The Children's Project

The Children's Climate Change Project

In co-operation with Children in Scotland, The Children’s Parliament, and supported by Scottish Children’s and Young People Commissioner and Scottish Government.

This year, Scotland will consider significant legislation on climate change and we believe that children, with arguably the biggest stake in what is decided, have an important role to play in this debate. With that in mind, Children in Scotland and WWF Scotland have brought together a project with the Children’s Parliament and support from Scottish Government and Scottish Commissioner for Children and Young People to enable Scottish children, from across the country, to contribute to the debate about climate change and to have their views heard.

This project will provide access to latest information, create a space and provide facilitation to enable a group of children to discuss and debate their thinking on climate change. The project will give the children the opportunity to articulate their conclusions to a wider audience of adults, including key players in the climate change debate, politicians and the media. The conclusions will be fed into the debate on climate change and Scottish climate change legislation through 2008 and beyond.

The Project Programme June 2008 – the residential weekend: A whole weekend of participative sessions will be facilitated for twenty children by The Children’s Parliament over a three day/two nights residential in June, out with the school environment and in creative spaces. A number of factors were considered to ensure the process is meaningful and effective. The twenty Members of the Children’s Parliament (MCPs) participating in the project will come from across Scotland with different backgrounds and experiences. They will come together in Fife for the weekend from the Western Isles, South Ayrshire, Fife and Edinburgh.

These children, between the ages of nine and fourteen will also engage a further two hundred children in their own areas in the process. Over the course of the residential, the children will be supported in having informed discussions and coming to their own conclusions. Expert facilitation will be provided (creative arts workers, environmental experts etc.). The children will focus on issues of everyday relevance to them considering their families, their local community and their school. They will produce a visual outcome which they will present at a public event in the Festival of Politics and could potentially be gifted to The Scottish Parliament.