According to the overwhelming body of research the climate change is one of the leading challenges of the modern era. On the one hand, we witness the calamities across the globe: the floods, wildfires, and hurricanes. One the other hand, we are hearing about armed conflicts around access to fresh water, droughts, or dwindling natural resources. Climate change and the deterioration of the natural environment are a source of violations of basic human rights. According to the data from Eurostat, Poland ranks fourth from the bottom when it comes to fresh water supplies per citizen in Europe. In the context of fresh water crisis, being one of the many consequences of the changing climate, it will continue to have an increasing impact on the environment and agriculture. Simultaneously, the coal extraction remains a backbone of the Polish economy. The energy sector based on coal is one of the top sources of our greenhouse gas emissions and is responsible for the use of 70% of the fresh water in Poland. And yet, the issue is barely discussed.

We would like to address these issues by promoting volunteering focused around climate change and local communities. We would like to conduct three-day workshops for a minimum of 14 volunteers, who in turn will organize a series of international volunteering camps. There will be a minimum of 10 camps, during which participants will be supporting selected organizations and institutions from across Poland, working in the field of environmental protection and/or local development. Participants will take part in workshops on the climate change and its consequences. We will promote the results of our work across different media platforms.

Our partner is a group of informal climate activists – Planetarians – that will support our educational efforts and will facilitate access to other informal groups across the country.