Every day, Manon Mella gives voice to young people aged 18-30. Friday, meeting with Mathieu Brun, 20 years old, Europe Ecology Les Verts activist.
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Mathieu, 20, is a law and political science student. Originally from Yvelines, he decided to join a political party, Europe Écologie Les Verts. First during the municipal elections in 2020, then departmental elections in 2021 and this year by supporting candidate Yannick Jadot in the presidential election.
As often at the origins of the commitment, there is an event that caused awareness. It was in March 2019, during the march for the climate. Mathieu was just 18 years old.
We mobilized massively with high school students. Place des Invalides, there were several tens of thousands of us… We thought we weren’t alone.
Matthew, 20 years oldat franceinfo
The other significant event that led him to get involved in politics were the fires in the Amazon in early 2019. “I found it particularly traumatic and I said to myself that we had to take concrete action against deforestation and to save our planet.“
Mathieu finds that ecology is not present enough in political debates, especially outside of elections. “For the elections, we talk a little bit about ecology again, but otherwise ecology is often at the end of the program or so to look nice by saying that it will please young people or people who think about the planet.“Mathieu regrets that the Citizen’s Climate Convention”which was something great and unique in France did not come to anything”.
By dint of not hearing young people, this leads to more and more massive abstention.
Matthew, 20 years oldat franceinfo
Mathieu considers that his generation is lucky compared to the previous ones. “We have living conditions that are quite healthy but we still have a concern which is climate change.“The young environmental activist admits to sometimes questioning his desire to have children.”Do I want them to live in a polluted world? Personally, I’m not sure.“
Two months before the first round of the presidential election, Mathieu calls on young people to vote. “I understand young people who are not going to vote. The only way to act is to vote. It’s all levels that can have an impact on our lives.“