Letter to African and European leaders
We, young people, are not simply the future of our communities.
We are essential players in the reconstruction and reinvigoration of peaceful and fair societies on our two continents.
We are peacemakers, we have the passion, the ideals, the necessary vision to mediate between diversities and strengthen community ties, to redial fractures and encourage civil and peaceful coexistence.
We know how to use cutting-edge technologies, we know languages, we have the courage to move around the world, we are not surprised by diversity and we believe in peace, human rights, justice, sustainable development and solidarity.
UN Security Council Resolution 2250 also recognizes the fundamental importance of young peace builders, pioneers of reconciliation and the promotion of the common good as the ultimate goal of every society, state, nation.
The contemporary world's challenges to the world peace and security are multifaceted and multiple, and their severity has increased exponentially with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Endless conflicts, such as the war in Syria, new points of tension such as Nagorno-Karabakh, unstable and volatile regions such as the Sahel and migration crises are just some of the challenges on which it is necessary to cooperate in order to avoid escalation, rebuild social bonds in fractured and torn societies and investing in economic and social development to enable every young woman and man to reach their full potential.
The climate has reached a global crisis point. 9 out of 15 major biophysical systems that regulate climate are showing worrying signs of decline. For example, sea level rise. We can already expect up to one meter this century. This will endanger the homes of 200 million people. Also taking into account the melting ice from Antarctica and Greenland, this might lead to a two-meter rise. We are now following a path that would take us to a three to four degrees world in just three generations, and for each one degree rise, one billion people will be forced to live in conditions that we now consider uninhabitable. We need to halve global emissions by 2030 and reach nearly zero by 2050 or earlier. The era of fossil fuels is over.
There are also many challenges for the future, between climate change that will cause further geopolitical instability and population movements, and the energy issue, as well as space diplomacy.
We know that the solutions are difficult, that some emergency situations, in their urgency, prevent us from reflecting on the long-term cooperation strategy, but, since one day our generation will have to live the consequences of the decisions taken now, dedicate time to the future.
Invest for the long term. Listen to our voice. Invite us to the tables where decisions are made. It is essential to include the new generations in decision-making processes, to enhance our many talents by training them and making use of our innate abilities and our spontaneous energy.
Because yes, we are the leaders of the future, but we are also the peacemakers of the present.
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