Young people at centre of sustainable energy thrust

Listen as Dr. Devon Gardner, Energy Programme Manager at the CARICOM Secretariat, chats on CARICOM Today about the winners of the 2017 CARICOM Energy Month competitions, and the importance of youth to sustainable development:

Winners of CARICOM Energy Month Competitions announced from Caribbean Community on Vimeo.

According to Dr. Gardner, the youth-centric focus of competitions – held in observance of CARICOM Energy Month last November – was in recognition of the importance of their involvement in shaping their future; a future that is built on a foundation of sustainable energy.

Announcing the winners of the various competitions held to mark CARICOM Energy Month in November last year, Dr.  Gardner, pointed to the fact that the youth stand to be the major beneficiaries of a sustainable approach to energy.

“If we are talking about sustainability in any sense, sustainability really speaks about how do what we are doing now without compromising the needs of future generations. So in order for us to act now and not compromise the needs of the future generations, we need the future generation to be involved in a way which helps us to shape what it is that they would like to see their future societies look like. So it is natural that those who will form that future generation become a part of that conversation…,” he said.

An essay competition and a young artist competition, both targeting young CARICOM nationals, were among the CARICOM Energy Month activities. Participation in the 2017 competitions was high: there were entries from almost all Member States and the quality was exceptional, particularly for the under-12 artists.

Other activities during the month that was held under the theme ‘Re-thinking Energy; Shaping a Resilient Future’, were a Kilo Walk in Georgetown, Guyana, where the CARICOM Headquarters is located, and a call for nominations for a CARICOM Energy Personality. The winner of that award will be announced shortly.