The district had decided it was important to have a presence on the march, and so posters were prepared the previous week by young members and volunteer alike. Venturers (age 14) Annie and Connie noted ‘It was important to us’ to take part in the Global Day of Action against climate change.

On the day members of Brighton Central and Hove district gathered with many more in the centre of Brighton and were glad that they had the Woodcraft flag so that people could find them easily.

Some Venturers managed to get to the very front of the march, and were asked to help hold the banner there. ‘It was great being there and fighting for something we are passionate about’ Elsa said.

The march threaded its way through Brighton and along the seafront to Hove. Taking non-violent action in this way really helped to strengthen resolve to keep going, and this quote from Josie (Venturer) says it all. “I’m really glad I went and that our voices are heard, and I hope people will listen and do something about it”

Huge thanks to Mahlangu Venturers for their quotes and pictures!

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Woodcraft Folk groups across the UK have taken part in lots of different activities ahead of COP26 hosted in Glasgow, Scotland. Groups, districts and individuals have taken action led by children and young people’s environmental concerns.

Groups of all ages have been involved in several art projects including ‘Leaves for life’, a mass action of solidarity with indigenous communities of Colombia.

Members have also been involved with ‘Moths to a Flame’, another mass-participation art installation of moths made from milk bottles.

Some of our Glasgow groups even made a giant caterpillar puppet with support from a community artist ready for the Global Day of Action march.

Young people made banners and signs, practised singing climate related songs, and practised how to protest ahead of the big day of action.

Global Day of Action (6th November)

Groups from Glasgow, Edinburgh, Falkirk and Stirling joined the Glasgow Global Day of Action march on 6th November in the pouring rain, which later gave way to a rainbow with the rain eventually stopping in time for the destination, where everyone enjoyed hot chocolate and parachute games. Some children and their families marched two days in a row, having also taken part in the Fridays for the Future school strike the day before.

Our groups also supported COP26 Coalition events by lending big tents and cooking equipment, and some members volunteered to help cater for the La Minga group of indigenous leaders.

Young people were keen to spread the message about what COP26 is and why climate justice matters. Young people from Glasgow made a series of 3 short animations for other young people to help explain what a COP is and why it’s important that COP26 makes a difference. One of these films was picked up by Education Scotland, showcased at the Scottish Learning Festival in September, and shortlisted for the Scottish Youth Film Foundation Change competition. You can view these films (in English) here.

The People’s Summit

The People’s Summit held a youth day in Glasgow on 7th November. Lots of Woodcraft Folk volunteers ran a wide game for over 50 people in one of the few COP26 spaces specifically for children, young people and intergenerational groups.

The active, running around game for children and adults explores how different sections of society can influence climate policy and shares understanding of the direct impact of government and leaders’ decisions. Groups also took part in a performance with Little Amal about her search for safety and community in the face of global change. Little Amal is a 3.5 metre-tall puppet of a young refugee girl, who has travelled over 8,000km from the border of Syria to COP26, visiting cities, towns and villages.

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The meeting explored the importance of the climate emergency, expectations of COP26, what actions young people have been taking to address the climate emergency and their demands of senior politicians.

Seren shared her experience of teaching younger children about climate change and climate science through games and activities.

Maddy shared the need for action to address climate inequality.

Luke Pollard was delighted to be inspired by young people. After Maddy and Seren spoke he called upon all members of the public to hold decision makers to account. Many are hoping to make COP26 the only successful COP with agreed action.

To find out more about what Woodcraft Folk is doing in the run up to and during the COP26 in Glasgow, and how you can get involved, check out our COP26 campaign page.

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Woodcraft Folk’s Green Influencers

Woodcraft Folk is one of the 37 host organisations involved in the project, which is led by the Ernest Cook Trust. Green Mentor Elaine Brown has recruited 90 young people as Green Influencers across Leeds and Bradford. Nine months into the two-year project, there are now 1,500 Green Influencers across the UK, and the scheme is on target to enlist 5,000 young people between the ages of 10 and 14 by the end of the project.

“Our Green Influencers in Leeds and Bradford are an inspirational group of young people from many different backgrounds,” said Elaine. “They’ve got many different interests and concerns, but they’ve all approached the project with bags of enthusiasm. Their social action projects have ranged from investigating air pollution in their neighbourhood to interviewing a local MP about COP26.”

COP26, the UN Climate Change Conference is starting on October 31. World leaders will gather in Glasgow to discuss global climate issues. The Green Influencers scheme is demonstrating how young people are already trying to make a difference by getting engaged with their environment and improving their communities. The scheme is a project match-funded through the #iwill Fund which is funded by The National Lottery Community Fund and Department of Culture, Media & Sport. Each of which are investing £27million seed funding to support young people to access high-quality social action opportunities.

In the past 12 months in Leeds and Bradford there are/have been Woodcraft Folk Green Influencer-led projects in;

• Rosebank Primary School (Burley),
• Co-op Academy Nightingale (Harehills),
• Richmond Hill Academy (Richmond Hill),
• IntoUniversity Leeds East (Harehills)
• IntoUniversity Leeds South (Beeston)
• Co-op Academy Grange (Bradford)

The pioneering scheme has been match-funded through the #iwill Fund, which is funded by The National Lottery Community Fund and Department of Culture, Media & Sport, which are each investing £27million seed funding to support young people to access high-quality social action opportunities.

