UNEP Conference attended by G&T Suffolk Students

TUNZA 2008 – U.N.E.P. YOUTH CONFERENCE

For the last year, a group of twenty seven pupils from eleven schools in Suffolk & Norfolk have been working with an environmental scientist at Bungay Middle School on a project called the Climate Change Challenge.

Pupils from the schools’ Gifted and Talented registers formed a team with Looked After pupils from these schools, to research, discover and formulate ideas around the theme of climate change.

Their brief was to produce an action plan for all schools in this region: to cut back energy consumption and try to react to and perhaps reduce, the effects of rising global temperatures.   Pupils from the 11 middle and high schools met regularly at Bungay Middle School during their weekends and after school over the course of the year.

The project culminated  with eight representatives from the group, and their chaperones, attending the TUNZA Youth Conference in Stavanger, Norway. 

Their ideas were shown before 1000 international delegates as well as the selected projects, films and ideas from many other countries. This week long conference was hosted by the UNEP [United Nations Environment Programme] and Agenda 21 [the voice of young people in the  U.N.].

The extraordinary and exciting collaboration brought together pupils from 105 countries, who had developed ideas, inventions, or projects to help the environment, in schools & communities right across the globe.

There were groups of children from around the world; from Nepal, Bermuda and Peru, to Azerbaijan, Mongolia, New Zealand and Swaziland.

The U.K. group, lead by Ruth Broomhall from the Eastern Region Gifted & Talented Partnership, spent a fantastic week, meeting  adults & children from all over the world. Bonds were forged,  and contacts between schools and individuals were made, to take forward into the future.
 
The youth delegates had a full programme of events every day. They had to attend action groups, workshops, field trips and spend time listening to keynote speakers, U.N. representatives  or other youth delegations. 

Multinational groups of children also worked together on many activities during the afternoons.

Amongst other things, children recreated a 3000 year old house for the Oslo Museum; explored the Norweigan coast to look at local ecosystems; made radio shows; sculptures; designed recycled fashion and mosaics. They produced a mural with a well known environmental artist - which will be displayed at the Beijing Olympics later this year.  They also spent time making friends from around the globe, exchanging ideas, inspiration and friendship.

The U.N. plan to put the work of all the different delegations onto the TUNZA Youth Conference webpage, and this forum will enable the school children to maintain the links they have made with other schools across the world.

The next TUNZA [meaning Save the Earth in Swahili] will be held in Korea and Suzie Phillips,   G & T Co-ordinator from Bungay Middle, is already making plans to take a larger group of children to that conference. "This was an incredible experience for these children and the adults who went with them. The chance to speak face to face with people from so many nations, who all want the same thing  - is an inspiring and powerful thing to be a part of." she said.  

James Nobbs, one of the pupils who attended from Bungay Middle, said,  "it was the trip of a lifetime, and we were trying to save the world at the same time, brilliant."