Children's Rights, Needs and Capacities in a Changing Climate
18 November 2009
Children have contributed the least to climate change but are disproportionately affected by its impacts. Future generations of children will continue to pay the price. A new series of IDS In Focus Policy Briefings ‘Children in a Changing Climate: Lessons from research and practice' looks at some of the critical issues and areas of action for children in a changing climate.
The series draws on research and experience of the Children in a Changing Climate coalition (CCC) and provides new insights into children's right to climate-adaptation support and right to participate in decisions and actions which affect their future. It demonstrates children's capacity to participate in decision-making and take adaptive action on climate change. Children's involvement in this process is crucial to ensuring fair and equitable adaptation policy and programming.
What has climate change got to do with child rights?
There are close linkages between child rights and climate change. A child rights approach to climate change could increase the resilience of children and their families to a changing climate and radically transform the policies and commitments of those in power. If children were seen as rights holders, rather than passive victims, the people making climate-related policies would be more accountable to children's needs. But first decision-makers must recognise child rights and value the role of children's voices in climate change decision-making.
2009 is the 20th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The convention provides a clear moral framework for understanding, articulating and measuring child rights in relation to climate change adaptation. The rights of future generations are as valid as those of today so when thinking about how we adapt to climate change we must also consider the rights of children not yet born.
The Swedish Forum for Human Rights, MR-dagarna, held their annual conference on 16-17 November. Emily Polack from IDS' Climate Change and Development Centre gave a joint seminar with Plan International ‘A Child Right's Perspective on Climate Change Adaptation', exploring how to strengthen the rights of children to adapt to climate change and children and young people's potential to influence change.
Download the In Focus Policy Briefings from the IDS website
