As a City Council Strategic Priority Event, Councillors Sarina Gersher and Mairin Loewen hosted a Youth Climate Action Forum for grade 8 to 12 students on October 30, 2019. Over 140 students participated in the event.
This event looked to build capacity for youth to engage on climate issues in Saskatoon. Youth bring important voices and energy to climate change conversations and actions, but are often missing in the more formal decision-making processes.
Teachers and students were invited to apply to attend a half-day session to learn about what Saskatoon is doing to address climate change. There were discussions on the content of the plans, the processes available for youth and the public to have their voices heard, and networking among the youth. The intent was for youth to come away from the event understanding better what the City is doing, connected to what other community and student groups are working on, and feeling empowered and knowledgeable about how they can get involved in the climate decisions affecting their city.
A summary document was compiled of what we heard. This document is available for download here, and summarizes the events of the day, the feedback received and how the goals of the event were successfully met.
