Kids urged to turn climate fears into positive actions with launch of Mission Zero: Faces of the Future

Positive actions are a great way to combat concerns about climate change. Send us a video of what you’re doing to help tackle the climate problem

Doing something positive for the environment, like recycling, is a great way to combat concerns about climate change. Picture: iStock

READING LEVEL: GREEN

Climate change can be pretty scary. Lots of kids, and adults, worry about it.

Talking about your worries is one of the best ways to deal with them, along with finding actions that you can take to help tackle the problem.

That’s why we’re launching Mission Zero: Faces of the Future, a new project inviting kids to record a video showing us what they’re doing to help reduce the impact of climate change.

It might be as simple as planting a tree or helping mum and dad in the garden. Or it might be a school composting program or community clean-up initiative*.

Whatever it is, we’d love to hear about it, so send your videos to the link below and we’ll post them for everyone to see.

Your positive action could be planting a tree, just like Brayden who popped this beauty in his backyard for National Tree Day. Picture: Elise Catterall

Save the Children’s Jaimie Petterwood is a senior facilitator* for the charity’s Journey of Hope program, which has been rolled out in schools in bushfire affected communities.

She said the best way for kids not to get freaked out by climate change was for them to express their feelings and turn any negative thoughts into positive actions.

“There’s a lot of negativity and there’s a lot of stress and anxiety and depression around … what the world’s going to look like,” she said.

“But I think we bring it always back to the positive. What can we do now? Right now, what can we do to make a change?”

Brothers Jonah, Will and Reeve have experienced a frightening impact of climate change first hand.

They spent New Year’s Eve in 2019 evacuated* to the beach at Batemans Bay in NSW as bushfires approached their home.

Brothers Reeve, 7, Will, 13, and Jonah, 10, experienced a frightening impact of climate change when they were forced to evacuate from their home during the Black Summer bushfires.

Reeve, 7, said: “We saw things on fire on the beach. I saw helicopters. I saw houses burned down. Fire kept flaring up. Lightning strike went almost near us. It was scary.”

Will, 13, said the Journey of Hope program really helped him.

“We did activities and stuff to get our minds off what happened and got good ideas to help us calm down,” he said.

Another organisation called Cool Australia helps teach kids about climate change in a fun way.

“We bring the real world into the classroom. The kids and teachers love it,” said Cool Australia chief executive Jason Kimberley.

“It is this real-world education that engages* and empowers* students to be informed, active citizens able to understand and contribute to the challenges we face.”

GLOSSARY

• initiative: plan or action to achieve a goal
• facilitator: person who makes something happen
• evacuated: removed from a dangerous place to a safe place
• engages: causes someone to be interested
• empowers: gives the confidence or power someone needs to achieve something

EXTRA READING

How climate change affects Australia

How to tackle the climate challenge

How kids can make a difference

How to cope with climate worries

QUICK QUIZ

1. What is the name of our new project that encourages kids to upload a video?
2. What should the video show?
3. What does Jaimie Petterwood believe is the best way for kids to deal with their climate worries?
4. How did brothers Jonah, Will and Reeve spend New Year’s Eve in 2019?
5. What is the name of the organisation that helps teach kids about climate change in a fun way?

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Originally published as Kids urged to turn climate fears into positive actions with launch of Mission Zero: Faces of the Future