Cross-group organizing is a real threat to those in power, which is why we see a lot of attempts to get some people to believe that other people are to blame for their problems. When people see another group as the cause of their problems, it gives them somewhere to direct their very real frustration and anger.
Young people are undoubtedly leading the movement for climate justice. As you should be.
But we should also talk about the potential that working across generations could bring. We’re all familiar with the rivalries between generations – GenZ vs Millennials and of course, the Boomers (I’m sure there’s a meme coming to mind as you read this).
And sure, some seniors just don’t get it. But others do. We need to remember that they’ve lived through major social and political changes, and many of them were the activists and radicals of their time and are still fighting, whether we see them or not.
Division between groups – whether along racial lines, between the middle and working classes, or between generations – is created to prevent this kind of solidarity. We’ve seen similar things with traditional environmentalism and social justice in the move towards climate justice (a divide that has been closing in recent years thanks to the intersectionality of youth, especially BIPOC youth).
Cross-group organizing is a real threat to those in power, which is why we see a lot of attempts to get some people to believe that other people are to blame for their problems. When people see another group as the cause of their problems, it gives them somewhere to direct their very real frustration and anger.
“Division between groups – whether along racial lines, between the middle and working classes, or between generations – is created to prevent this kind of solidarity.”
This kind of conflict, often made worse by existing inequalities like racism and xenophobia, keeps people fighting each other instead of recognizing that a lot of the problems each group faces come from the same systems of power. Because if they realize this, then they can team up against that very system and be much more powerful together.
When people reach out and form relationships across groups, it makes each group stronger and creates allies.
Especially on the local level, a lot of the people in the climate action scene are from older generations – and many of them have been doing this for a long time. They have experience and can be valuable allies for youth-led climate justice. The youth-led part is still super important, but making space for those with different experiences and wisdom could be an advantage.
People from older generations have experience campaigning, organizing, fundraising, deposing. They know local politics and politicians better, know how the systems work, and have general life experience that can be really helpful to learn from.
And youth activists have the energy, imagination and boldness to make more radical demands. You’ve got the most to lose, aren’t caught up in the drama of local politics, understand the connections between environment and social justice, and have a new way of doing politics and dare to create different systems.
“People from older generations have experience campaigning, organizing, fundraising, deposing. They know local politics and politicians better, know how the systems work, and have general life experience that can be really helpful to learn from.”
Today, there’s a lot of division between us and seniors. There aren’t a lot of spaces where younger and older generations interact in any meaningful way other than between family members.
But the thing is that we have a lot in common, just in different ways. Our experiences are both often devalued. We both face social and physical barriers to participating in society.
Seniors face barriers to social participation in the form of:
Young people face barriers in the form of:
These are generalizations of course, but they are real barriers for many.
Both groups would benefit from more accessible social and political participation. Both would benefit from complete communities. Both would benefit from affordable housing. You get the idea – there’s similarities and opportunities to team up.
We can learn from past movements – collaboration and solidarity between groups can create a much stronger movement and, as history shows us, can make or break a movement completely.
What do you think about making space for intergenerational collabs in activism?
Kelly, signing off.
P.S – I think of these blog posts as an ongoing discussion. You can share your comments below, on social media (links below!) or get in touch with me at kelly@simcoecountygreenbelt.ca.
Kelly is SCGC's Youth Engagement Lead. She has a M.Ed. from OISE, and a B.A. (Hons) from Laurentian, where she specialized in Sociology. She's particularly interested in environmental education
Cross-group organizing is a real threat to those in power, which is why we see a lot of attempts to get some people to believe that other people are to blame for their problems. When people see another group as the cause of their problems, it gives them somewhere to direct their very real frustration and anger.
How often do youth actually get a say in municipal politics? Youth voices – especially those of high school students – youth that are transitioning into adulthood – deserve a place at the table when it comes to making decisions at the local level.
Climate change has been widely dubbed the ‘Generation Z problem.’ However we were born into ‘our problem’ with our elders actually wanting the problem to be solved, but expecting that we will be the ones to fix it. We were born into a problem that everyone knew we would have to solve eventually, but kept putting off until it became a dire situation.
We’re told that changing policies is difficult – and in some ways it is; there’s a lot of moving parts and a lot of details to consider. But we also see examples of sweeping policy changes all the time, at all the levels of government – just look at how much changed during Covid-19. It’s totally possible, if we have the political will (and public pressure – that’s where you come in) to do it.
…learning about how planning works is important because it helps us get climate justice happening on the local level. It helps us understand how these changes can actually play out through local government.
But there’s a lot to learn and not a lot of clear information, so how can we learn more?
Let’s cut right to it – now that the pandemic is beginning to come to a close, now is the time to jump into action and demand the world we want. Covid-19 put a lot of things on hold, put a lot of us into limbo. Now is when we plan. Now is when we act. Now is when our desire and need for change come into bloom – with the Earth lending us the energy of summer to do it!
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