WE are faced with a global environmental crisis, part of which involves the rapid loss of species and the rapid degradation of ecosystems.

These issues are children’s rights issues for a number of reasons, one of which is that current children will be the adults who have to deal with the much more severe consequences of environmental crises in years to come, which are likely to include adverse weather events, mass migration and further pandemics.

In the 1980s, nations came together to draft the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) which sets out basic human rights for children all over the world. It is the most ratified of all UN human rights instruments, with every country except one (the US) agreeing to abide by it. The rights which are included in this instrument are very important to consider when it comes to environmental issues.

Amongst the most important rights is that when governments are making decisions that affect children, they are obliged to consider how those decisions will affect the interests of children as a group.

At the same time, children have under the CRC the right to be heard in all matters affecting them. It is now globally recognised that children’s views and perspectives greatly enhance policy and planning, and there is much that adults can learn from them.

Ireland’s Children and Young People’s Assembly on Biodiversity Loss contributes to upholding both of these rights. It creates an opportunity for children to learn about the biodiversity crisis and about potential solutions.........

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