Authored by: Ruth Gow Mclenachan
Being young in today’s world can be challenging. On one hand, we can feel hopeless when faced with the climate emergency, with three out of four people aged 16 to 25 globally agreeing that the “future is frightening” when asked about the threats of climate change in 2021. Many are hesitant to have children and feel they have less opportunities than their parents’ generation did. On the other hand, young people are nevertheless trying to change things, with nearly 75% of 18 to 35 year olds taking climate action, either as part of their professional careers, working in environmental NGOs, teaching and training children around climate issues, or embracing more sustainable habits in their own lifestyle.
In a professional environment, we often have to balance a strong drive for change with the uncertainty that comes with having limited experience. As part of Healthy Cities, I’ve been able to attend several conferences and high-level events, where being young can often feel like a handicap, as someone with few years of experience in the field that hasn’t had time to develop a strong voice. So when I came across the Urban Future Young Leader Programme that brings value to youth, recognising the energy and ideas that drive young people, I was inspired to take part.
Attending the Urban Future conference in Łódź was definitely a personal and professional milestone for me. The first day was dedicated exclusively to the Young Leaders, a cohort of 50 people from across the globe. In the first workshop we exchanged ideas about our vision for the future, discussed what we would do if we weren’t afraid to make mistakes, what we’d learnt so far from past mistakes, and which environments made us feel connected to ourselves and provided the right circumstances to strive in. We also got deep into relevant topics, brainstorming measures to address gentrification in one of Łódź’s current redevelopment areas, bringing together insights and examples we’d seen in our own cities, from Washington to Wellington.
During the following days of the official conference I was one of almost 2.000 “change-makers” of all ages and backgrounds. One thing that stood out was how future-focused the conversation was, aligning perfectly with the conference’s name. Rather than dwelling on what had been done, the presentations and discussions focused on what still had to be done, what could be improved or how we could adapt tested solutions to address new problems. Inspiring discussions highlighted the key role of cities in implementing changes and explored how we can create a vision of the future that encourages people to act, rather than resigning them to inaction. We talked about innovative land ownership structures to guarantee access to housing, how to combine facts with emotions for impactful communication, regeneration as a way to revitalise not only physical but also social infrastructure, and even the role insurance companies might play in building healthier cities.
Amidst so much diversity, my main takeaway from Urban Future is the recognition that there are endless paths to making an impact. In fact, we need to push for change from all possible directions. There is no single right path or solution, but rather we should consider what change is possible from our own position – as Immy Kaur put it “there are no right levers for achieving change, because there are so many levers to change”. Reflecting on my own journey as a young professional, I remember a certain pressure to define my career, as if any job I took would commit me to a strict professional path, so I had to be certain it would lead to the impact I aimed for. When I moved to Barcelona as a freshly-graduated architect some years ago, I was inspired to work in a city with a long-track record of innovative urban ideas. Nowadays I’m happy to be contributing to this, integrating health and wellbeing into every stage of urban decisions through my work – however, it definitely was not a straight forward path. There is great value in being able to continuously redefine where you want to go and how you want to change things, based on the opportunities and people around you. Everyone and everything I experienced at Urban Future in Łódź is making me reflect on what’s next, and how I can adapt my own projects at Healthy Cities for greater impact.
