The Canadian Youth Climate Coalition (CYCC) is a nonprofit
youth organisation
The following is a list of youth organizations. A youth organization is a type of organization with a focus upon providing activities and socialization for minors. In this list, most organizations are international unless noted otherwise.
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in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. The coalition consists of various youth organisations, which includes the
Canadian Federation of Students
The Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) is the largest student organization in Canada, representing over 530,000 students from across Canada. Formed in 1981, the stated goal of the Federation is to represent the collective voice of Canadian st ...
, the
Canadian Labour Congress
The Canadian Labour Congress, or CLC (french: Congrès du travail du Canada, link=no or ) is a national trade union centre, the central labour body in Canada to which most Canadian labour unions are affiliated.
History Formation
The CLC was ...
,
Sierra Youth Coalition
The Sierra Youth Coalition (SYC) (french: Coalition jeunesse Sierra) is a national Canadian organization run by youth for youth, founded in 1996, and serving as the youth arm of the Sierra Club of Canada Foundation. Its stated mission is "to empo ...
, and others.
The charity aims to prioritize climate change as a societal issue. Internationally, the coalition is part of the Global
Youth Climate Movement
The Youth Climate Movement (YouNGO) or International Youth Climate Movement (IYCM) refers to an international network of Youth organization, youth organisations that collectively aims to inspire, empower and mobilise a generational movement of yo ...
.
History
In September 2006, 48 youth organizations from across Canada met to discuss climate change and formed the Canadian Youth Climate Coalition.
The coalition acts as a pressure group, to encourage politicians to act on the issue of climate change. Two months after its foundation, all Members of Parliament from the
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic:
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signed onto the Canadian Youth Climate Coalition Declaration, which is a petition to the Canadian government to act on climate change.
Campaigns
Canadian Youth Delegation
From 2007 to 2011, the Canadian Youth Climate has organised a youth delegation to the
United Nations Climate Change Conference
The United Nations Climate Change Conferences are yearly conferences held in the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). They serve as the formal meeting of the UNFCCC parties (Conference of the Parties, ...
s to deliver the voice of the Canadian youth climate movement. At the event in 2007, a member of the Canadian youth delegation delivered a speech on behalf of Greenpeace Solar Generation, Environnement Jeunesse, SustainUS, the Australian Youth Climate Coalition as well as the Canadian Youth Climate Coalition, to representatives from over 150 nations. A group of 20 young Canadians was selected to go to COP17 in Durban.
Power Shift
The Canadian Youth Climate Coalition also organized the Canadian PowerShift conference in 2009 and 2011 and delivered Power Summer training camps across the country in 2010.
Power Summer
Each camp includes training in popular education, action & strategy, communications, messaging, campaign planning, and other quintessential organizing skills, while building our understanding of
climate justice
Climate justice is a concept that addresses the just division, fair sharing, and equitable distribution of the burdens of climate change and its mitigation and responsibilities to deal with climate change. "Justice", "fairness", and "equity" ar ...
and how we build a movement to get it. These three-day, weekend long camps will use participatory, direct education to train the next generation of climate advocates.
Our Demands
The CYCC is inviting all Canadians to join in supporting our demands and demanding responsible action from our politicians. The demands are simple; justice across generations and peoples, youth participation in government decision making,
just transition
Just transition is a framework developed by the trade union movement to encompass a range of social interventions needed to secure workers' rights and livelihoods when economies are shifting to sustainable production, primarily combating climat ...
to a green economy and energy for today, tomorrow and the future.
All 306 members of parliament have been formally invited to endorse the document; at present time
Elizabeth May
Elizabeth Evans May (born June 9, 1954) is a Canadian politician, environmentalist, author, activist, and lawyer who is serving as the leader of the Green Party of Canada since 2022, and previously served as the leader from 2006 to 2019. Sh ...
(
Green Party of Canada
The Green Party of Canada (french: Parti vert du Canada) is a federal political party in Canada, founded in 1983 with a focus on green politics.
The Green Party is currently the fifth largest party in the House of Commons by seat count. It el ...
), Megan Leslie (
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic:
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),
Justin Trudeau
Justin Pierre James Trudeau ( , ; born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who is the 23rd and current prime minister of Canada. He has served as the prime minister of Canada since 2015 and as the leader of the Liberal Party since 2 ...
(
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada (french: Parti libéral du Canada, region=CA) is a federal political party in Canada. The party espouses the principles of liberalism,McCall, Christina; Stephen Clarkson"Liberal Party". ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' ...
) among others have pledged their support and commitment. These politicians join famous Canadians and organizations like
David Suzuki
David Takayoshi Suzuki (born March 24, 1936) is a Canadian academic, science broadcaster, and environmental activist. Suzuki earned a PhD in zoology from the University of Chicago in 1961, and was a professor in the genetics department at th ...
,
Brigette DePape,
Maude Barlow
Maude Victoria Barlow (born May 24, 1947) is a Canadian author and activist. She is a founding member of the Council of Canadians, a citizens' advocacy organization with members and chapters across Canada. She is also the co-founder of the Blue ...
, the
Council of Canadians
The Council of Canadians is a Canadian non-profit organization that advocates for clean water, fair trade, green energy, public health care, and a vibrant democracy. The organization is headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario with regional offices in H ...
,
Polaris Institute
The Polaris Institute is a Canadian think tank based in Ottawa, Ontario. Its stated goal is "to help empower citizen movements towards democratic social change". It was formed in 1997 in response to its view that citizens were becoming politically ...
,
Canadian Auto Workers
The Canadian Auto Workers (CAW; formally the National Automobile, Aerospace, Transportation and General Workers Union of Canada) was one of Canada's largest and highest profile labour unions. In 2013, it merged with the Communications, Energy and ...
and many others. The 'Our Demands' document is also featured in the Meet Your Member Campaign.
Meet Your Member
The CYCC has organized a campaign encouraging youth to meet with their members of parliament to make sure that our government knows that youth are engaged, and are taking a stand for a just, sustainable future.
See also
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Australian Youth Climate Coalition
The Australian Youth Climate Coalition (AYCC) is a youth organisation in Australia. When the organisation first began, the coalition consisted of 25 other youth organisations, which included the National Union of Students amongst many, however ...
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Community youth development
Community Youth Development (CYD) is a philosophy emphasizing the symbiotic nature of youth development to community development
The United Nations defines community development as "a process where community members come together to take collec ...
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Energy Action Coalition
Power Shift Network is a North American non-profit organization made up of a network of youth-led social and environmental justice organizations working together to build the youth clean energy and climate movement. It runs campaigns in the Unite ...
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Indian Youth Climate Network
The Indian Youth Climate Network (IYCN) is a youth organization in India that aims to raise the voice of Indian youth on the global platform, as South Asia is one of the most vulnerable regions affected by climate change and environmental issues. ...
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UK Youth Climate Coalition
The UK Youth Climate Coalition (UKYCC) is a non-profit youth organisation in the United Kingdom. It is part of The Climate Coalition in the UK
Formed in 2008, the mission of the organisation is to mobilise and empower young people to take po ...
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Youth Climate Movement
The Youth Climate Movement (YouNGO) or International Youth Climate Movement (IYCM) refers to an international network of Youth organization, youth organisations that collectively aims to inspire, empower and mobilise a generational movement of yo ...
References
External links
Canadian Youth Climate Coalition
{{Youth empowerment
Environmental organizations based in Canada
Youth empowerment organizations
Climate change in Canada
Climate change organizations