Junior 8 Summit 2009

Fourteen young people aged 14-17, from countries represented at the Group of 8 Summit being held in L'Aquila, Italy, today called on their respective leaders to get serious about climate change and education. These young people were part of the Junior 8 Summit 2009 in Rome, sponsored by UNICEF.

The Junior 8 Summit, or J8, is an annual forum where young people from around the world meet to share their concerns and recommendations on how to solve global issues with G8 leaders and the world community. The Summit is a parallel youth event to the annual Group of 8 (G8) Summit of world leaders.

This year's J8 event, taking place July 5-12, includes 54 youth from Brazil, Canada, China, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, the U.K. and the U.S.

The 40 youth who did not take part in the G8 discussion visited Italy's Chamber of Deputies and presented their Rome Declaration to the Deputies. The Declaration includes sections on the following:

• Children's rights in the context of the global financial crisis;
• Climate change;
• Poverty and development in Africa; and
• Education.

Rome Declaration