December 20, 2023. Children and adolescents from Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Colombia, Peru, Paraguay, Venezuela, and Brazil expressed their opinions on the measures that States should take to protect their rights in the face of the climate emergency that the world is experiencing. They requested that special emphasis be placed on the rights to comprehensive health, education, adequate food, and recreation through an Amicus Curiae submitted to the Secretariat of the IACHR Court.

The Amicus Curiae was prepared with the technical and legal support of specialists from Save the Children's Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean and the Peruvian Society of Environmental Law, as part of the process of empowerment and accompaniment of children and adolescents who are part of civil society organizations for children, networks and regional movement partners of the Civil Society Support Program promoted by Save the Children.

Adolescents from Honduras who belong to REDNNYAS and participated in the process said:

"As REDNNYAS we find the AMICUS valuable and timely because it allows us to evidence from our experiences the negative impact of climate change on the guarantee of our rights, especially our right to integral health. This document highlights the urgency of acting responsibly TODAY, thinking about the present and future of all children and adolescents to have a more livable, humane, sustainable and sustainable world".

Ann Linnarson, Regional Director of Localization, Partnership,s and Civil Society for Save the Children Latin America and the Caribbean said:

"This is a historic milestone as it is the first time that children and adolescents from Latin America and the Caribbean present their views before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights to address the climate emergency. Climate change represents a threat to the exercise of human rights worldwide and has differentiated effects that are exacerbated in the case of children and adolescents. Their voices, opinions, and feelings must be considered by decision-makers."

Children and adolescents are part of the groups that are not responsible for the causes of climate change but will have to face its consequences in the present and the future. Therefore, the adaptation and mitigation measures to climate change proposed by the States must consider the experiences, feelings, and perceptions of children and adolescents.

The Amicus Curiae presents the thoughts, recommendations, and requests of children and adolescents regarding the actions and principles that should guide adaptation and response to the losses and damages generated by climate change, on the differential obligations of States in the context of the climate emergency, including considerations related to climate justice, among other aspects.

Likewise, representatives of MOLACNNATS, Peru, highlighted the following: "It is important to recognize that throughout this process we, the children and adolescents, made our contributions from our realities and experiences in the face of the climate crisis. As a generation of the present and the future, we raised our voices for environmental education and recreational spaces and to ensure our safety.

You can download the Amicus Curiae at the following link: https://pasc-lac.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Amicus-Curiae_FINAL.pdf