MK Enviro Fund Report

Thanks a million to Millennium Kids for supporting me to attend the 2nd edition of the World Forum on Urban Forests, in Washington DC, from 16 to 20 October 2023.  The overall theme was: Greener, Healthier and Happier Cities for All.

This theme was chosen to highlight the importance of building inclusive and accessible cities where the goods and services of urban forests and trees are universally available. I spoke about the role of youth voice in designing green cities and the critical perspective we bring – one that is deeply informed by the realities of the present and the aspirations for the future. My Millennium Kids Green Lab presentation was attended by approximately 400 urban forest experts from 90 countries and was met with a huge round of applause even after my technical difficulties. I was the only young person speaking at the conference. I attended all three days of the conference, along with a field tour of capitol hill and the botanical gardens, two gala events and the Tree Cities of the World Forum.

I can’t wait to share all I learnt with Millennium Kids to help inform the direction of our Green Lab program.

Aelwen, MK Youth Board Member

Our Youth Leaders are pretty excited to announce the launch of the RAC Ignite Leadership program that they have been working on behind the scenes for the last 6 months.

Bella, Troy, Maria, Jacob and Amelia have worked with the RAC Team, Ben, Kendell and Cass to codesign a leadership program for young changemakers.

We’ll be bringing together up to 30 young people to explore how to create a safer, more sustainable and better connected future for Western Australia.

Through the program selected participants will learn how to play a role in the decisions that affect your future through a series of unique leadership and action learning modules.

Through exclusive access to leading experts and mentors, participants will develop an idea and pitch it to win a $6,000 cash prize along with follow-up support and mentoring by RAC and Millennium Kids (MK).

Developed by young people for young people, the program includes:

• Four masterclasses and an opportunity to connect with like-minded young people and changemakers at a networking event
• Exclusive access to leading experts and mentors
• A two-night leadership camp at Fair Harvest in Margaret River
• Pitch training and support
• A celebration event held at RAC Arena where finalists will share their pitches with the chance win a $6,000 cash prize or $3,000 for the runner-up
• A $500 gift voucher for Resorts voucher from RAC for all program participants

Developed by young people for young people, RAC is proud to partner with Millennium Kids to deliver a high impact leadership program that brings likeminded people together to drive positive change.

Applications open from Monday 1st August and close Monday 11th September.

• Visit http://rac.com.au/ignite

The Milyu reserve is a significant site for migrating shore birds and our favourite site along the river. Millennium Kids has a long history of planting on the foreshore. We observed the growth of plants from previous planting days and learnt why certain species are selected for this area.

The City of South Perth provided the plants and equipment along with  us a planting demonstration at Milyu Nature Reserve.

Erosion is a major issue at this site with tidal changes in the water levels and waves so a variety of engineering solutions including sand bagging, building a wall have been tried with mixed success. One of the best solutions seems to be putting in plants to hold the soil. Different plants are needed in areas close to the river than those closer to the path. Paul from the City of South Perth showed us some special techniques to help give the plants an extra chance of survival including planting deep so they don’t get easily washed out by the waves and angling them away from the river.

Our young participants said they enjoyed being out near the river doing this activity with their Mums and Dads and collecting sticks and other treasures, watching fish jumping and seeing the swans around where the fresh water drains into the river.

The team of nine kids and 6 adults planted 1200 plants. Fantastic effort and well deserving of a lovely morning tea … with chocolate to finish off.

On Sunday 28 May 25 young people aged 12 – 15 from the Qaswa education community participated in a day of fun, nature and thinking about the future they want for their community. 

MK Youth Board member Chris introduced the theme for the day:

 “ How can we collectively tackle Climate Change while supporting our places to thrive?” 

The group considered what qualities their community has that they value and Lifestyle and Nature factors were at the top of the list.

​​As they explored the land with Cathy and Chris and kayaked on the Canning River with Jacob and the Eco Wildlife Kayaking team, they considered the history of the area and how Indigenous people and the first settlers in the area would have lived on and used the land. We walked back in time through a Sheoak grove to imagine life before settlement and observed the wildlife on and around the river during our walks and Kayaking experiences.

Taking these experiences into the afternoon session discussions focused on the Big Question:

 “What are the Climate Issues Facing your community, school and local environment.

Each group identified and prioritised one key issue.

This is what the young people said:  

Public transport Better off peak service and  frequency, better service coverage, more railways, better feeder bus system,, integration, smooth integration of  the parts, 

Kent Street Weir keep the weir bridge because it separates the freshwater and salt, water quality

Vehicle emissions less cars on the road, slower speeds, facilitates motorcyclist, e-bikes / scooters  and pedestrians safety

Trees trying to stop deforestation with every tree cut down. You need to grow a new one 

Renewable energy more sources so that we don’t need to clear the trees to get the coal more renewable energy facilities. 

Drinkable water water is scarce and finite and only one percent of the earths water is safe to drink so maybe we can waste less more drink of water so people can experience how cool it is to drink water from a river

Youth Voice  more workshops like this one, people can get together and have fun experiencing the nature and the community and get together to take action on climate change issues

“ We were thrilled when Israa from the City of Canning reached out to us at Qaswa House, asking if we’d like to take part in the Agent of Climate Change Leadership program organised by the City of Canning and Millennium Kids. This amazing initiative aims to empower the next generation of leaders who not only care for the environment but actively work to make it better!

At Qaswa, we teach our students about the three responsibilities of being a good Muslim: 1. To make ourselves good, 2. To help others be good, and 3. To make the environment clean and beautiful. When we learnt about this program, we knew it perfectly aligned with our teachings, so we eagerly jumped on board,” said Azizi from Qaswa House. 

” We are immensely grateful to Israa, the City of Canning, and Millennium Kids for providing us with this extraordinary opportunity. Together, we are shaping future leaders who will make a positive impact on our planet”

Thanks to the City of Canning for this fabulous opportunity to work with a range of young people as part of their ambitious Climate Change and Energy Transformation Strategy.