R23 A1: Real Youth Participation Ensures A Sustainable Future!

Global Youth Movements like Fridays for Future made it very clear: Young people
don’t want to accept that they are overheard, patronised or ignored.made it very clear: Young people want to be heard, represented and a spot at the negotiation table. They demand
clearly to shape their own future - also on a political level.

As Global Greens, it is of utmost importance to us, to create participatory,
inclusive democracies. Therefore we are more than happy to see young activists
engaging in civil society movements, UN constituencies and Green parties. We
stand in solidarity with these youth movements which share the values of the Global Green Charter and commit ourselves to be their
allies and support them in reaching their goals and help them be recognised in
the decision making.

We reject the practise of tokenizing young people in putting them in the
spotlight without also opening the decision-making to them. To us youth have
always been more than a cheap campaigning force, evident by the important role
young people play in Green parties around the world and the number of young
people who cast their votes for our movement.

The Global Greens will actively work towards more inclusivity in our own
structures and do this in strong cooperation with the Global Young Greens to
ensure that our bodies are a place for young people to be heard, to bring their
ideas to the table while being sure that they are treated as equals.

Starting in our own structures, but also going beyond: We will also advocate for
stronger youth participation in political systems and organisations as well as
in the bodies of the United Nations. Especially looking at the UNFCCC COPs we
recognised that young people were tokenized but not heard. Young people were
allowed to protest in the COP venue but not to access the negotiations. Young
people were promoted in the communications but not supported in participating at
the conferences.

We demand real youth participation including seats at the negotiating tables!

The Global Greens therefore commit to:

• Monitor their internal structures constantly to ensure that they are open
  to the participation of young people.

• Supporting the Global Young Greens in their important work of bringing the
  global Green Youth Movement together and strengthening it.

• Advocate for real youth participation in decision making structures inside
  and outside of the movement.

• Support our member organisations to build up strong youth wings in their
  organisations and to do this in cooperation with the Global Young Greens.

The Global Greens call on the United Nations to:

• Make the structures of their conferences and bodies more accessible for
  young people by offering sponsorships and implement trainings on the
  functioning of the conferences and structures.

• Give young people seats at the negotiating table through the promotion of
  youth in national delegations and opening the room for youth civil society
  movements. This can be done through strengthening the role of their
  constituencies and their say in the negotiation process.