She will be blogging about her experiences here. In the run-up to the conference, we asked Morategi to tell us a bit about herself.
View more SAIIA materials, resources and videos on climate change and COP21.
Watch a 5-minute video about what to expect from COP21 with Youth Delegate Morategi Kale.
“I started as a participant in the Youth@SAIIA programmes when I was Grade 9 learner. At 15, I did extensive research on the topic of Climate Change and Conflict, and was eventually selected to be part of the Youth@SAIIA national youth delegation that attended COP 17. After almost a year of preparation, research papers and presentations, I joined other outstanding high school learners and university students selected to hold their own climate negotiations on the first day of conference. Because of my work I have also been chosen to take part in numerous other special events on climate change. In late 2012, I joined a panel of six young people to discuss climate change and renewable energy issues with the American rock band Linkin Park. And in 2015, I attended the young women and climate change dialogue with the national Minister of Environmental Affairs.
More recently, I have been working on climate change issues through the SAIIA Youth Policy Committee. As the COP21 International Liaison for the committee, I worked with several colleagues to seek out and take advantage of policy input opportunities on climate change so that a youth perspective is included in the final outcome of the policy. One such opportunity was the South African INDC stakeholder consultations across the country.
During COP21, my role will be to represent the views of young South Africans on climate change. I hope to participate in such a way that a more defined and meaningful role is created for young people on the South African delegation in future COP negotiations. More specifically, during the conference, I will be following finance issues and reporting back on the outcomes through the SAIIA Youth Blog and I will be working with members of the Youth Policy Committee in South Africa to organise youth-led events around COP in Gauteng and the Western Cape.”
Morategi was also part of the SAIIA media briefing on COP21 and Africa on 25 November 2015. Read highlights from the briefing on Twitter, using #COP21saiia.
Download the statement by the SAIIA Youth Policy Committee on COP21, representing youth voices from across South Africa.
