Youth has say on green issues

By Tom Wald

The Federal government will be in the unusual position of taking advice from high-school students on environmental issues, thanks to the vision and drive of a second-year Arts/Law student at the ANU.

The Australian Youth Parliament for the Environment (AYPE) is an ACT-based project designed to promote environmental issues to young people and provide them with a forum to voice their ideas and opinions to the Federal government.

The project was initiated last year by Claire Crocker, who coordinates the project from Canberra in conjunction with Liz Turner from Monash University. The AYPE is run by young people for young people, with all of the organisers aged 19.

It is an initiative of The Natural Step Environmental Institute Australia (TNS) in response to a European project: European Youth for the Environment (now Global Youth Action for the Environment) which originated in Sweden in 1989.

The highlight of this year's AYPE project is a discussion on environmental issues between selected students and the House of Representatives Standing Committee on the Environment, Recreation and the Arts.

This year the AYPE is seeking to be nationally representative, selecting approximately five students from each state and territory to attend the central conference in Canberra.

On September 4, students from schools throughout Australia will be involved in the AYPE's activities which call on students to examine their local area against a background of sustainability. The focus last year was on recycling, petroleum usage and waste control.

The results of these activities are faxed to Canberra on the second day of the conference and collated with the outcomes of the conference in resolutions, which are presented to Environment Minister, Senator Robert Hill.