The Next Generation Needs to be Given a Platform and Heard
The next generation, also known as “Gen-Z”, is the first generation to feel the effects of climate change, and the last to be able to address its impacts on the planet. The voice of the youth is needed more than ever. They need to contribute their thoughts on how they feel may be the best way to ensure a safer, sustainable future.
Bonnie Milner, founder of Clean Green Music Machine has expressed how important it is to ensure the youth are involved in the climate change debates.
“Gen Z, the next generation that’s coming up, is the first generation that I’ve seen since we were coming up in the 60s, that are absolutely committing with their bodies, their minds, with every ounce of their being, to creating more sustainable systems,” Milner told environmental education nonprofit GlobalConscience.World. “They really are. It’s so exciting to be around them.”
“I feel as an organisation, we need to ask them more,” Milner added. “It’s their future.”
Milner further points out that the next generation are being handed a “giant mess”, and that they deserve to be a part of the debates surrounding their future. “It’s their future. We need to give them an opportunity to speak and to tell us what they want and what they need.”
Clean Green Music Machine encourages the young to think deeply about how our human behaviours affect the environment, and ways in which we can work together to create a sustainable world.
Milner believes that the youth should be given a platform to express themselves, particularly through music and entertainment.
“When we ask, what do we do to fix this, the answers that they have are so profound and deep and powerful,” Milner shared. “And that’s what our future is about. Asking them what they see, how they think it should be solved, and then giving them a platform through music and entertainment.”
Clean Green Music Machine is a music group that tours all over the United States helping elementary school-aged kids learn all about the environment. Visit their website at: https://turnitupshow.org/
The website “GlobalConscience.World” is a Southwest Florida based 501c3 nonprofit organization committed to environmental awareness and education.
Link to Video Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wT1k1jPdmy4
