Neeshad Shafi and Fatima Ahmad Abuhaliqa will represent Qatar ‘Youth Climate Summit’ in Milan, Italy

Two young Qataris will represent Qatar at the ‘Youth4Climate: Driving Ambition’ conference in Milan, Italy, this month. The three-day meeting, which will be hosted by the Italian government, will begin on September 28 as a lead-up to the UN Conference of Parties Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow in November. During Italy’s youth climate conference, which it is co-hosting with the UK, Neeshad Shafi and Fatima Ahmad Abuhaliqa will represent Qatar.

“Youth4Climate: Driving Ambition” is an important youth event in Milan, Italy before COP26. A total of 400 young people, two from each of the 197 UNFCCC member countries, will convene in Milan from September 28 to 30 to work in fast-paced working groups with other Youth4Climate champions and create specific recommendations that will be presented to ministers at the pre-COP and COP26.

“Being selected to represent Qatar youth at the Youth4Climate summit is an absolute honour and a great opportunity to raise climate concerns, solutions and priority areas from the Arab region on an international scene. At the same time, I will learn from the remarkable global climate activists and great networking opportunity for country’s representatives to build collaborations and partnerships, to integrate new ideas and tools into the climate-related work back home,” said Shafi, who is executive director of Arab Youth Climate Movement Qatar.

Apolitical named Shafi as one of the World’s top 100 climate policy influencers for 2019. In addition, he’s the sole member of the governing team from the Arab world.

“I am excited to work with young people from around the world who will be attending the summit where I can share and learn from one another. Also, I am proud to be representing my country and hope that my efforts encourage more Qatari youth engagement,” said Abuhaliqa, an Electrical Engineering student at Texas A&M University at Qatar (TAMUQ).

She’s also a founding member of the youth-led environmental organisation Dawarha Qatar. Attendees at Youth4Climate will be divided into one of four working groups: youth driving ambition; sustainable recovery; non-state actor engagement; and climate-conscious society.

An official youth declaration is also expected from them. A discussion with negotiators and ministers attending the pre-COP will follow, with participants taking part in both. The Youth4Climate summit’s participants were chosen by a committee of young people, with help from the OSGEY and the Italian Ministry of Ecological Transmission.