“What’s significant about the Green Influencers Scheme is the reach it has, and we are thrilled to be on course to enlisting 5,000 young people. The enthusiasm of those involved is inspiring, and we have been so impressed with their ideas and their creativity. We are very grateful to the Green Mentors for the guidance they are giving,” said Victoria Edwards, Chief Executive of the Ernest Cook Trust. “While the world talks about climate change, the young people of our country are getting out there and making a difference.”

For information about the Green Influencers Scheme visit The Ernest Cook Trust website or email greeninfluencers@ernestcooktrust.org.uk.

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Groups across Scotland will create giant leaf flags to create a forest canopy, which will be installed of leaves for life to be installed at the Briggait, and in the Intermedia Gallery at the Centre for Contemporary Arts.

Woodcraft Folk groups across the UK are invited to join the project by making leaves of their own to send to Glasgow ready for COP26 — leaves should be around a metre in length and cut from fabric.

If you are planning to get involved, organisers would love to hear from you with details of how many leaves you hope to make — get in touch by emailing leavesforlife@riseup.net.

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Woodcraft Folk is passionate about children’s rights. Especially their right to live and develop in a safe environment, to have access to food and their right to share their thoughts freely. As a youth organisation, Woodcraft Folk wants all children and young people to have the opportunity to learn, to play and to enjoy the natural world around them without fear. 

Woodcraft Folk proactively encourages our young members to engage in conversations about the climate emergency and actions to protect the environment for us all. Our young members welcomed the UK Government’s declaration of a climate emergency in May 2019, but we are yet to see significant action to address the crisis.

Woodcraft Folk are especially proud of the role taken by children and young people in raising awareness of the climate emergency. The organisation is also pleased to see so many agencies seeking to engage young people and will seek to amplify the voices of young people.

As an organisation we have increased our use of renewable energy, planted trees, delivered educational workshops on climate science and the sustainable development goals, supported youth led green social action, made ethical and sustainable purchasing choices and have targets to decarbonise our events.

The climate crisis is happening much closer to home than deforestation in the Amazon, or the uncontrollable fires in California and Australia. It is happening right here on our doorsteps,with a rise in flooding and displacement around the UK, Woodcraft Folk saw first hand the damage of flooding at it’s youth campsite in Herefordshire in 2019 & 2020. Whilst pandemic restrictions saw an improvement in air quality in 2020, the UK still suffers from water pollution and air quality issues that harm the health of us all. 

The climate emergency is not just an environmental issue, the crisis is currently disproportionately impacting the most vulnerable groups worldwide. As such we need to ensure all voices, and all communities are being protected, and demand climate justice for all.

It is time to move beyond moralistic climate justice narratives that hold individuals responsible for the actions of large corporations, extractivist state policies and the military. States and corporations must be held to account for the climate crisis. Tools for climate justice must achieve justice for all, and to do that we need to bring about radical system change, by understanding the systems that cause this crisis.

Woodcraft Folk will support children and young people to review information and to explore alternative approaches to creating a fair, peaceful and sustainable world for us all. This will include identifying and challenging inequalities in our society and the wider world, tackling racism, class oppression, violence against women and abuse of power whereever that may happen. It will also include exploring how we can build back better after the pandemic, learning lessons and using evidence to make system change. Evidence such as the recent report highlighting how the co-operative model is a model of choice to tackle climate change.

Only when our decision makers and our resistance movements are reflective and inclusive of the people who are suffering the worst of the crisis, will our actions be truly impactful.

Join Woodcraft Folk in taking action:

• Support young people in their social action and lobbying
• Like Woodcraft Folk, support the Teach the Future demands to embed climate science and sustainable development into the school curriculum
• Make your views known and demand action from decision makers whether that be a school property manager or City Councillor. Write and ask for a meeting.
• Submit your views to decision makers at COP26. The Conference of Youth are requesting submissions from individuals and groups and all Woodcraft Folk groups are being encouraged to make a submission.
• Woodcraft Folk, as an active member of the Institute of Outdoor Learning, is sharing activities and educational resources as part of a month long campaign to improve learning for sustainability

This statement was written and agreed by General Council, Woodcraft Folk’s Trustee board.

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Woodcraft Folk Scotland’s first face-to-face activity day for almost two years took place in Glasgow on 2 October. The gathering brought volunteers and young people groups across Scotland together. With many young members having missed out on the chance to spend time under canvas this summer, the day was planned with plenty of reminders of camping from clan duties to a campfire.

Ahead of the COP26 climate talks in the city next month, the theme for the day was Learning for Sustainability. The day kicked off with activities exploring protest – sharing thoughts and ideas on why people campaign and how to do it effectively. Young people chose their own causes, then created slogans and placards to promote them. Scrap materials were upcycled into loudhailers and instruments, while chants and songs were written to raise young people’s voices in support of their cause. Members also considered how to reduce the risks, choosing stewards to keep an eye out for hazards as they marched.

Elfins explored the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals with activities including water filtration, while Pioneers and Venturers considered their priorities for COP26 and the messages they wanted to communicate to world leaders visiting Scotland for the event. Meanwhile, volunteers took part in a workshop to consider approaches to supporting young people’s engagement with social action. Woodcraft Folk groups from across Scotland and beyond will be convening in Glasgow again as part of the Global Day of Action on 6 November – you can find out more about this activity, and other ways to engage around the UK by visiting find out more and about the hubs of activity across the UK by visiting the COP 26 Coalition website.

“Next month sees a unique opportunity for our young members in Scotland to raise their voices on the issues that they care about, and our activity day helped young people plan how they can make the most of it.” said Fleur Gayet, Scottish Development Officer. “But after so long without Scotland-wide events happening in person, it was also great to catch up and find out what other groups have been doing, and to go smelling of campfire once more!”

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