Minors call for “action, not just words” to confront climate change

Indigenous and Afro-Honduran boys and girls speak and reflect together with EU Ambassador Jaime Segura; Minister of Tourism, Yadira Gomez; and Roberto Busi, director of Ayuda en Acción, on climate change and how this phenomenon is affecting their communities, on the platform “Climate change is not a game for children.”

More than 500 million children worldwide live in places prone to landslides and floods, and about 160 million live in countries experiencing frequent droughts.

The effects of climate change make children more vulnerable to diseases, malnutrition and other factors that result from environmental problems.

According to data from the United Nations Children’s Organization (UNICEF), nine out of 10 boys and girls in Latin America and the Caribbean are exposed to at least two climate and environmental crises.

Discuss “Sipots”

Six boys and girls between the ages of 8 and 13 participated in the forum, who came to Tegucigalpa from the Corral Falso community in Yoro; Erandik, in the department of Lempira; and in Santa Fe, Colón.

They expressed their concerns and perspectives on climate change, presenting their ideas and suggestions to representatives of government, civil society, international cooperation and the media to address these problems and promote climate resilience.

Angel Blanco, who came from Santa Fe to attend the forum, said, “We need action, not just words… We hope to change Honduras, to become a greener country.”

On the other hand, Kenia Ramirez from the community of Corral Falso, highlighted the consequences of climate change, especially the lack of water.

“We don’t have water”

“In my community we don’t have running water, in my family we have to go to our grandmother’s house to bring water to our house,” she said.

According to the forum’s organizers, it is important to position Indigenous and Afro-Honduran children as the protagonists of the solution to the problems affecting them.

He also urged raising awareness and finding solutions to combat the effects of climate change, which affect everyone, especially the most vulnerable, and held Honduran children as the hope for a greener and more sustainable future. Are.