12.14.2009 – Following the successful meeting of United States and Chinese youth last Thursday at the University of Copenhagen, a joint press conference featuring youth of the two respective countries will be held December 14 at 4:00pm. Youth representatives from the United States and China will discuss their experiences from the joint meeting and share plans to continue the development of a relationship based on mutual trust and cooperation in transitioning towards a prosperous and sustainable future for both countries.

Holly Jones, age 21 of Mt. Pleasant, Iowa says, “At first we weren’t sure that we would see eye to eye on enough issues in order to have a real conversation about what’s needed to preserve a safe climate and create a clean energy economy, but as we’ve talked, shared, hung out, and laughed together, we’re realizing that we must learn to come together in order to guarantee the safety of young people across the globe. I hope our elected officials can do the same.”

Shane Zhao, international director of the China Youth Climate Action Network, agrees with Ms. Jones, and adds, “Climate change is ultimately a problem that relates to politics and it’s therefore a cultural problem. We must start as early as possible to break down the cultural walls.”

By joining together, Chinese and United States youth are leading in a way that their elected officials have not been able to. While the synergy is not without it’s fair share of arguments and differences of opinions, it is entirely built on shared trust and frank and honest conversation. Come hear about the future of Sino-American climate diplomacy from those who will wield power in their nations for the next century.

For more information:
US: Ben Wessel at ben.wessel@sustainus.org or +45 5011 1248
China: Ann Wang at awang@goldenbridges.org +45 28 53 93 07