Greenies in Germany

Ruby Bourke
GS Green Generation
2 min readNov 8, 2017

We’re a group of 10 rowdy, passionate student activists in Germany, attending the 23rd Conference of Parties in Bonn. After a full week of networking, performing, laughing, blogging, and studying… it’s safe to say we’re pooped, but we are still empowered as ever to continue attending more side events (including the occupation of a coal mine in Bonn, and performing at the COP23).

This year’s group is diverse and very close — living in such close quarters to each other does that! I know that for me, mindfulness and lots of space will be needed in the next week or so to keep our team strength grooving! Living with such a large group comes with many small challenges, including the constant need for compromising in the supermarket — vegetarians vs. meat eaters, fruits vs. snacks, whilst keeping in mind that we are conscious consumers who purchase 0 conflict palm oil products. We are ‘walking the talk’ of However, this is a great way for everyone to understand that living together involves effort from everyone. This trip is basically a team-strengthening exercise for Green Gen, making our message of youth empowerment so much stronger and clearer as a unified team.

For the next 2 weeks we will continue to perform at the COP23 ‘Bula’ zone, as asked by the UNFCCC Secretary of Education, and collaborate with other organisations and activists to work for a stronger mission for Green Generation!

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Ruby Bourke
GS Green Generation

Student at Green School, Bali & environmental youth activist