An action list to inspire global climate movements

This blog post finds us in Mexico City, where our UN Live portal – located alongside central Chapultepec Park – offers a safe space for activists to share vital climate solutions. Read on to learn more about two young activists and an action plan with the potential to inspire youth-based climate movements all over the world.

Global We participants Beatriz and Sofia

Chapultepec Park is known as ‘Mexico City’s lungs’ and its lush greenery surrounds one of the country’s most eye-catching monuments – Estela de Luz (trail of light) – built to commemorate the bicentennial of Mexican independence in 2010. Close by lies the UN Live Mexico portal, generously hosted by the city’s Centro de Cultura Digital (Digital Culture Centre), where visitors can find the full spectrum of digital arts technology, from performance and installations to literature and music.

Karla and Ciela outside the UN Live portal

We caught up with the portal’s effervescent facilitators, Ciela Herce, an interpreter for activism projects, and Karla Morales Lara, psychologist and Founder/Director Colectivo Ecolescencias (Ecolescencias Collective), which supports young climate justice activists.

Safe haven in Mexico City

For many, Estela de Luz is symbolic of the corruption that haunts Mexican public initiatives (it opened, long overdue, to mass protests over mismanagement of funds). But to local climate champions, the UN Live portal – situated in the shadow of the monument – offers something priceless: a place of safety. Environmental campaigners operate at enormous personal risk in Mexico, says Karla. “The portal offers something really special – a safe space where they can share hard truths. Usually, I’d protect my activists, but the portal is different. It’s amazing to know they are safe there”. Adds Ciela, “It’s fantastic to see the surprise on people’s faces when they experience it!”

Between two oceans

Mexico is exposed to extreme weather events, and with the city already experiencing 30-degree temperatures – in winter – climate change is part of everyday life. “You can see the air pollution just by looking at the sky”, says Karla. “Take a breath outside and you feel like someone who smokes three packs a day. This is a car city, and roads take priority over everything else, threatening biodiversity.” Adds Ciela, “The main river that runs through Mexico City is only half full. We’re facing spring and summer without enough water. Public advice is to shower for 10 mins tops and we are forbidden from drinking from the tap. We have to buy water, which only adds to plastics pollution.”

From discussion to action list – in record time

We ask the duo to share a recent Global We highlight and they are still buzzing as they remember a session involving two environmental activists: 13 year-old Sofia and 23 year-old Angélica. Sofia has already built a climate change movement called Cuidando a Gaia [‘taking care of earth’] that gives kids a way to voice their concerns by using the accompanying Android app!), while Angélica has mobilised thousands against deforestation and narco traffic. In a portal session with Copenhagen, the talk focused on keeping campaigners motivated and engaging the broader public. Karla was so fascinated by the duo’s approach – a potent mix of academic rigour and openness – that she made notes and afterwards, the three sat down together to produce a shareable climate action guide. This go-to campaign document covers time planning, agendas, focus groups and social media – and was done and dusted in a couple of hours. “Children are geniuses”, says Ciela. “They tell you the truth; they tell us what we, as adults, are doing wrong. They remind us that we often try to solve things in the wrong way – through violence. You get a completely original vision from children”.

Plant a backyard garden

Other UN Live sessions offered tips on avoiding food waste. “Buy from farmers, not supermarkets, to put money back into the agricultural economy. Buy apples during apple season and when that’s over, buy pineapples in pineapple season. Otherwise, with fruit and vegetables available all year round, they just go rotten”. From Joburg, Global We participants shared stories of hosting agriculture workshops to encourage people to grow food in their own backyard and distribute it to their community. “Covid was one of the biggest eye-openers for that”. And how about every single school starting a produce garden? “So kids know how to plant their own fruit, their own meal, and really appreciate where the food comes from….It’s about education from very early on”.

Save water. Shower with a bucket!

Drought advice featured too. “Keep a bucket in the shower to collect water so it can be used on plants or flushing the toilet”, says Ciela. “Our land is not protected, and commercial interests cross our borders and exploit it”, explains Karla. “Water gets polluted or diverted to serve commercial interests and this hurts anyone who lives in a rural area. Indigenous communities are affected. They have no home and no water to drink. Climate change affects minorities, marginalised communities, women”.

Sharing hard truths

Karla reminds us that climate conversations aren’t just about the environment; they’re about society and social justice. “Look at all the contamination and pollution coming from the Global North. That’s what I love about the Global We project. We get to talk to people in Europe. It’s a real mix of Mexico, Latin America and European countries. We get to tell hard truths about our experiences”.

UN Live portal by the entrance to Chapultepec Park

It's not just what you say…

For our Mexico City friends, it’s a personal journey too. “I want to become someone who inspires others,” says Ciela. “After working with activists in the portal, I’ve learned to change my approach when it comes to persuading people to treat animals differently and waste less food. Now I remember that others might not have the same opportunities as me, and I listen to the way they say things. I ask them if there’s anything I can do to help. I am open to learning more. Life is about learning”.

Message to decision makers

“Leaders, acknowledge your privilege and learn to use it to help others. Activists, don’t lose hope; if we lose hope we could lose everything.”

-Karla (she/her)

“Pay more attention to children! And remember – money isn’t everything; you can’t take it with you when you die.”

-Ciela (She/her)

Join the Global We

We are deeply grateful for the collaboration, support and leadership that Digital Culture Centre has given to the Global We programme. You can join the Global We conversation at the Digital Culture Centre UN Live portal here. The portal is located at the Digital Culture Centre, Lieja 270, Bosque de Chapultepec I Secc, Miguel Hidalgo, 11580 Ciudad de México, CDMX.

Our ongoing Global We for Climate Action gives a platform to diverse, under-represented voices from the frontlines of climate risk. From everyday acts like starting an urban farm, to a big-picture launch of a youth-based movement, the Global We shares climate strategies with the power to save lives.

To find out more, and join the conversation, please click here.

The Global We programme is supported by IKEA Foundation and powered by Shared Studios.