Student Voices: Youth Speak Out on Environmental Issues in the News

Posted by Pulitzer Center on February 13, 2024

In the Pulitzer Center’s annual Local Letters for Global Change contest, students respond to global issues and call for action. In this year’s contest, a strong plurality of students chose to address environmental concerns like deforestation, animal extinction, flooding, air pollution, and the impacts of increased carbon emissions, and take swift action. Their letters not only highlight the core aspects of the global issue, but they display empathy and understanding as the students connect the issue to their personal lives and communities.

With over 46 percent of students centering their contest entries on the environment, we wanted to learn more about why this topic is of widespread importance to many students. We interviewed five contest participants whose entries were inspired by environmental reporting to learn why they chose the topic, why it’s an issue that resonates with youth, and how the contest made space for their voices to be heard.

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