Multiple planetGOLD project teams have developed a strategy of targeting awareness raising efforts at children and educators in an effort to break the intergenerational cycle of mercury use in artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) activities. Project teams in Indonesia, Mongolia, Peru, the Philippines, Guyana, Ecuador, and Colombia have gone into local schools and other gatherings of children to hold age-appropriate awareness sessions and engaging events on the dangers of mercury, ways to avoid exposure, and on safer, more environmentally and socially responsible mining.
Creative campaigns that have been carried out in planetGOLD project areas include storytelling events and contests, singing and songwriting contests, art contests, and a food safety event where young people proposed actions to prevent mercury from affecting food sources in their region. Through these early intervention educational initiatives, the aim is to empower young people —who are often the children and grandchildren of miners—, to learn from a young age how to protect themselves from mercury exposure. If they later choose to go into mining, the hope is that they will be equipped with an understanding that mining can be done in an environmentally and socially responsible, mercury-free way. Children can also become agents of change in their community and help inform their parents and other adults in their lives about the importance of making mercury history.
The planetGOLD Indonesia project, which completed its implementation in June 2023, did several children—and youth-focused activities, including storytelling workshops with a coloring competition led by a famous Indonesian storyteller.
Youth Dialogue - Japan
The Youth Dialogue (YD) is an initiative of the Ministry of the Environment, Japan (MOEJ). The programme started in 2022 to encourage a dialogue among youths from Minamata and other youths around the world to share their message and lessons learned about their experience with mercury and to learn from each other.
The Youth Dialogue was also designed to focus on mercury management and showcase independent projects that are led and undertaken by the youth sector with a focus on Minamata Convention issues, and other cross-cutting issues including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Youths from Japan, Slovenia, Indonesia and the Philippines have participated so far in the Youth Dialogues. The Youth Dialogue is designed to continue on an annual basis.
