top of page
Search

Nobody is too young to have an impact


Hi, I'm Danny, and I'm 13. I've been involved in taking action for the environment since I was 9 years old. In this time, I have been involved in some really important and interesting projects that have made a big difference in not only my local community but the wider world too. That shows that nobody is too young to have an impact.


Back in 2017, I was part of a campaign that helped to save a horse chestnut tree from being cut down by developers. Campaigners stayed in the tree for nearly two weeks and we supported them from the ground. Amazingly, the developers agreed to save the tree and even appointed an arboriculture expert who gave it a health boost so now it's stronger than ever. This showed me that you could stand up for something important, change people's minds and take steps to save the planet.


After this, with my brother, I thought of ways to take action myself to improve the

environment in my town. There's no point thinking of all the things that you can't change, or feel powerless about, because then nothing would ever change. If you focus on things you can do, then it is satisfying to actually watch progress happening and feel the impact of your work. My brother and started I litter picking which spread to a really regular mission and that got support from our whole town. Nearly four years later, we still regularly hold clean-up events. We also started climate change protests at our primary school, and joined a strike with other schools in our town.


With Action for Conservation, I attended a tree-planting day at the Young People's Forest at Mead, where we planted hundreds of trees together as part of the Big Climate Fightback. Days like this are important because when you see so many other people working together on something, it shows you just how much power we have to create change.

I think young people are crucial to climate action because it's our future, if we rely on others, then maybe they won't care as much as we do - as the future will not affect them as directly. I do know that not everyone thinks like this, and there are many supportive adults around us, but maybe it would explain the lack of action or urgency? Young people understand how desperate the situation is as we have already started to see irreversible changes in our short lifetimes. And this feels like just the start. I'd say to young people to look for one tiny glimmer of positivity by making one practical change - whether it's speaking out, taking action on a local level, or encouraging others to think about what they can do too. When there is no hope, the world feels a bit dark and depressing, but if you change the focus to actually doing something about it rather than worrying everything feels different.


Thanks for reading and Happy International Youth Day 2022!


Danny.


 
 
 

Comments


Action for Conservation
Our Supporters
PRESS
MENTIONS

London Office

(Head Office):

South Wing
Somerset House
London, WC2R 1LA

Bristol Office:

13 Orchard St

Bristol

BS1 5EH

Manchester Office:

Beehive Lofts

Beehive Mill

Jersey St

Manchester, M4 6JG

info@actionforconservation.org

Subscribe to our newsletter

  • White Instagram Icon
  • TikTok
  • Youtube
  • White Twitter Icon
  • White Facebook Icon
  • LinkedIn

B &J Lloyd Charitable Trust

Badgells Wood Camping

Chapman Charitable Trust

E-volt Charging

Energy Saving Trust Foundation

Environmental Funders Network

EQ Foundation

Ernest Kleinwort Charitable Trust

Esmée Fairbairn Foundation

Fidelity Foundation

Garfield Weston Foundation

HCD Education and General Trust

HDH Wills 1965 Charitable Trust

Ian MacTaggart Trust

Lund Trust

Martin Charitable Trust

Mewburn Ellis

Patagonia

Raby Family Trust

Raise Your Hands

South Downs National Park Authority

The Ashley Family Foundation

The Bryan Guinness Charitable Trust

The Dulverton Trust

The Ernest Cook Trust

The Helvellyn Foundation

The James Gibson Charitable Trust

The John Ellerman Foundation

The Moondance Foundation

The National Lottery Community Fund-Climate Action Fund

The Northwick Trust

The Roddick Foundation

The Simon Gibson Charitable Trust

The Swire Charitable Trust

The Tree Council

Universal Colours

Donor Policy  

The Guardian

The Telegraph

The Countryman

Charity Today

Primary Geography

CBBC Newsround

BBC Radio Oxford 

BBC ALBA

BBC Radio Scotland 

BBC Asian Network 

Inspire FM

Evening Standard

 

@2025 Action for Conservation

Action for Conservation is a registered charitable incorporated organisation in England and Wales No. 1157297

1%FTP horizontal logo.png
LW_Employer.png
caf.png
FR_Fundraising-Badge_Primary_White_300ppi.png
bottom of page