Qatar Foundation International’s Youth Ambassadors for Science and Environment from Brazil, the US and Qatar, in collaboration with the Global Nomads Group (GNG), held the first-ever student-led webcast programme focusing on the climate change debate at the Qatar Leadership Academy.

A student facilitator guided the discussion among the guest expert panel, which included Andrew Wilson, vice president of foundation relations at Conservation International; Talar Sahsuvaroglu, environmental specialist; Stefan Gsanger, secretary general of World Wind Energy Association; and QFI Youth Ambassador, Nasser bin Marzook.

The webcast was opened up for questions and comments from the audience, including those submitted through a live-chat function that allows audience members from around the world to participate. Questions poured in from cities across the US, Brazil and Qatar.

“GNG is proud to engage youth to foster dialogue and understanding through this first-ever student-led webcast being broadcast live from Doha, Qatar, during the UN Climate Change Conference,” said Chris Plutte, executive director. “The students showcased their work to the international
audience.”

Participants learned about important global climate change topics, from the potential of wind energy to the changing lifestyles of the native population in
Canada.

At the conclusion of the webcast, Maryam al-Nesf, QFI Youth Ambassador and co-host of the webcast, asked the live and online audience, “Now that we know about climate change, what can we do to become more responsible global citizens?”

QFI and GNG had launched in September, a year-long collaborative science-based programme - Connecting Cultures, Exploring Science: The Road to
Doha 2012.

It engages students in Qatar, US, and Brazil around the climate change debate through exploring critical environmental issues via project-based learning that includes standards-based curriculum, hands-on collaboration, and virtual exchanges.

Apart from exploring the science and policy behind climate change, the participants will also learn about each other’s cultures in the process.