Transcription
The Council of Europe and its Parliamentary Assembly have long recognised the vital link between human rights and a healthy environment, advocating for stronger legal protections and ambitious climate policies.
And today we're bringing together Speakers of Parliament, Secretary-General of Parliament and young leaders with the aim of amplifying youth voices, promoting accountability and shaping a greener, more sustainable future together.
So let's start. The first person that I would like to inspire us is Martin Hojsík.
Martin Hojsík is the Vice-President of the European Parliament. He is, since 2023, and he's a dedicated environmental activist, if I allow myself to say that, and advocate for environmental and social justice.
He represents the Renew Europe Group and Progressive Slovensko and he's been a Member of the European Parliament since 2019, I believe.
He is responsible for parliamentary committees and delegations which include relations with the United States and with ASEAN.
And before entering politics, he was an influential figure in international NGOs like Greenpeace and Four Paws, championing sustainability and human rights.
So please join me in welcoming Martin Hojsík.
Thank you very much.
And really it's an honour to be here. And I've always been uneasy with inspiring thoughts, but I realise one thing that's wrong about this is actually the title, 'Why Protecting the Planet Matters for Future Generations.'
It actually matters for us.
It's not about, sadly, we got it, let it go so far, our children and grandchildren and their children. The situation, as the scientists have been warning us for tens of years by now, has really deteriorated dramatically.
And this is where the planetary boundaries have been crossed in many ways.
And the fact that we need to act matters for the survival of current generations, for the survival of Europe as we know it, for the survival of democracy, and actually even fundamental human rights.
Because on a planet where children are exposed to toxic chemicals before they're born, where we see the climate crisis turning into climate catastrophe, where the pressures on migration are increasing — because of the climate crisis already now — this is not about future generations.
This is about what we do now.
And we've always been proud of ourselves for how we listen to science and make very rational policy, but in reality, no, the politics haven't been sufficiently listening to the science.
The science has been ignored for far too long.
And this is where, indeed, it was the young generation that brought Europe the Green Deal, that brought Europe and the world, actually, the change that we see now.
The problem is that the change is under threat with the onslaught of human rights, the onslaught on democracy and peace.
There are questions, okay, so still, can we afford to do this?
And I would say we cannot not afford to do this.
It is interconnected. It is deeply interconnected, because if we look at it from a perspective of climate crisis, it is actually our dependency on fossil fuels from autocratic regimes, especially the one led by Vladimir Putin, that has led to this war.
We paid him to militarise, to be able to arm his armies and start the aggression, because we've been so naively hooked on his fossil fuels.
So in this respect, the climate, the environment at large, and peace and human rights are super interconnected.
This is where I think we have to keep on working on getting rid of these dependencies and also helping other countries, even outside of Europe, to go down a similar path.
And it's not something which is only for our own sake, for the sake of our security, but I think this is the best business opportunity of our times, because this is where we can also save money and make money.
And I believe this is an important aspect which is often forgotten, because it's described as a cost instead of an investment.
As a European Parliament, I think, and as a European Union, we've been — and I'm very happy to say — quite a reform on this, not only with the Green Deal, but it continues with the current efforts that we are doing.
If you look at the dependency on Russian fossil fuels, it's still there, even though some Member States are questioning it.
But the effort to decarbonise is still there and it's still strong.
And this is something which not only the young environmental movement, but also businesses are calling for, because they see the opportunities.
If you look at the challenges and the opportunities around the circular economy, again, it's about safety, it's about prosperity, and yes, it's about the planet.
I believe that the things that we face are a threat to our own existence.
But I refuse to be one of those who see only the gloom, because what I see in this is really huge opportunities.
And my call on the young generation has always been: please don't give up.
Please keep those in power in check. Keep on asking the hard questions. Keep on pushing for change, because when you give up, it's all lost.
And my plea to the parliaments and to all the members of the Parliamentary Assembly is: please keep on guarding the space.
One of the very important elements is to protect the space for civil society, to protect the space for protest, to protect the space for those who want to express their views.
Because again, it's all interconnected. Without enabling the space, the power — not only the environment — but power will go unchecked.
The first thing you see any dictator or regime do, or an autocratic regime do, is to restrict civil space.
And that's where I believe that not only for the sake of the planet, but for the sake of the values that are very dear to this institution, that are so dear to all of us — human rights and democracy — we need to protect civil space, not only but especially for the young generation, to be able to question what we do and ask us the hard things that we sometimes tend to forget.
Thank you.
