Cancun fails to deliver for the world''s poorest children by Save the Children Alliance 4:52pm 1st Dec, 2010   Dec 2010    Nidhi Mittal, Save the Children''s Climate Change Adviser said: “By failing to deliver a fair and equitable climate change deal in Cancun, world leaders have neglected the needs of the world’s poorest children.    “A legally binding agreement on mitigating greenhouse gas emissions is imperative to protect the future of our children but we should not lose sight of the fact that children are dying as we speak, and need to be supported to be able to adapt and cope with this changing climate.”    “The negotiators in Cancun are far removed from the harsh realities facing children in the developing countries. Children from the poorest families are 10 times more likely to be hit by environmental crisis than children from richer families”.    “Children are most vulnerable to the impacts of disasters, disease, displacement and malnutrition which are all exacerbated by climate change. Their survival has to be the top priority”.    “As we move towards Durban in 2011, global leaders must put children at the heart of the climate change talks and remember that they are leaving a lasting footprint on the future of the world’s children. Any decisions taken must be accountable to the rights of children.”    Save the Children is urgently calling upon world leaders to recognize what is at stake for the children of this world.    Poorest children up to ten times more likely to be hit by climate disaster than those better off.    Across the globe child survival and basic services, such as education and healthcare, are at risk as a result of the increase in frequency of disasters, shorter growing seasons, rising temperatures, and changing disease patterns.    While the risks and distortions to children’s lives from climate change are substantial, children should not be seen as vulnerable victims.    Save the Children’s experience across the world -- from environmental education in Mexico, to risk mapping in Mozambique, to mock drills in the Philippines and Myanmar -- has consistently shown that when children are empowered and engaged in addressing and preparing for environmental and disaster risks, the results are substantial.    Save the Children figures on climate change    * More than 160 million children are seriously affected by climate change today.    * Climate change could kill 250,000 children next year and the figure could rise to more than 400,000 a year by 2030.    * 25 million children will be malnourished as a result of climate change by 2050, according to IFPRI, September 2009.    * 175 million children a year – equivalent to almost three times the population of Great Britain – will suffer the consequences of natural disasters like cyclones, droughts and floods by 2030.    * Over 1.5 billion million children in the next generation will experience water shortages.    * 160 million more children in the next generation will be at risk of catching malaria – one of the biggest killers of children under five – as it spreads to new parts of the world.    * Between 25 and 100 million children could be forced to leave their homes by 2050.    * An estimated 85,000 children die every year from diarrhoea as a result of climate change. Visit the related web page
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