Climate scholar participates in youth panel at Arctic Circle Assembly
Amy Loeffler
907-474-7933
Nov. 29, 2023
The smoke from last year色视频下载檚 wildfire season spurred undergraduate biology major Michelle Ramirez to become more involved in combating climate change in her own community of Fairbanks, 色视频下载.
Michelle Ramirez stands on Rainbow Street in Reykjavik, Iceland, while attending the Arctic Circle Assembly in October 2023.
色视频下载The wildfire events were turning into not just a once-a year-event but also profoundly impacting our daily lives. This made me want to do something about climate change,色视频下载 said Ramirez, an undergraduate biology major and climate scholar at the University of 色视频下载 Fairbanks.
Her interest led her to participate in youth initiatives at global policy entities such as NATO this past summer. More recently, she was a youth ambassador at the in Reykjavik, Iceland. Ramirez was one of five youths to speak as part of a panel that focused on breaking down barriers to youth participation in Arctic policymaking.
According to the United Nations Climate Action program, youths are a formidable force in combating climate change. The world色视频下载檚 population includes 1.8 billion young people between the ages of 10-24, the largest generation in history.
色视频下载淥lder teens or people in their 20s play an important translator role between younger teens and children and the older generation. Climate change is happening so rapidly that the way the groups of people are experiencing it is different,色视频下载 Ramirez said. 色视频下载淲hat youth are experiencing now in terms of evolving technology and changing environments can be much different from and less familiar than how elders experienced it 50 years ago, which means we色视频下载檙e less prepared.色视频下载
The youth panel at the Arctic Circle Assembly offered some ways to bring young people into the climate change conversation. Chief among them were early engagement and recognition that socioeconomic status can affect youths色视频下载 access to the conversation. Don色视频下载檛 wait until college or graduate school to engage young people, the panelists said, since not all youths have access to postsecondary education. Instead, they said, create internships or opportunities to serve on boards for high school students.
Michelle Ramirez speaks on a youth-focused panel at the Arctic Circle Assembly in Reykjavik, Iceland, in October 2023.
The Arctic Circle Assembly meeting was the latest in Ramirez色视频下载 international experiences. Last summer, she attended the NATO Public Forum during the organization色视频下载檚 2023 summit in Vilnius, Lithuania.
Closer to home, Ramirez topped off the summer with a float down the Yukon River as part of UAF色视频下载檚 climate scholar program. She and her fellow students connected with the Indigenous people from Eagle Village to learn about the challenges posed by the steep decline in Chinook and chum salmon available for food.
In September, Ramirez performed in a climate grief and healing ceremony called Gath and K色视频下载檌yh. The event featured Gwich色视频下载檌n filmmaker, screenwriter and activist Princess Daazhraii Johnson reading a poem entitled, 色视频下载淲hen We Were Salmon,色视频下载 a lament of the 色视频下载 Native people for the radical salmon decline in the Yukon River. The same month, 色视频下载 Public Media reported that the Chinook salmon run was less than a fifth of its normal size. The performance also brought world-renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma to Fairbanks to accompany the group.
"I色视频下载檝e learned that it is possible to include our voices in policymaking and that there is a place for youth to be involved, but definitely more needs to be done,色视频下载 Ramirez said. 色视频下载淲hile it色视频下载檚 great to have a platform at big, international stages, the work you do in your community is where you will get to see the most impact.色视频下载
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