Local authorities should harness young people’s energy and enthusiasm to engage them in improving the environment, according to a team of academics.
They call on local authorities to ‘meaningfully involve young people in environmental policy’ after research showed they are feeling ‘over-whelmed and disillusioned’.
Researchers from Royal Holloway University, Nottingham Trent University and the University of Sheffield focused on two case studies.
As part of the British Academy’s Where We Live Next project, the report examines youth engagement in environmental issues, including how it can lead to public policy that is sustainable at city and local level.
Views were gathered in a survey of more than 2,000 young people aged 16-24, along with a discussion and focus groups.
They felt that individual action would not have sufficient impact to address environmental issues and revealed feeling hopeless, powerless, and ultimately, having a deep sense of lack of usefulness.
Professor Matt Henn from NTU’s school of social sciences said: ‘There is an opportunity to use the enthusiasm of young people, and their local knowledge, to tackle environmental problems in their cities and neighbourhoods.
‘This would go some way to creating a more sustainable and future-oriented public policy in the places where they live.’
