My name is Aran Cosentino and since I was 12 I am an environmental activist, for many I am a rebel. And if being considered rebels means thinking outside the box and defending “Mother Earth” with all one’s strength, I’m proud of it. Each one us can really make a difference. People have the power to change things, unfortunately most don’t know. He should know this because the global situation is not going as it should.
The young people don’t follow the backward rules that have served us up until yesterday and which have brought our “only home” to ruin. We are proving to have an uncommon strength and we expect things to change quickly! We need a radical change, a real cultural, social, economic and political revolution. A change of system and not of climate, to obtain effective results to save our dear Planet.
I wish to deliver a better planet to future generations than I received it. Remember that nothing is impossible if you really want it.
In 2014 I collected signatures from my classmates and professors to introduce recycling into my secondary school, where it was not. I had a great success, the principal of the time gave me compliments and a few days later there was the collection of the paper in all the classes. A small victory that started the recycling of the institute.
During the summer of 2016 I discovered that the valle’ creek where I live, in the north east of Italy, was in danger due to the project of a non-sustainable hydroelectric power station. The Alberone creek is part of less than 2% of the watercourses in a high natural state as evidenced by the presence of freshwater crayfish. An endangered species that must be protected at all costs as it represents a rarity to be preserved. At the age of 14 I formed a committee of free citizens for the protection of the landscape, and together we created a petition signed by thousands of people from all over Friuli Venezia Giulia. After a battle lasting more than two years, in December 2018 the news that we had won came, the creek will remain free for now. The hope is that it is forever!
Since January 2019 I have been an active part of the global movement Fridays For Future, I followed in the wake of Greta Thunberg who stirred the consciences of thousands of young people around the world. This is a strong grassroots mobilization that cannot be ignored. Thus beginning, in a free and spontaneous way this movement will continue the struggle to defend the Planet.
I contributed to the creation of the local group of Fridays For Future in the city closest to me, gathering people of all ages. From 8 February I started to take to the streets every Friday after school to ask for climate and environmental justice. On March 15 and May 24, I participated in two of the world’s largest climate strikes, two historic days. The young people mobilized themselves by skipping a day of school and striking, a fundamental right for all. The strike is a possibility to express oneself and to say one’s opinion: things are not going well and we are shouting at you! But we must all realize that what we do has an impact on the environment and on everyone’s life. We must stop thinking only of ourselves and our immediate needs.
There was no lack of professors and schools that put students in the wheel, preventing them from participating. But we’ll not stop because we are the future.
Now it’s up to everyone, young people and adults, to pursue environmental and social commitment. We call for climate justice, for declaring a state of climate emergency, and for governments to commit themselves concretely.
We have heard too many good words and nothing done!
Aran Cosentino
