Young people and the future of our planet Inspire article

Author(s): Lucia von Bredow

Register for the upcoming EMBL Science & Society Conference to join the debate on responses to loss of biodiversity and climate change. Registration is free for High School students and teachers.

This year may have been dominated by the ongoing impact of the pandemic, but it has not diminished the desire of young people to take action for the future of our world. If anything, we have seen a renewed passion to find solutions to one of the most pressing issues of our time. The Global Day of Climate Action took place just last week, and saw young people campaigning for “concrete measures in the fight against the climate crisis” and to “protest for young people’s right to a future”.

At EMBL’s 2020 Science & Society Conference (“Our House is Burning: Scientific and Societal Responses to Mass Extinction”), we have a session dedicated to the role that young people can play in this debate, and we will be exploring responses to loss of biodiversity and climate change. The session includes talks from the youth activists Marlow Baines (Earth Guardians) and Vanessa Nakate (Rise Up Movement), and from Henri Landes, a lecturer on environmental policy at the Institute of Political Sciences in Paris (and the Director of LanDestini, a French based NGO dedicated to biodiversity conservation and education).

Marlow Baines, Earth Guardians, USA
Marlow Baines
Vanessa Nakate, Rise Up Movement, Uganda
Vanessa Nakate
Henri Landes, Sciences Po, France
Henri Landes

Participants will have the opportunity to take part in the Q&A, and to meet the speakers in individual breakout rooms. The Conference is completely free to High School students and teachers, and is a flat fee of 20 Euros for all other attendees.

The Science & Society Programme is EMBL’s platform for dialogue on the ethical, legal and social implications of scientific research. We act as the bridge between EMBL and Society, and strive for multi-disciplinary debate. We believe that dialogue happens when there is a breadth of voices in the discussion, and so we need you to help us reach out to young people to engage in this conference! The deadline to sign up to the Conference is the 14th October 2020. Don’t miss the chance to take part, spark debate, and exchange ideas.

Institutions

Author(s)

Lucia von Bredow is the Science & Society Manager at EMBL, and runs the Science & Society Programme. She has a background in law, public affairs and stakeholder engagement in the healthcare and life science sectors. The Science & Society Programme has been running for over twenty years. It seeks to create a bridge between EMBL, external stakeholders, and cross-sectoral experts, by undertaking analysis of, and discussion on the societal impact of scientific research. We act as a neutral facilitator, providing an impartial forum to explore the societal context in which scientific research operates.

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CC-BY