The Tunza International Children’s Conference on
the Environment, Putrajaya, Malaysia

Saving the Environment, One Tree at a Time
The Tunza International Children’s Conference on the Environment, Putrajaya, Malaysia (26-30 August, 2006)

by Rebecca Sperling and Genevieve Yue

On August 26, two hundred and fifty children between the ages of ten and fourteen, from more than 67 countries, gathered in Putrajaya, Malaysia, for the biennial Tunza International Children’s Conference(ICC) on the Environment, the largest children’s event hosted by the United Nations. Tunza, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)’s youth organization, selected children to attend the conference based on the creativity and originality of their environmental projects. Over four days, the delegates shared their projects with one another and collaborated on ways to promote environmental activism in their local communities and abroad. The conference was hosted by Yayasan Anak Warisan Alam (YAWA), Global 500 Laureate from 2001, who treated their international visitors to a full schedule of musical performances, plays, and field trips to environmental sights in the areas around Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur.

The Queen of Malaysia, Her Royal Highness Raja Permaisuri Agong Tuanku Fauziah Binti Al-Marhum Tengku Abdul Rashid, formally opened the Tunza celebration. Following the opening ceremonies, two thousand Malaysian schoolchildren participated in BUANA Carnival, a series of environmentally-themed workshops, where they learned about ecological issues and joined in various hands-on activities.

This year’s theme was Save a Tree, Save our Lungs. Delegates conducted a tree planting ceremony, planting one tree for every nation represented at the conference. Attendees participated in workshops and presentations on deforestation, with added emphasis on the importance of replanting where trees had been cut down. The conference theme song, Tears of Trees, written by conference delegate Jes Ebrahim Izaidin, urged delegates to consider ways to reduce the use of wood. At the end of the conference, when they were drafting regional and international action plans, the delegates resolved to make tree-planting a priority for the entire world. In their final action plan, the children agreed that each child would plant at least five trees every year.

The conference featured numerous workshops based on daily themes of healthy communities, recycling, and conservation. Representatives from SIG, a global container corporation, taught children how to select and recycle environmentally safe containers, including an activity on making recycled paper. In another workshop, students learned about turtles’ life cycles, and the threats to the species, by role-playing the effects of environmental factors on turtles and climate change. Many children participated in the Become and Eco-Journalist workshop, where they were given the tools to write articles on the ICC conference. Throughout the conference, young eco-journalists eagerly interviewed other delegates, chaperones, and facilitators, then published their findings in a conference-wide newspaper.

Marilyn Mosley Gordanier, Director of Laurel Springs School (Global 500 recipient from 1991), presented How To Be An Eco-Hero, a workshop based on the school’s new online environmental course, Kid4Earth. By examining the work of several Global 500 “eco-heroes,” the workshop challenged students to become “eco-heroes” themselves and to explore environmental measures they could take in their own communities. The workshop, which was conducted for a Malaysian school group as well as Tunza participants, concluded with writing an Earth Treaty. Children were asked to creatively express themselves by writing or drawing a letter to Mother Earth. Their heartfelt promises, which ranged from picking up rubbish to cleaning up the water, were put on display throughout the conference. They inspired other participants to add their own Earth Treaties to the collection. The colorful showcase of Earth Treaties became a powerful testament to the Tunza spirit. It reminded everyone of the passion and dedication each child shares for the environment, no matter where they come from.

The conference agenda was largely influenced by the Junior Board, a group of eleven children elected during the Children’s World Summit in Aichi, Japan, in 2004. Over the course of the conference, the Junior Board helped facilitate activities, lead regional sections, and make decisions in selecting workshops and field trips. Children also had the opportunity to campaign for the 2008 Junior Board, whose new members were elected during the conference.

A farewell dinner concluded the conference. Guests of honor included Puan Nori Abdullah and her husband, Khairi Jamaluddin. Puan Nori, the Prime Minister’s daughter, presented gifts to the many sponsors who supported the conference. The children honored Kadijah Abdul Rahman, Director of YAWA and Malaysia Organizing Committee Chairperson. She was further recognized by the announcement of her nomination for the Goldman Award, delivered by UNEP Director of Communications Eric Falt. The evening ended with a cultural program, where children performed traditional songs and dances from their home countries. Though goodbyes were tearful, many children made plans to meet again in Stavanger, Norway, where the next conference will be held in 2008. All of the delegates returned home with new resolve, empowered by the friendships and knowledge they gained during the conference and emboldened by the dedicated community of environmental activists they had become.

“I think that everyone has a voice regardless of their age, and it is society that decides whose voice gets to be heard. As children, society assumes that we are young and we don’t understand anything. This conference is important because it is telling us that children do have a voice and that they want to hear it,” said Junior Board Member, fourteen-year-old Hana Shazwin Azizan of Malaysia.

More information on the conference and the Tunza programme is available at http://www.unep.org/tunza.