Meet Almaaz:
Almaaz is a climate change activist and high school liaison for the Youth Climate Action Plan at the’South African Institute of International Affairs (Saiia). Almaaz is in Grade 9 at Roedean School and is a multi-award-winning debater. She has used the climate change agenda to influence policy and leaders at provincial, national and global levels. She regularly speaks at South African and global events advocating climate change and the inclusion of young people in shaping the climate agenda. Almaaz believes that “solving climate change is achievable, but sustaining climate change gains and the Sustainable Development Goals is complex, as it requires a deep understanding of the intersectionality of the climate agenda.”
What causes are important to you and today's youth, and why?
Simple things like living in a clean environment. Breathing clean air. Swimming in a clean ocean where the fish don't disappear. Living in a sustainable city where you don't feel guilty about turning on a light because of the carbon-intensive economy that powers it.
I believe that most of the problems we face today are due to the fact that we have lost sight of the little things that make sense to humanity. We are the generation living with the effects of many harmful social structures and ideologies. Our mission is to decolonize and decentralize many systems. We young people have learned from the mistakes of the past. We are not only the leaders of the future, young people are the leaders of now.
What projects are you currently working on? What challenges are you and your organization facing today?
I'm passionate about solving the problem of climate change, because I think it's a cross-cutting issue that's crucial to solving most of the world's problems.
We know that the climate crisis will only be solved if everyone channels their energy and works towards the same goals - the SDGs, to be exact. That's why we've launched a movement among young people in South Africa to foster a cultural shift in favor of protecting our environment. One of our first steps was to organize and mobilize in a very orderly fashion. We did this by launching the Youth Climate Action Plan (YCAP), South Africa's first-ever youth climate action plan, which will be submitted as part of the South African delegation's bid to COP26. I'm the national high school liaison officer for the project, and my job is to ensure that high schools are equally represented by young people from all over the country.
How do you think we can involve young people who want to make an impact but don't have easy access to opportunities to get involved (because of language, lack of networks, difficulties accessing and using technological tools...)?
One of the main aims of the action plan is to ensure that everyone has a say in the final document and to integrate grassroots people into the implementation plan. For example, I'm the high school liaison officer for YCAP and I'm responsible for ensuring that all high school students, regardless of their socio-economic background, are included. Some of the challenges we face include: how do we get everyone's voice heard? How do we appeal to everyone?
We're planning an information tour on climate change, because those who don't understand the phenomenon will only be followers and won't really be able to make a contribution. Education is the first key step. We need to make the structure simple and easy to understand, which means telling stories and using art.
What advice do you have for young people who want to make a positive impact? How should they get started?
Young people are often questioned and ridiculed when they try to champion a cause. We must always remember that if our intentions are true, we can never go wrong. So many like-minded people are doing the same thing all over the world. It would be wonderful if we could all come together to create a driving force that is both strong and diverse.
To solve the climate crisis, we need to innovate and create new technologies. We need to encourage young people to take part in change, involve them in decision-making and we will inherently see greater attention paid to urgent and long-term issues, such as climate change and the deployment of AI technologies. As far as the climate crisis is concerned, the more perspectives the better.
What would you like to say to decision-makers?
When we young people talk to each other, we talk simply and we can simplify a very complex issue. This creates a sense of hope and unity, which is exactly what we need. Climate change is a very complex issue, and we need to create a message of unity and hope, rather than just criticizing and not encouraging so-called doomsday paralysis.
Governments don't propose multilateral regulations and don't encourage people to change. Regulators have great plans and laws, but implementation very often fails, which is the most important step! Regulators often regulate companies, which is fine, but sometimes they've never even worked in a company. Policy isn't available in different languages, and it's not even written in everyday, understandable language. What we need in terms of regulation is for everyone to be able to express themselves. We have to recognize, especially when it comes to climate change, that a one-size-fits-all strategy will never work. We can't just pass on information in an academic way. We need to integrate art and storytelling to open people's hearts and minds.
(Photo courtesy of Almaaz Mudaly, copyright: Almaaz Mudaly)
