Youth Forum for Disaster Risk Reduction
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Children and youth under age 30 currently make up more than half the world’s population. They are the ones who will benefit most from reducing the risk and impact of disasters, curtailing climate chaos and achieving the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (2021), climate change will allow for a change in the frequency, intensity, duration and spatial extent of the hydrometeorological hazards. For the Americas and the Caribbean region, this may mean stronger hurricanes, more persistent droughts and more frequent flood events. In this context, children and adolescents are particularly vulnerable to disasters as they are dependent on others for access to resources, livelihood, decision making and support. During disasters youth are also faced with the task of taking on the role of adults to provide support to siblings, elderly people, among others.
Studies show that children and youth can be strong advocates for climate change and disaster risk reduction in their various communities and groups. In this sense, their contributions are already making a difference through more inclusive DRR and resilience-building policies, better prepared households, healthier children and youth and safer communities. However, more must be done to further engage youth around in the Americas and the Caribbean in DRR to fully implement the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030.
In this sense, as a preliminary event VII Regional Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in the Americas and the Caribbean under the theme “Building Resilient Economies in the Americas and the Caribbean” the Youth Forum will provide a space for youth representatives to voice their unique views on Disaster Risk Reduction for the region and how can youth be better engaged in the implementation of the Sendai Framework for DRR. Also the forum will provide the opportunity to inform and influence decision makers participating in the regional platform for DRR by sharing youth priorities, concerns and proposals related to DRR.