EDF and YNA Call for Inclusion of Youth with Disabilities in Climate Negotiations

The European Disability Forum (EDF) and the Young Negotiators Academy (YNA) are calling for the full participation of young people with disabilities in climate negotiations and climate action efforts.

To this end, the organizations jointly presented a document titled “Youth with Disabilities at the Forefront of Climate Action.” The initiative highlights that there are approximately 1.2 billion young people worldwide, of whom 22.8 million have disabilities.

Over the past decade, young people have been the driving force behind the climate movement. Although this group has contributed the least to CO₂ emissions, it is the generation that must live with the consequences of emissions caused by previous generations. As a result, young people have taken to the streets demanding action against climate change. Despite this, youth remain underrepresented in climate discussions, while other stakeholders occupy significantly more space.

First and foremost, such discussions lack representation from individuals whose identities intersect youth with other underrepresented groups: those from the Global South, migrants, women, gender minorities, people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, and so on. And, of course, young people with disabilities.

Given the intersectionality of their identity, young people with disabilities experience disasters caused by climate change through a triple lens: as persons with disabilities, as young people, and as young people with disabilities. Consequently, they face exclusion from emergency preparedness planning, limited access to early warning and evacuation systems, loss of assistive devices and medical equipment, reduced access to caregivers and healthcare, worsening water and food security issues, deepening poverty, and greater psychological burdens compared to previous generations.

The voice of young people with disabilities must be heard. This group has both the right and the duty to be invited to the negotiating table when discussing climate change, its mitigation, and prevention. If climate measures do not incorporate disability aspects from the initial design phase, they ultimately become discriminatory toward people with disabilities and inaccessible to parts of the population. The most effective and fair way to ensure the accessibility of such solutions is to include diverse voices at every stage of the discussion.

Young people with disabilities know best what works and what does not, because their personal experience since birth brings a perspective that cannot be replaced. Recognizing the importance of including these young people in political agendas, EDF and YNA jointly prepared a document highlighting challenges and subsequent solutions to create an inclusive space where young people with disabilities can participate.