
People and Planet: A Common Destiny
Pan-European campaign to mobilize youth citizens and glocal authorities in the fight against climate change
waterofthefuture.org | waterofthefuture.org/people-planet-a-common-destinty
With the existing Climate Change scenario, by 2030, water scarcity in some arid and semi-arid places will displace up to 700 million people around the world. Even though these are speculative numbers, the next years will be dramatic for our planet. It is a global problem that will affect every part of the world and each one of its inhabitants. This way, we call on every citizen to understand his/her place on it, to recognise how impactful his/her actions are, and to realise his/her power to make a change.
In order to raise awareness, empower and mobilize European youth citizens and decision-makers, the project People and Planet will implement a range of activities in 8 EU member-states (Germany, Italy, Ireland, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain) and in Cape Verde, between 2020 and 2024. The project aims to contribute positively to the sustainability of development policies at the glocal (global + local) level and promote the participation of youth citizens as change-makers.
This project is divided into two lines of action: the first includes several activities targeting young citizens, perceived as future change-makers that are equipped with digital tools to spread and raise awareness among their peers; the second focuses on the qualification and improvement of local decision-makers capacities so local authorities can strengthen their role of dissemination of good-practices and sustainable lifestyles among their communities.
OUR GOALS
The People and Planet project intends to raise awareness among European youth citizens about the challenges and consequences arising from climate change and, in this way, encourage them to take the lead in adopting more sustainable lifestyles. Simultaneously to the mobilisation of European youth citizens, the People and Planet project also focuses on the strengthen of local decision-makers capacities of building more sustainable development policies, while deepening their capacities to understand the intertwined relations established at the glocal level.
OUR ACTIVITIES
A widespread pan-European awareness campaign named #WaterOfTheFuture focusing on the challenges and behaviours related to climate change, that plans to influence 59 million European youngsters and will be implemented in 8 EU member-states. From this general campaign several other activities will emerge, namely street actions, roadmaps, advisory councils, activism labs, surveys and exchange programmes, this time focusing on the full spectrum of the SDGs.
A structured and sustainable coalition of Local Authorities and Civil Society Organisations that will work together towards the information and mobilization of its citizens regarding climate change and sustainable lifestyles.
Using innovative communication tools, dynamic methodologies for non-formal education, trainings and experience-sharing between partners, the project aims to contribute to:
I) The enhancement of Local Authorities potential in building and leading successful actions concerning the SDGs;
II) The promotion of Local Authorities visibility as key actors in the implementation of national development strategies;
III) The support of initiatives aiming to establish stronger relations and links between Local Authorities and Non-State Organisations.
OUR PATH
Our strategy, through participatory methodologies, directs its attention to the mobilization of European youngsters and calls them to become key actors in the development and dissemination of campaigns about sustainability. This mobilization strategy also takes into account the role of local decision-makers as key actors in the dissemination of sustainable values among their citizens.
The project will benefit multimedia tools and social media for the contact with the youth and will use methodological techniques suitable for trainings with Local Authorities personnel. The process for building the widespread campaign will take into consideration all the information gathered and conclusions taken from previous projects on these topics and from contributions of the partners’ experience.
OUR IMPACT
Implementation of a pan-European awareness campaign named #WaterOfTheFuture focusing on the challenges and behaviours related to climate change, that plans to influence 59 million European youth citizens and will be implemented in 8 EU member-states and a structured and sustainable coalition of Local Authorities and Civil Society Organisations from 8 EU member-states and Cape Verde that will work together towards the information and mobilization of its citizens regarding climate change and sustainable life-styles.
With the creation of a European Local Authorities coalition aware and capable of promoting development policies coherent and aligned with the SDGs and the mobilisation of a large group of European youth citizens capable of promoting and encouraging sustainable lifestyles and behaviours, this project aspires to mitigate or even halt the ongoing environmental degradation of the Planet Earth.
The European Commission’s Development Education and Awareness Raising Programme (DEAR) supports projects that engage the European Union public in worldwide issues of social, economic, and environmental development.
THE CAMPAIGN
Water scarcity is one of the great challenges we must face now, and in the years to come. “We are not camels” is the motto of the Water of The Future campaign, which we launched on March 22nd 2022. A campaign that wants to the issues in the public agendas, helping to change consciences and, above all, the behaviour of each person.
NEWS
27/10/2023 | People & Planet launches Youth Collective Action Cookbook
12/06/2023 | People & Planet’s activists leading role at the European Youth Event
23/02/2023 | Dive into what young people in your country think about climate action
18/11/2022 | Nicaraguan mural artist promotes artivist actions about sustainability
08/11/2022 | People & Planet partners meet face-to-face in Pontevedra to discuss strategy
12/08/2022 | People & Planet survey reveals how young Europeans feel about climate change and water scarcity
29/03/2022 | People & Planet project launched pan-European campaign “Water Of The Future”
17/01/2022 | Making a Splash – a communication for development workshop
09/06/2021 | Germinating for change | #EUGreenWeek2021
31/05/2021 | Webinar: Sustainable Cooking with Chef Fábio Bernardino
15/01/2021 | kick-off meeting of the People and Planet – A common destiny project

Duration
- 48 months: november 2020 to october 2024
Partners
- Loures Municipality (Global Coordinator)
- FUEL
- Rede Intermunicipal de Cooperação para o Desenvolvimento (RICD)
- finep
- Dornstadt Municipality
- Fondo Gallego de Cooperacion e Solidariedade
- National Town-Twinning Council Netherlands – Nicaragua, LBSNN
- Maastricht Municipality
- Zoetermeer Municipality
- The Waterford Sustainable Living Initiative
- We World GVC
- Felcos Umbria
- Buy Responsibly Foundation (Fundacja Kupuj Odpowiedzialnie)
- APSD – Agenda 21
- Brasov County Council
- Maio Municipality
Associates
Water Of The Future Campaign
- Website: waterofthefuture.org
- Instagram: @waterofthefuture_org
- Twitter: @wotf_org
- Facebook: @waterofthefuturecampaign
RESOURCES
Report: European Youth and Climate Change: A Community Baseline
We asked nearly 4000 young people from 8 European countries what their views and concerns are about climate change, sustainable practices and water scarcity.
Check the other countries reports here
European Youth and Climate Change: A Community Baseline – Portugal | download
Global Factsheet | download

Header photo: Nagy Arnold on Unsplash. Footer photo: Pexels
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