Change for Climate: A youth practice for climate tackling
Climate change is a problem caused by humans that also can be solved by humans. As promised in 2015 Paris COP21, humanity will be obliged to achieve a legally binding universal agreement on climate, with the aim of keeping global warming below 2°C in the next 50 years. Therefore, humanity is in need of a climate consultancy to deal with this global problem. However, there are millions of people from all over the world who do not know how they can improve their life conditions in means of climate by reducing their carbon footprint. On the other hand, youth has proved its importance in social development in several developed countries. Within this context, using youth’s power is an effective solution to create multiplier effects to consult different organizations including business and NGO’s about how to struggle with climate change by taking carbon footprint levels into account both on organizational and personal levels.
What is the solution?
Our approach is to create a climate consultancy youth network which will be able to advise different organizations, NGOs and business, about how to deal with climate change by working on carbon footprint reduction. This network called Climate Change Consultancy Center (4C) will be an effective mediator for youth to understand what climate change is and to lead their community through climate tackling, both on organizational and personal levels. After the activities within C4C, our beneficiary youth group will be members of this youth network qualified in consulting different organizations through climate tackling by testing their environmental capacities and circumstances. Additionally, C4C will be a unique project in Turkey, when Turkey’s climate tackling history is considered; and as a youth network Climate Change Consultancy Center (4C) will exhibit its difference among other Turkish youth networks with the impact of this project.
HOW?
C4C will officially start with a seminar given by the experts of climate activism about climate tackling methods for the organization team. Then, 20 students from different universities will be chosen to gain different perspectives, analyze-methods on carbon footprint and facilitation skills during a training. After this training, they organize a local workshop to which 15-25 local participants from partner university campuses and future partner business organizations will be invited as observers, and they will be mentored by the organizers. C4C will officially be closed with a final meeting to which organizers, the trainers, the main participants and the local participants will be invited, 2 participants from each partner university.The main participants and local participants will receive their certificates of their membership of Climate Change Consultancy Center (4C).At the final meeting, 4C’s legal identity will take its final form with the creation the 6 months work program.
WHO?
The primary beneficiary of C4C project will be approximately 120 university students from 5 university campuses in Turkey. These 120 university students will be directly benefiting from the activities within Change for Climate (C4C) project so that they can become a part of Climate Change Consultancy Center (4C) by taking on different responsibilities. 4C will provide consultancy services on carbon footprint reduction to NGO and business organizations after testing their environmental circumstances. Therefore, our secondary beneficiary will be staffs of different organizations including NGO and business which will be motivated while working with 4C through climate tackling. Furthermore, after 4C gets its legal identity, it will continue to apply for different international grants. As a result, within the context of the grants, participants of future international projects, could be included in the target group in long term.