We could not be prouder of our Y9 pupils who participated in a mock COP29 Climate Change Conference on Wednesday at the Liverpool World Centre.

Guided by Pope Francis' call to action, the event has been created to give young people a voice at the mock UN Climate Conference at the end of November.  7 secondary schools across the archdiocese and SJR 6th Form college came together in an effort to tackle climate change.  The aim was to initiate and support climate campaigns in their own schools to reduce Carbon Footprints and support behaviour change in their school and local communities.

Students took part in a challenging debate inside the council chamber. The pupils represented 16 different countries all facing the challenge of the climate emergency. Teams debated the impact of climate emissions and what needs to be done to mitigate and adapt to the challenges ahead. 

Global Learning Education Officer at Liverpool World Centre, said: This is a great opportunity for students to develop their critical thinking skills around the climate emergency. It provided an opportunity for them to debate in the style of a UN conference, develop empathy and learn skills around negotiation and collaboration. This event is one way that schools can empower their young students to have a voice and feel that they can make changes in their school community to make a difference around the climate emergency. ‘’

The Councillors present said that they were impressed with how well prepared the young people were; that they had shared some very interesting solutions and were able to debate the issues at an in-depth level.

Our students conducted themselves in a very mature manner, needing to be quick thinkers and excellent communicators. The School Chaplain and Mrs Paul who attended the event, were overwhelmed about how successful they were in demonstrating their debating skills. A special mention must also go to Henry Turner 9S, who was also part of the conference, but unfortunately due to a football injury was unable to attend.

Well done to all the students who attended. We hope that you will be the voice of change for the future!