TYNE VALLEY, P.E.I. — It’s not the anticipation of a fun trip with friends that keeps Kory and Skye MacLean up at night.
It’s their fear of irreversible climate change.
“I am petrified by climate change,” said Kory, 16. “I am terrified by what could happen and by the little work that is being done. It’s up to us, the next generation, to motivate others to take action against climate change.”
The sisters, who have always been environmentally conscientious, started implementing greener practices in their everyday lives when Skye worked on a science project on climate change two years ago.
“We have about 10 years to change before we won’t be able to undo what’s been done to the planet. In 10 years, I’ll only be 23. I want to be on this earth a lot longer than 23 years,” said Skye, 13.
And while Skye found her project eye-opening, it’s the words and actions of people like Greta Thunberg, a 16-year-old Swedish climate change activist, who says people should act “like their house is on fire” to inspire them to play an active role in the conversation.
“Fighting climate change is not just something she’s doing because she’s passionate about it. It’s because she, like me, is terrified,” said Kory.
Skye and Kory want to see more action being taken on a local, national and international front.
The sentiment, out of sight out of mind, doesn’t apply to climate change, the sisters said.
“It’s not something you can put out of your mind. Pretending it isn’t a problem isn’t going to do anything,” said Kory.
Skye added, “Like come on, there are so many things we talk about and we learn about. But when it comes to climate change, we’re not learning enough about it.”
That includes inside the classroom, she said.
Skye said she’s disappointed past generations didn’t take better care of resources and the planet.
“Why’d you have to leave it all up to me, us?”
Kory added, “It’s a mammoth problem. We, as youth, are entering new stages of our life, but we’re also facing a problem no generation has before. The planet is dying, we’re on it and we’re not going anywhere.”
Lanna Campbell, the program director for the Nature Conservancy of Canada, P.E.I. chapter, said it’s inspiring to see young people learning and discussing issues that are larger than themselves.
“There are so many alarming reports that are happening now, but they’ll still be relevant in the future. There is this sense that we’re running out of time, so when kids and youth care and show concern about what’s going on, it’s fantastic.”
The research and energy they put into encouraging others to care about what they care about is endearing, Campbell said.
“Seeing them take action can also inspire adults to say, ‘we have to get our acts together’.”
Now the girls are looking to rally the troops.
They are organizing a protest outside the provincial legislature in Charlottetown on May 24.
Skye and Kory are drawing on Thunberg's Fridays for Future School Strikes for Climate initiative – youth-led protests, strikes and marches every Friday outside a political legislature.
On May 3, during a Canada-wide protest, the sisters stationed themselves outside of MP Bobby Morrissey’s office in Summerside.
Their mom, Sandy, is proud of the work the girls are doing to get more young people involved.
“Teenagers are especially great at telling adults when they’re doing something wrong. And there is something wrong with the way we’re addressing climate change. Young people recognize that.
“I’m proud of them, it’s hard for teenagers to do something that no one else is really talking about.”
To follow Kory and Skye’s climate change mission, follow @peiyouth4climate on Instagram or reach out to them at [email protected].
