We also met and spoke with organisations, including Northern Ireland Environment Link (NIEL) members such as RSPB and Ulster Wildlife, who attended the event and led workshops across a variety of environmental issues. These workshops facilitated important discussions through different mediums – from creative writing to influence local council, to exploring sustainable agriculture. It was evident through these discussions that across every sector and indeed for the rights and well-being of young people and future generations, that climate and environmental issues are now having an impact on every aspect of life. It is not a somewhere-else issue, these impacts are being felt here in Northern Ireland. The Department for Agriculture, Environment, and Rural Affairs (DAERA) Minister Andrew Muir also spoke at the event, emphasising his determination to support environmental change and to protect Lough Neagh.

Climate NI and the Education for Sustainable Development Forum attended the event in collaboration to deliver Climate NI’s Adaptation Workshop. The workshop delivered many elements of climate change training and colleagues from DAERA delivered an outline of the NI Climate Change Adaptation Plan (NICCAP3). This was followed by solutions-focused discussions for climate adaptation within Northern Ireland. From this workshop we received excellent feedback which will be used going forward in our next youth engagement workshop.

The young people who attended the NICCY event provided feedback on what they hope to see happen for young people in Northern Ireland. These ideas included an All-party All-Ireland discussion around climate action and young people’s rights to a fair and sustainable world; direct access to decision-makers and decision-making processes e.g. going to Stormont and speaking with Ministers; for all specialisms within education to include climate change and environmental awareness, as impacts are far-reaching and not just a science or geography issue; and for young people have an ultimately measurable impact on making decisions about their future.

To close the event, we heard from a group of young people who participated in the Children and Young People’s Assembly on the Loss of Biodiversity, which took place in Ireland. They had excellent feedback for the programme and felt that they had their say. They engaged with environmental topics and children’s rights issues with local government and sector professionals.

NICCY and Lough Neagh Stories left us with a message of urgency, hope, and a call to action for young people to be given a voice and use this voice to rally for change. Climate NI’s aim is to continue our ongoing work to raise awareness of climate adaptation, and we hope to lead more workshops to engage young people in this issue – it is their future, and we want to provide them with the knowledge and skills to direct it. Big thanks to NICCY for setting up this opportunity.