Young minds develop ideas to tackle climate change

Image source, Jon Wright/BBCImage caption, Baveen and Shanice focused on ideas to combat light pollution at the hackathonA group of young people have developed ideas to tackle the effects of climate change as part of a free touring exhibition.On Tuesday 16 young people took part in a hackathon - a timed event where people work together to build creative solutions to problems - where they devised posters with ways to combat light pollution, wild fires, damage to oceans and poor water quality.The event was hosted by Seeds of Hope and Change, an organisation run by the Soka Gakkai International and the UN Earth Charter, at the Jerwood Dancehouse in Ipswich.Maryanne, 16, took part in the project and said: "We just want people to be aware of what's going on, especially with major issues such as ocean pollution."Image source, Jon Wright/BBCImage caption, Maryanne and Hannah discussed the challenge of pollution in seas and oceansClimate change is the long-term shift in the Earth's average temperatures and weather conditions.This year's summer was the UK's hottest on record, according to provisional data from the Met Office.The Met Office said the heat experienced this summer was made about 130 times more likely by human-induced climate change. Baveen, 17, said "We wanted to talk about the cities and the sky and how it affects people and also wildlife."The poster her group produced included ideas for using low-intensity bulbs and motion sensors in street lights so that they were not continuously left on.Image source, Jon Wright/BBCImage caption, Each group at the hackathon put their ideas on big postersThe exhibition, which is free and runs until 4 October, includes 24 pop-up panels that share information and environmental case studies from around the world on the impact of climate change. The hackathon for young people was run by ambassadors from the youth-led campaigning organisation #iWill.Alex Harrison, one of the #iWill ambassadors, said: "The main purpose is reminding young people that in the face of something really scary like climate change, there's a lot that you can do personally to make a real change."Image source, Jon Wright/BBCImage caption, The exhibition of 24 pop-up panels share information and environmental case studies from around the worldDo you have a story suggestion for Suffolk? Contact us below.Get in touchMore on climate changeRelated internet links