Involving Young People in Sustainability Efforts

The mayor of Budapest, Gergely Karácsony, and the representatives of UNICEF Hungary signed a cooperation agreement on Friday, regarding a series of programs to be launched next year under the name Cities Turning Green (‘Zöldülő városok’), aimed at involving young people in sustainability planning.

Antónia Meszaros, the executive director of UNICEF Hungary, said a priority area of the strategic cooperation is climate protection and a sustainable urban environment. Its most important value is that the perspectives and opinions of children and young people feature prominently in shaping the plans, she said.

She stressed that children's opinions deserve to be taken seriously and that they have the right to express their views on matters affecting them. Their ideas and perspectives can provide valuable guidance for adults as well. A city is child-friendly not only because adults do a lot for children according to their own concepts, but also because it takes shape together with children's real needs, she said.

According to UNICEF Hungary's representative 2022 survey, 90% of young Hungarians aged between 13 and 25 experience some degree of anxiety because of climate change, and every second one feels helpless, the executive director noted. The KlímaHősök (Climate Heroes) program launched in 2022 aims to change this, and its new stage is the Cities Turning Green (Zöldülő Városok) program series implemented jointly with the capital, she added.

According to the press release, the program series will allow young people to meet experts and decision-makers and to learn about working urban green solutions. At the end of the program series starting in 2027, the participating young people will also develop a package of proposals for a genuinely child-friendly city, summarizing their own experiences and ideas.

Karácsony called it important to involve young people in work through which they can feel they have an impact on the future rather than only feeling anxious about it. "Action is the only thing that liberates us from anxiety," he said. The mayor highlighted that the more actors they involve, the more the resources can be multiplied to "change our world."