By Vicki Soanes – UNICEF International Advocacy Manager

Climate change is one of the most important and contentious issues of our time. Whether you think it is the result of natural fluctuations, not happening at all, caused or accelerated by humans or not affected at all by our actions, we cannot ignore it. It is prominent in the media, and a diverse range of people are expressing their opinion on it, from scientists, to politicians, to ordinary citizens. Passions often run high, more so than for other issues. If you believe climate change is caused or accelerated by industrial activity, you probably feel passionately that we must take action now. If you think it is natural, you probably feel just as passionately (and negatively) about the possibility of having these activities regulated.

Whatever your view, it is clearly a debate that needs to be had. And that needs to have the involvement of as many sectors of society as possible.

UNICEF is engaged in the issue of climate change as it has the potential to severely impact on children, particularly in the developing world. Subtle changes in temperatures have already led to a resurgence of malaria in some areas. Those most affected by this will be children, who get sicker and die more often from this disease – 80 percent of the annual one million people deaths from malaria are children under five. Extreme weather events result in death more often for children than for other age groups, and loss of biodiversity threatens food security in many regions, leading to childhood undernutrition.

One of UNICEF’s core mandates is to support children to reach their full potential, guided by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Article 12 of the Convention, (translated into plain language) states that children have a right to say what they think should happen when adults are making decisions that affect them and to have their opinions taken into account. I hope that most would agree that children and young people should be able to state their opinions on such an important issue as climate change.

Late last year, the UNICEF Children’s Climate Forum in Copenhagen brought together 164 children from around the world, with the goal of facilitating that kind of participation. The children told world leaders and the public what they thought, with their often differing views respected. The delegates all agreed to be UNICEF Climate Ambassadors and to continue to be active on the issue of climate change throughout 2010. The five New Zealand delegates are blogging on the 3 News environment section.

Climate change is a highly contentious issue, with the debate often becoming polarised. However, we should remember that everyone has a right to express their opinions. This applies equally to young people who rightly feel strongly about the world they live in and will inherit. I know that they welcome debate – they have clear opinions, and the courage of their convictions, and as they have demonstrated online, they are able to respond clearly and respectfully to critiques of their blogs. It is saddening, however, that the debate sometimes goes off topic and moves into personal attacks. These young people are still developing their world view, forming their opinions, learning from others, (as we all should throughout our lives) and finding the courage to speak out on an issue that they care deeply about. Let’s continue the debate, but how about focusing on the issue rather than the people? Let’s demonstrate to today’s children and young people that their contribution is valued, and that a reasoned debate based on the issues is possible.