Urgent climate action: how youth are shaping Denmark’s path to a greener future

Written by Charlotte Dorrington and Frederikke Viltoft Mygind | 25 September 2024

How can Denmark meet its ambitious climate neutrality goals in time? With 2045 fast approaching our window to achieve climate neutrality gets closer each day. The clock is ticking, and the time it takes to scale solutions means acting now will have a significant impact on the future.

At our latest Leaders 2050 event, we gathered young professionals to provide Dansk Industri with direct feedback and a youth perspective on the latest edition of their flagship Climate Neutrality 2024 Report.

This report stresses the urgency of action across the Danish economy within sectors, and on a global scale. It highlights the development of new technologies, while urging immediate steps to reduce carbon emissions and use resources more efficiently.

Urgency and the role of youth

Denmark’s commitment to achieving climate neutrality by 2045, with carbon net-negativity by 2050, is clear. However, as the report notes, significant efforts are still needed. In this journey, the importance of a diverse youth perspective cannot be overstated. Engaging with young professionals and hearing their viewpoints is crucial as we navigate the complex landscape of climate policy. After all, they will inherit the consequences of today’s decisions, or inaction.

During the event, we had group discussions where the participants voiced their opinions and insights. These key takeaways from the group discussion reaffirm the need for urgent action:

Denmark is at a critical turning point, requiring the right climate legislation to meet our 2045 climate neutrality goals.
Involving young professionals in decision-making is crucial, as their generation will bear the consequences of inaction.
Strengthened coordination between the Danish private and public sectors is necessary to drive the rapid action needed to reduce carbon emissions and transition to a greener economy.

The insights from the event were highlighted based on six key themes from the report:

Energy efficiency and renewable energy
Sustainable building and construction and transforming transportation
Power-to-X and carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS)
Agricultural climate action and future land us
Green production and circular economy in consumption and production
Skills and demand for the green transition as well as global focus and leadership

The event concluded with Dansk Industri taking away valuable feedback in the form of posters, which were later presented to the Danish Climate Minister. An exciting opportunity for our collective voices to shape future Danish Climate policies.

It also serves as an important step in harnessing collective voices and perspectives to drive real change. Our collective efforts underscore the impactful role we can play in shaping the future of climate neutrality.

We look forward to continuing our engagement with Dansk Industri and other stakeholders as we strive towards a sustainable and climate-neutral future for Denmark and beyond.