Climate Activists

Climate Activists

Mercy College, Coolock

The Social Issue

Inspired by Greta Thunberg, this team of students from Mercy College, wanted to raise awareness in their community about climate change and how it will affect their generation. Their message was clear 'we need to act now to combat climate change before it’s too late!'

The Idea

The ‘Climate Activists’ took several innovative actions to tackle the issue. They campaigned to reduce the amount of single-use plastic in their school. They wanted to bring their community closer to fulfilling UN Sustainable Development Goal 13: “Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts”. Throughout their project, they collaborated with the Green School Co-ordinator and Committee to help organise activities during their Climate Awareness Week. With a focus on raising awareness about the issue, the team created a three-minute climate video - A Glimpse of our World. They also attended a climate forum at Mount Temple with the Minister for the Environment.

Climate change is a real and undeniable threat to our entire civilization .The effects are already visible and will be catastrophic unless we act now. Through education, innovation and adherence to our climate commitments, we can make the necessary changes to protect the planet.

The Impact: 

The students educated themselves, their peers, and the wider community about the impacts of single-use plastics and other aspects of climate change. They raised €250 through a bake sale and donated it to the World Wildlife Foundation, to assist with their conservation efforts in Australia. As a result of all the environmental activities they organised during climate action week, they were presented with a Weather Station worth €1500 By Siobhan Ryan (Weather Presenter) from Met Eireann and An Taisce. The success of their project brought them all the way to the Young Social Innovators Ireland Awards in 2020 where they won the Make Our Future More Sustainable Challenge Award