Students, deputies sign carbon neutral pledge
A PLEDGE to make Guernsey carbon neutral by 2030 was signed by deputies and officials yesterday after students raised climate change concerns.
The event in the Grammar School hall was organised and led by students with siblings James, 17, and Charlotte, 16, Cleal at the heart of proceedings.
It coincided with student climate strikes in 100 countries.
Questions were posed to a panel of States members for 30 minutes, followed by the opportunity for students and guests to speak.
The discussion was chaired by James.
‘This is our chance to dispel all of those misconceptions about our generation,’ he said.
‘It is us who will be defined by our actions today,’
‘We need a three-pronged attack from individuals, businesses and government to tackle climate change.’
Question topics included: reducing car use and increasing public transport, effects of climate change on biodiversity, what waste strategies Guernsey should take, how the electricity we use can be lower carbon and the socio-economics of climate change.
Guernsey Green Finance deputy chief executive Dr Andy Sloan, Policy & Resources committee members Deputies Jane Stephens and Al Brouard, Deputies Barry Brehaut and Lindsay De Sausmarez, of Environment & Infrastructure, States recycling officer Tina Norman-Ross and biodiversity education officer Julia Henney were on the panel.
Ms Henney said that being an island made species in Guernsey more vulnerable to climate change.
One effect of rising sea levels would be squeezing of the intertidal zone where species cannot move upwards with the zone due to man-made structures such as sea walls leading to their loss.
She said to become carbon neutral would be on the way to mitigating this.
‘Wildlife that lives here is less resistant to climate change because of habitat loss and pollution from damage we cause, they can’t cope with increasing temperatures or shifts in seasonality.
‘We need to leave space for nature, don’t use artificial turf, don’t tarmac everything and we need to start from today,’ she said.
Deputy De Sausmarez highlighted that socio-economics was one of the biggest issues of climate change. ‘We are doing things now that your generation will have to pick up the tab for. We have a small window of opportunity now to do something about this,’ she said.
Hannah Chambers, 13, and Freya Guezo, 14, had come from the Ladies’ College.
‘Everyone needs to know what’s going on, it’s important,’ said Hannah.
Freya said she recently saw a phrase that said ‘there’s no planet B’ which she thought an important point.
Former La Societe Guernesiaise president Dr Andrew Casebow attended the event.
‘The fact that [the students] are the people that are organising it is absolutely tremendous.
‘The States of Guernsey should be taking action to do something to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, which is causing human induced climate change,’ he said.
Home Affairs and Development & Planning Authority member Victoria Oliver was among deputies in the audience and said it was a fantastic discussion.
‘It was really well worth coming. ‘There were some really fantastic and pertinent questions,’ she said.
Deputy Oliver said she spoke to quite a few students and said they were really interested in what the government was doing about climate change.
Students were invited to write a personal pledge to help mitigate climate change and an array of Post-It note pledges lined the hall wall.
Many recognised the unsustainable meat industry by pledging to be vegetarian or vegan, while others pledged to walk or cycle more, one even pledging never to own a car.
Deputy Brehaut said it was absolutely crucial to have these kind of debates with young people and said he hoped there would be more events like this in the future.
‘Many people in the States understand your point of view but there are others that don’t. I urge you to get angry and keep getting angry.’
Deputy Brehaut said liking something on Facebook was not enough and that there was more power in people coming together.
Charlotte said the event was amazing.
‘I’m so happy with the turn out and questions asked.’
Students attended from secondary schools and post 16 education across the island.
‘It was good seeing everyone come down,’ said Charlotte.
The two would love to do another event like this and hope others will also be inspired to do one in the future.
