A Canadian teen wants to spark a movement of young people who swear off having children to combat climate change.
Emma Lim, 18, founded the #NoFutureNoChildren movement and is encouraging young people to put off becoming parents until politicians solve climate change, according to Vice. She hopes that a wave of young people refusing to procreate will convince Canadian political leaders of how serious a problem teens consider climate change to be.
“People joining the pledge are giving up parenthood, which is supposed to be one of the most important things to us,” she said. “This will show how serious we are about this and how grave this issue is.”
Lim has created a website for her movement that invites others to “pledge not to have children until I am sure my government will ensure a safe future for them.”
“Even though I want to have children more than almost anything — what kind of a mother would I be if I brought a baby into a world where I couldn’t make sure they were safe?” Lim asks in her bio on the website.
“I’m only a teenager, so I’ve learned about climate change for as long as I can remember. I’ve seen it all around me too,” Lim’s bio says. “I am facing a future of economic instability, of food scarcity and extreme weather.”
“I am giving up my chance of having a family because I will only have children if I know I can keep them safe. It breaks my heart, but I created this pledge because I know I am not alone,” Lim’s bio concludes. “I am not the only young person giving up lifelong dreams because they are unsure of what the future will hold. We’ve read the science, and now we’re pleading with our government.”
