A group of four youth MPs presented the findings of their Inquiry into how New Zealand will meet it Carbon Zero by 2050 commitments.  

Other recommendations from the report include:

• Investing in environmental initiatives – including community-led ones – that equip children and young people to positively contribute to a low-emissions society
• Investigate the feasibility of a farm certification system that empowers consumers to buy low-emissions produce
• support for Maori and Pacific Island-led conversation on climate change
• ensuring that the disabled aren’t left out of the climate change conversation
• a commitment to ensuring climate change adaptation is equitable
• an investigation into alternative, low-emissions products such as hemp

The Inquiry noted the Emissions Trading Scheme is focussed on net rather than gross emissions.

And it stressed the importance of restoring native forests as part of New Zealand’s response to climate change and biodiversity loss.

Quinn Rimmer told the committee there was a real lack of education about climate change and that young people would be empowered if given greater access to reliable information.

Sophia Doorich said that one submitter to their inquiry had told them that for him climate change was the fact that when it rains his house floods.

And Alice McIntosh said behavioural science should be used to ensure that any climate change certification system for food is designed in such a way as it nudges people to do the right thing.

There’s an ongoing debate about whether the voting age should be lowered to 16. If the quality of the youth parliament’s inquiry is anything to go by, the rangitahi of Aotearoa are more than ready for the franchise.