KINGSTON, Jamaica — Senior Director of the Access to Information Unit (AIU), Damian Cox, says raising environmental awareness among youth is crucial in ensuring a sustainable future.

He argued that as future leaders, young people must be empowered through education to protect the environment.

“Our children must be educated to build and maintain a sustainable future for Jamaica. In fact, the United Nations General Assembly reaffirmed that Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is an integral element of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on quality education, and a key enabler of all the other sustainable development goals,” he said.

Cox was delivering the keynote address at the AIU’s Right to Know Week 2025 Conference held on Monday at the AC Hotel by Marriott in Kingston.

He noted that the Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, under which the AIU falls, has partnered with the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) and the Jamaica Environment Trust (JET) on programmes where students play an active role in developing sustainable environmental practices.

“Our young people will be the innovators of the future. Our very success will rely upon them. We must continue to build the foundation that they can take forward on our behalf as they become the leaders of tomorrow,” he contended.

Speaking on the conference theme: ‘Ensuring Access to Environmental Information in the Digital Age,’ Cox pointed out that the digital revolution empowers people to share information, helping them to explore intergenerational and sustainable solutions for environmental issues now and in the future.

He noted, however, that there is a digital divide that must be addressed, as well as issues related to the advancement of technology that must be navigated with care.

“We must think about how we can bridge the gap for all demographics as we work together to build a Jamaica that we want to see. While the digital revolution presents promising avenues for addressing these issues… we also face new challenges regarding data privacy, misinformation, digital divides that must carefully be navigated,” he pointed out.

“We have the capacity to do it together. We must face these challenges with the spirit and determination to ensure that all our people are empowered through access to quality, inclusive and equitable education and information that benefits us all,” he expressed.

Cox said that the AIU has a role to play in achieving this mandate, highlighting the unit’s mission to provide the public with access to general as well as legal information regarding the environment.

‘Right To know Week 2025’ culminates on International Day for Universal Access to Information (Right to Know Day), on September 28.

The day, which is an official declaration of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), promotes the public’s right to access information held by public bodies, which is a cornerstone of transparency and democratic engagement.

—   JIS