Geraldton youth looking to inspire climate change after local Australian Youth Climate Coalition branch opens

A group of young people are striving to bring climate change front of mind in Geraldton by creating a local branch of the Australian Youth Climate Coalition. The coalition is a nation-wide push by young people to work towards solutions to the climate crisis and lead social change. In Geraldton, high school students Mina Elliott and Ava Darby, both 17, took it upon themselves to start the movement locally. Mina said the idea stemmed from attending an AYCC event in Perth, as well as her upbringing living along the coast. “Growing up at Point Moore on West End and seeing the beach being completely destroyed by erosion has been really confronting,” she said. “But it’s also made me very passionate about fighting for climate justice and fighting for change.” After attending the training session and joining forces with fellow local Josh Burney, they began hosting climate meetings before their first official event, a clean-up at a section of the Chapman River. Along with the help of Chapman River Friends, more than 20 people came down to help clean the area, collecting 18 bin bags worth of rubbish. Mina said the result shocked her. “I was really nervous beforehand that we’d get heaps of people and there wouldn’t be any rubbish,” she said. “I was really surprised by the amount (of rubbish) that was actually found. “Everyone was really amazing and did an amazing job of cleaning the area, but it was just a small section and it is quite concerning how much plastic there is. “I dread to think about the rest of the river.” Mina said the group hoped to inspire young people to act towards climate change and aimed to educate the public in forums like market stalls. She said with the upcoming Federal election, people had the option to vote for issues which mattered to them. “We hope to hand out these really amazing pledge cards that AYCC has supplied us with which people can sign saying when they vote, they’re going to consider climate while voting,” she said. “It’s to get people thinking about climate justice . . . and for me being under 18 and not being able to vote, I think this is a really good way I can express myself.” Anyone who wants to join the local AYCC branch can do so by following their Instagram page @aycc_geraldton.