Europe's Youth Strew the Road to Rio de Janeiro

Wednesday, 06 June 2012 14:49 from www.youthforum.org

The European Youth Forum joins nearly 3,000 young people in calling for more than just talk at the upcoming Rio+20 summit. As the largest conference on sustainable development in 10 years, Rio+20 will bring together leaders and young people from across the world to discuss sustainable solutions for the future. In order to truly secure a stable tomorrow for young people of today, that discussion has to lead to action.European youth delegates are vying for urgent and concrete progress in the form of increased political involvement and the development of a global youth strategy to achieve sustainable development. The strategy should outline measurable goals and prioritise the youth-focused areas of education, employment, participation and gender issues. The European Youth Forum supports these initiatives and calls for a more holistic approach to the creation of a green economy, ensuring social wellbeing for young people in addition to economic and environmental gains.

In his closing remarks at the Rio informal negotiations, Youth Forum board member Lloyd-Russell Moyle reiterated the need for youth-centred progress. “Tangible youth focused goals are of utmost priority in order to achieve sustainable development and make Rio a success. World leaders must put faith in young people. We will not let you down, don't let us down.”