Young ambassador for climate change

Young ambassador for climate change: Promoting UNICEF activities with and for adolescents across Asia Pacific countries

Background

Climate Change is the defining intergenerational challenge of our times and children must be placed at its centre, through flexible planning commitments over long time horizons. Climate change has become an increasingly important issue globally and during the international meeting to re-negotiate greenhouse gas mitigation and adaptation protocols in Copenhagen this year, young voices will be heard. The Conference of Parties Meeting of the UN Framework Conference on Climate Change, (COP 15) meeting in Copenhagen in December 2009 will bring together climate change experts, government leaders and young people from across the globe to hammer out a new set of carbon emission targets and widespread funding mechanisms to address adaptation measures needed to counter already manifest threats of climate change in many areas around the world.

UNICEF will be jointly hosting a Children’s Climate Forum in Copenhagen together with the Mayor of Copenhagen, constituting investment towards a sustained process of raising environmental awareness and continued climate change advocacy in the home countries of the young participants. Furthermore, during the days in Copenhagen there will be excellent opportunities for the children to interact face to face with peers from the rest of the world and from schools in Copenhagen and also to work on-line (new collaborative campaign workspace developed by UNICEF called www.unite4climate will be rolled out. UNICEF will support 17 young people and their chaperones to attend the Climate Youth Forum in Copenhagen from China, Mongolia, Philippines, Vietnam, Bangladesh, India, Maldives and Nepal.

UNICEF recognises that leadership and mentorship can be provided through a range of methods including teachers, scientific experts, adult role models and through peer approaches. The employment of a young climate change activist and advocate is seen as an appropriate strategy for APSSC to harmonize young people’s participation from a regional level in the COP 15 meeting.

The Young Ambassador for Climate Change in the Asia Pacific region will provide a networking contact point for young AP delegates prior to the Forum event, will play a major supporting role in shaping the young voice of advocacy during the mitigation/adaptation debate, will compile a blog during her stay in Copenhagen and will prepare a detailed opportunity briefing for follow-up after the forum among regional youth advocates seeking to build programming continuity into their advocacy experience.

The APSSC is seeking to immediately contract a young activist and advocate taking a leadership and mentoring role from October 2009 – December 2009. This young leader consultant will help to guide the team of adolescents /young people from all of the Asia Pacific UNICEF supported countries and most importantly ensure an adolescent and youth perspective from the Asia Pacific Region is optimally represented at the meeting in Copenhagen and that pragmatic follow up issues are addressed through an Asia Pacific climate change youth network supported by APSSC.

Tasks

- Provide leadership and mentoring to other young people from the AP region working to advance issues that will improve climate change
- Initiate capacity development for other young advocates and activists.
- Using available communication technologies raise the profile of the work of countries in the Asia Pacific and of groups of young people and where appreciate individuals taking action around climate change (blog method preferred).
- Share with ADAP focal points in UNICEF country offices across the AP countries the activities, opportunities for participation of young people in climate change related activities
- Establish a network of UNICEF supported young people that will attend the COP15 in Copenhagen and initiate opportunities for e dialogue and communication around various pre Copenhagen activities
- Provide leadership to the team while in Copenhagen through facilitation of regular sessions for the groups to touch base and support reach other
- Document the contributions and key experiences of the group
- Develop a series of recommendations for follow up to Cop 15 including suggestions about who could lead these activities across the region
- Initiative activities to build the network of the above and to consider ways to strengthen the representation from the AP countries
- Prepare a report with the findings from the forum event detailing youth activism, interesting network potential and recommendations for Country teams to engage on the Climate Change issue meaningfully with young people in programme countries.
- Prepare illustrated booklet highlighting youth actions in support of Climate Change efforts across the Asia-Pacific region (for inclusion in later publication).

Purpose of the consultancy

The overall objective of the consultancy is to provide regional leadership and support for the team of young people from the AP countries that will attend the Climate Change Forum for Children, held concurrently with the Conference of Parties (COP 15) meeting in Copenhagen. The consultant will provide a focal point to provide capacity development and explore innovative strategies/activities to engage more young people in Climate Change work.

The following issues should be considered by the consultant in promoting work in AP countries and developing a network of young delegates to the Copenhagen meeting:

- The use of media and IT to raise the profile of the CC work of adolescents in the AP countries
- How the Copenhagen future delegates could become an organised network of (UNICEF supported?) young people rather than a series of country individuals?
- How to move out of schools and involve other adolescents?
- How to build links between adolescent youth groups at country level who are working with CC but may not be participating in Copenhagen
- Linkages (possible mapping) of how UNICEF link with UNEF, DFID, AEF, and other partners working with CC and supporting activity at national and AP level.
- Consider the AP network within a global context and ensure global opportunities are taken up by the AP network.

Methodology

- Use of internet existing UNICEF activity around CC and Copenhagen
- Contact with UNICEF county office ADAP staff and staff responsible for Copenhagen delegates
- Direct communication with young delegates
- Review mapping of CC activity across AP countries in 2009/10 and prepare brief booklet with CC action by adolescents in AP
- Liaison with APSSC on dialogue with major donors supporting CC in AP countries
- Meet staff and volunteers of active UN partner groups UNEP and UNDP.

Outputs

Specific outputs expected from the consultancy are:

1. AP network of young Copenhagen delegates identified with email and contact addresses, organisation website url’s etc..

2. Inputs to a Climate Change and Adolescent Action Plan 2010-2015 for Asia Pacific Countries (to become a donor funding document for country level initiatives in 2010).

3. Produce daily Blog site features on the CCFC09

4. Draft Report of activities, successes and advocacy efforts by adolescents from AP countries pre and during the Copenhagen Forum/ Meeting.

5. A power point presentation of the draft report.

Reporting

The consultant will work in consultation with the focal person for Climate Change in APSSC Mr Ken Maskall. The consultant will report to Ken and Ms Margaret Sheehan ADAP adviser will be the second level supervisor.

Timeframe

The duration is 10 weeks. The desired timeframe is from 9th October till 20th December 2009.
Detailed timetables with breakdown of activities will be produced later in discussion with the approved consultant.

Consultant specifications

The following characteristics are required of the prospective consultant:

- Proven experience working with adolescents and young people in a leadership, mentoring and training capacity on environmental.
- Prior experience as a selected youth delegate at a high level meeting focused on climate change, environment, MDG or other relevant issues.
- Demonstrated activist work with and for adolescents/young people at the country level in at least one country within the AP region
- Proven experience at an operational level with a UN or development partner of NGO (in south region will be an asset)
- Excellent communication, facilitation and advocacy skills and writing skills in English including
- Excellent computer skills including highly developed working knowledge of IT, blogs, twitter, face book, all UN websites, word, excel and power point.

Parameters by which the tender will be judged

The following criteria will be used for the selection of the consultant:

- Consultants profiles fit with specifications
- Prior work with the UN in a leadership /ambassador role