COP30: Peruvian children demand effective action in the face of the climate crisis  

• Children and adolescents from various organizations called on governments, at COP30, to commit greater funding and adopt effective policies to protect childhood, one of the groups most affected by the climate crisis. 

At a large pre-COP30 event titled “Voices of Children and Youth for the Climate,” representatives of children, adolescents, and young people urged governments to allocate more funding and adopt effective policies to protect children from the effects of climate change. They warned that, despite being one of the most vulnerable groups, less than 4% of global climate financing addresses the needs of children and adolescents. 

Valentina, a member of the Red Interdistrital de Municipios Escolares de Lima Sur (REDIME), delivered a direct message to authorities, reminding them that the impacts of climate change are not the same for all children and adolescents: “In Peru, there is not just one childhood or adolescence, but many, each living different realities. The climate crisis affects us in different ways: children in Puno face droughts and crop loss, while in the Amazon, biodiversity is gradually disappearing”. 

The climate crisis already directly impacts the lives of millions of children. In Latin America, extreme weather events such as El Niño disrupt the education of more than 37 million students. Moreover, a child born in 2020 will face almost seven times more heatwaves and up to three times more droughts and floods than someone born in 1960. 

With an encouraging message to new generations, the Vice Minister of Environmental Management, Juan Antonio Durand, highlighted the importance of their participation: “Dear children and youth, you are the true guardians of the future. Your energy, creativity, and fresh perspective are the best guarantee that our country will be able to face climate challenges with justice, knowledge, and hope”. 

The meeting “Voices of Children and Youth for the Climate”, held in the Voces Park in Santiago de Surco, was organized by Save the Children in Peru, together with the Ministry of the Environment, the Municipality of Surco, the Youth Advocacy Group before the CNCC – LCOY Peru, and the Embassy of Brazil.  

With an intergenerational and participatory approach, the gathering included the participation of MNNATSOP, MANTHOC, Acción por los Niños, REDIME, IFEJANT, Quinta Ola, SPDA, SOA Perú, and Seaumanoid. The event featured workshops, storytelling, and a flashmob as part of a mobilization aimed at highlighting the commitment and active voices of children and adolescents in the fight against climate change. 

William Campbell, Country Director of Save the Children in Peru, emphasized the importance of creating real spaces for child and youth participation: “Together with our partners, we have prepared this event with great care to amplify the voices of children and adolescents on one of the issues that most affects them: climate change. We want this participatory space to connect with reality, promote commitments that inspire us to act, and encourage reflection on how to generate change from our homes and in our daily lives”. 

The event was attended by Juan Antonio Durand, Vice Minister of Environmental Management; Eliana Toledo, Deputy Mayor of the Municipality of Surco; Helges Bandeira, Head of the Sustainable Development Sector of the Embassy of Brazil in Lima; and Carmen Humalla, member of the Youth Advocacy Group before the CNCC – LCOY Peru in the Puno region, who directly received the children’s and youth’s demands and engaged in dialogue about the urgency of taking concrete action. 

The core message was clear: the climate crisis is also a children’s rights crisis, as it threatens their health, education, nutrition, and overall well-being both now and in the future. Children and adolescents from Lima and other regions of the country call on COP30 in Brazil to place childhood at the center of decision-making and ensure real commitments for funding and action. 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 

• The 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) will take place in Belém, Brazil, from November 10 to 21, 2025.