Young People’s Forum

The Young People’s Forum is a group of individuals aged 16-24, who are keen in creating a change and advocating for young voices when it comes to the preservation of our wild spaces. We meet once a month to discuss events and opportunities for the forum. Outside of meetings, we have the choice to be involved as much as we like, from training, volunteering and shadowing staff.

Lucy

"The Northumberland Wildlife Trust began the Young People’s Forum in 2022 with the aim of working better with young people, giving them a voice within the Trust, gaining experience as well as meeting others passionate about the environment.

Back in November 2022, the North East Climate Change Coalition organised a rally in Newcastle on COP27 to demand more action from the government to tackle the climate crisis. I joined the rally with the hope of becoming more engaged in activism, as well as getting inspiration from the key speakers who were able to use their voices to influence change. This is important to me because without these voices, it is all too easy to become overwhelmed and lose faith that change is possible, something that I have experienced myself. I wanted to meet others who were passionate about environmentalism and tackling climate change. The rally included a march down Northumberland Street, stopping outside of major organisations contributing to the crisis, notably Barclays Bank, demanding less conferences and empty words and more proactive change, investment in green technologies and education.

The rally then concluded outside the Civic Centre for a mini green festival with stalls including Climate Action Newcastle, Newcastle Greenpeace and Northumberland Wildlife Trust. This is where I first heard about the Young People’s Forum and I knew I wanted to join so I could continue the conversation about climate change and become a better activist. It is one thing to attend the rally, and another to know what steps to take next. There is still so much I want to learn, and the Forum has given me the opportunity to do so.

Our first meeting was held a few months later where we discussed our vision for the Forum and we started brainstorming about our first event. We all agreed that a clothing swap would be a good place and the Trust was able to get funding for an event focused on sustainability.

Over the summer, our meetings consisted of planning for the swap, dividing roles between the group, researching venues and making infographics for ‘Switch and Stitch’. It was a good experience for event planning and I was grateful to be doing something proactive, opening the discussion around the harmful effects of the fast fashion industry, while also providing sustainable solutions. The vision we had in mind combined the practical clothes swap promoting slow fashion, with an ‘anti fast fashion festival’ including live music, upcycling workshops and a fashion show. Months of preparation culminated into one day, but the event was a success. It was amazing to see so many people getting involved in our event, and the amount of donations we got was almost overwhelming. This also meant that we were able to hold a second swap earlier this year.

After all the preparation was over, we had to decide what direction we wanted to take with the Forum next. Since then we’ve had the opportunity to visit the Trust’s wildlife nature reserves. This summer we visited Kielder Forest for the Osprey watch where seven breeding pairs hunt over the waters from March to September. The Forum is hoping to continue with similar trips, as well as contributing to events within the Wildlife Trust."

Laura

"Northumberland Wildlife Trust visited my school to help set up an “Eco Influencers” group - a project targeting young people aged 10-18, which encourages them to take action for our environment. It was through this that I learned about the Young People’s Forum, and I became a member at the start of 2024. 

I’ve always had an interest in wildlife, and searched for opportunities in which I could get involved in the conservation of our natural world; the Forum now being one of them. It’s my dream to work with wildlife, and I now have the support of the Northumberland Wildlife Trust - who can help me begin that journey.

This year, I visited Kielder Forest with the Forum, where I saw kingfishers, ospreys and much more! It was an amazing trip; I learned a lot about the forest, plants and the animals that we have living here right in the UK. Recently, I helped out with the Northumberland Wildlife Trust’s stall at the Northumberlandia Food and Craft Market, where I had the chance to speak with the public and raise awareness about the Trust and the Young People’s Forum.

It has been a wonderful year being a part of the Young People’s Forum, and I look forward to the future experiences to be had. We plan on hosting new events, as well as taking part in other trips and learning about the ways in which we can conserve our planet."

 The Young People’s Forum is recruiting new members, to find out more go to www.nwt.org.uk/young-peoples-forum.