowledges of youth in its work.
Each Climate Youth Delegate will be tasked with raising awareness of Ireland’s international climate action efforts through informative and engaging social media posts, including, where possible, interviews with high-level representatives. Additionally, the Climate Youth Delegate will conduct outreach with youth communities and networks across Ireland to share knowledge and gather ideas and solutions to feed into Ireland’s national and international climate change priorities.
For roughly six months of each year there will be an overlap of two Climate Youth Delegates, one serving as a junior and one as a senior. This longer term was implemented to enhance the learning opportunities arising from the role, encourage the building of strong networks and allow for additional support for each Delegate upon appointment to their role, with the senior Delegate acting in a mentorship role.
As part of their remit, the Climate Youth Delegate will be invited to accompany the Taoiseach, Ministers and Departmental officials at different national and international climate change negotiations each year to represent the voices of Irish youth. These events may include:
- The National Youth Assembly on Climate
- The Annual Climate conference ‘COP’ (Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC)
- The meeting of the Subsidiary Bodies of the UNFCCC (SBs).
COP28 is the 28th Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). COP28 will take place in Expo City, Dubai, UAE from 30 November to 12 December 2023.
