Ms Caitlin Faye Maniti:

Is mise uachtarán Aontas Daltaí Iar-Bhunscoile na hÉireann. I thank the committee for the invitation to present before the Joint Committee on Environment and Climate Action. The Irish Second-Level Students Union is the national representative body of second level students in Ireland. One of our core aims is to actively address the challenges and worries faced by students on a local, regional, national and international level.

The global climate crisis is one of the most prominent challenges facing humanity today and climate change is the defining issue of our generation. The ISSU is fully committed to working alongside all stakeholders to find solutions to the issues that face students. It is in this spirit that I speak before the committee today.

In less than a month, COP27 will take place in Egypt. Delegations from around the world, including Ireland, will attend the conference. COP27 is the major intergovernmental conference where world leaders are supposed to commit to making concrete actions, yet more often than not, conferences produce more discussion than actual climate action commitments. It fills me with great pride that young people are the catalyst for these important conversations and that we continuously fight for climate justice, but it fills me with great sadness because young people, in particular those in the global south, are living on the front lines of this crisis, facing the consequences of the climate crisis every day.

The ISSU notes that young people are rarely represented at large conferences such as COP, and when they are, it is often in a minimal, tokenistic and dismissive fashion. The ISSU believes that young people and students are not only the leaders of tomorrow, but are the leaders of today. We believe that COP has the potential to allow young people the opportunity to create and influence policy, resulting in meaningful change and action. However, we believe that we must provide equal opportunities to those who are least represented on that international stage.

The ISSU recommends greater and more meaningful engagement and opportunities for young Irish people to attend importance conferences such as COP and formal recognition of their representatives as full stakeholders. Further to this, the ISSU recommends the recognition of young people as stakeholders in these discussions and policymaking sessions.

We strongly welcome the introduction of the new senior cycle subject, climate action and sustainable development. We believe this is a very positive step forward in allowing students to study education for sustainable development, ESD, in schools. Further to this, we recommend the integration of ESD across the curriculum.

The ISSU welcomes the Government's publication of the second national implementation plan for the sustainable development goals, SDGs, for the period 2022 to 2024. As per the plan, the ISSU recognises that schools and youth work organisations can foster student leadership and workplace knowledge and skills in supporting implementation of the SDGs in society. We strongly agree with this. Section 7.5.1 reads: "The SDGs can be used as a framework and tool to support students to develop their research, practice, critical thinking, problem solving, teamwork, and communication skills."

The ISSU wishes to highlight that students from rural areas are some of the most disadvantaged in Ireland when it comes to sustainable development. In a survey conducted by Climate Rights Ireland, it was found that 57.9% of rural young people had experienced flooding in their local areas versus only 20.8% in urban areas. We have seen implementation of some great initiatives, such as reduced fares for the young adult Leap card, but this is not accessible in rural areas where public transport is unreliable, underfunded and underdeveloped. Unfortunately, in my beautiful home county of Donegal, there are no trains. I had to wake up at 4 a.m. to make this meeting. This is just one of the many barriers that young people face in participating in these conversations. If Ireland is to achieve its climate goals and a just transition, we must provide sustainable, affordable and accessible public transport in every corner of Ireland, not just in the Dublin area.

As we sit here today, thousands of secondary school students are in their classrooms, probably learning about Seamus Heaney, the respiratory system or sedimentary rocks. From my experience, though, there is little, if any, education on subjects like how to take care of our planet or the urgency and attention it deserves. When it comes to climate justice, it is more often than not the students rather than the teachers who are the educators. Education is a great tool in implementing fundamental changes and, as Malala Yousafzai said, "One child, one teacher, one pen, and one book can change the world." We acknowledge that there is a long way to go when it comes to creating a better world for all, but we also believe in the strength, courage and resilience of young people to continue fighting for climate justice. With this revolution, the time will finally come for us to win the fight against climate change. After all, there is no Planet B.

I thank members for listening.