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A group of young Indigenous, Latin American, Caribbean and European change-makers will set sail from Cartagena, Colombia on 20 February for the UN Climate Conference SB52 in Bonn, Germany.
Sail For Climate Action consists of an interdisciplinary team of young people from Latin America and Europe who seek to strengthen the voice of diverse climate activists.
The project aims to provide those affected by the climate crisis with a platform to share their stories. The sailing trip, which will last for two months, will take them from Latin America to Europe to attend the UN Climate Change Conference SB52 informally called “Intersessionals”.
Climat movement
The young campaigners intend to raise their voices in places of power and to strengthen connections across the Atlantic Ocean.
Sail For Climate Action aspires to be part of a global climate movement where everyone feels represented and where all voices are equally valued.
The organising team consists of ten young individuals from Latin America, the Caribbean and Europe. The selection process is now underway to choose 25 participants from diverse backgrounds to sail across the Atlantic.
The journey will make some stops in the Caribbean before arriving around in Amsterdam in April. The activists will sail on the three-mast schooner Regina Maris, which previously took some of the participants from Amsterdam to Cartagena as part of the initiative Sail To The COP.
Onboard, the participants will partake in a capacity-building and knowledge-sharing programme. Life onboard will also entail daily duties such as sailing watches (where participants will take turns sailing the ship), kitchen shifts (where plant-based food will be served) and cleaning duties.
Building connections
The participants will contribute to a European programme for the month of May, following the sailing journey and prior to the UN Climate Conference.
During this time they will visit different locations, organisations and institutions to widen their network, share their stories on different platforms, build a movement for ambitious climate action and build bridges between the two continents.
The group of participants will then take part in the Intersessional SB52 in June in Bonn, Germany, as observers to the negotiation process.
The conference will be another platform for the youth to share their stories and lobby for true commitments of decision makers to combat the climate crisis internationally.
Sail For Climate Action is still looking for major sponsors and donations. The project is self- funded and crowdfunded by participants. For sponsorship, partnership and donation enquiries, please contact the group.
This Author
This article is based on a press release from Sail for Climate Action.
Image: Kisjonah Roos.
