A green dream...

Forest Primary School pupil Elliott Davies went on to say he would like Guernsey to set an example to other countries.

It was a heart-felt message, full of hope and ambition. It is, after all, his generation that will have to reap the environmental damage that previous generations have sown.

However, his tender age will no doubt lead many to dismiss his views, much as they did with Greta Thunberg, who shot to fame in 2018 after holding a school climate strike outside the Swedish parliament aged 15.

She went on to become one of the world’s best-known climate change campaigners but attracted plenty of critics along the way.

Some simply refused to believe she could fully comprehend, or care about, such an issue at her tender age and accused her parents and teachers of brainwashing her with frightening visions of an apocalyptic future.

Here in Guernsey, there will be many who think that Elliott and his friends would be better off focusing their attention on more tangible problems, such as the housing crisis and escalating cost of living.

But perhaps the youth are uniquely placed to keep the spotlight shining on environmental concerns.

Without being bogged down in the minutiae, worries and responsibilities that come with adulthood, they are better able to see the simple truth.

If we can’t save our planet, then nothing else matters.