Sir , – It’s getting to the stage where, due to habitual rampant consumerism, we are now, metaphorically speaking, eating our children to feed ourselves. Worrying about the environment is becoming a bigger and bigger issue as young people are bombarded with information at school and on social media. They are being presented with the horrors of the future without the means to address the problem. This stress is compounded by parents and significant adults, often in denial and dismissing their concerns.
Research in the UK has shown that 45 per cent of young people aged between 18 and 24 were concerned about the environment.
The evidence shows that the best antidote for anxiety is being heard and informed action. It is time for adults to show their children that they are responding to the climate emergency, and that the youth are not carrying the burden alone.
It is time to start accepting that business as usual is not going to cut it. Show your solidarity with your young people by joining the school strike on September 20th. Namaste. – Yours, etc,
RACHEL FARRELL,
Dundrum,
Dublin 14.