The Icelandic Youth Environmentalist Association is a non governmental organisation with the primary objective of giving young people a platform to positively influence the way society interacts with nature.
National Meeting of Young Environmentalists: Nature Conservation
The national meetings of the Young Environmentalists began at a meeting on nature conservation on 29 and 30 October 2021. The meeting was held at Icelandair hotel Natura in Reykjavík.
About 50 people attended the meeting to listen to lectures from scholars and experts as well as participate in discussions on various issues within nature conservation. The purpose of the meeting was to promote discussions between young people, scholars and councilors in the country, as well as to hear what young people's emphasis is on nature conservation. The results of the discussions will eventually be used to formulate the company's policy in nature conservation, but the policy will be approved at the company's annual general meeting.
The meeting was divided into four themes; animal protection, land use, protection and power plants and the sea and fisheries sector. Scholars and experts gave presentations on different topics within each theme and answered questions from those present. The meeting was opened with an address by the Minister for the Environment, Guðmundur Ingi Guðbrandsson. Towards the end of each theme, there were small group discussions where points of emphasis were written down on a piece of paper. These priorities have been summarized below in a discussion summary and will be useful for the company's strategy.
Below you can see recordings of lectures from each theme in a video series.
Theme 1: Animal protection
Snorri Sigurðsson - Act on Animal Welfare
Kristinn Haukur Skarphéðinsson, Icelandic Institute of Natural History - Icelandic bird populations. Status - threats - actions.
Ester Rut Unnsteinsdóttir, Icelandic Institute of Natural History - The Icelandic fox
Sandra Magdalena Granquist, Marine Research Institute and Icelandic Seal Center - Seal Institute with Iceland
Edda Elísabet Magnúsdóttir, lecturer in biology at the University of Iceland - Whale stocks near Iceland
Skarphéðinn Þórisson, Náttúrustofa Austurlands - Reindeer in the nature of Iceland
Theme 2: Land protection
Þóra Ellen Þórhallsdóttir, Institute of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Iceland - Land Use and Flora of Iceland
Kristín Svavarsdóttir, Landgræðslan - Restoration of ecosystems
Guðfinnur Jakobsson, farmer in Skaftholt - Organic agriculture
Hjördís Jónsdóttir, forestry student at LBHÍ and environmentalists - Land use and forestry
Bryndís Magnúsdóttir and Jóhann Þórsson, Landgræðslan - Land use in the near future
Ólafur Arnalds, Agricultural University of Iceland - Carbon, soil and land use
Skúli Skúlason, Hólar University and the Natural History Museum of Iceland - Biological diversity
Aldís Erna Pálsdóttir, PhD student in biology at the University of Iceland - Land use and bird populations
Theme 3: Power plants and protections
Ingibjörg Marta Bjarnadóttir, Environment Agency - Protections and protected areas
Jóna Bjarnadóttir, Landsvirkjun - Sustainable power plant options and nature conservation
Benóný Jónsson, Marine Research Institute - Impact of hydropower plants on freshwater ecosystem
Nína Aradóttir, Landvarðafélag Íslands - Perspective of the Coast Guard
Theme 4: Sea and fisheries
Steinunn Hilma Ólafsdóttir, Marine Research Institute - Marine protected area
Pétur Halldórsson, Arctic Youth Network (AYN) - Conservation of oceans
Gréta María Grétarsdóttir, BRIM - Environmental issues in the fisheries sector
Andrés Skúlason, Landvernd - Pollution in the sea
Katrín Oddsdóttir, Stjórnskrárfélagið - Provisions related to the sea in the proposals of the Constitutional Council
We send our best thanks to all the speakers and participants of the National Meeting, for good education, topical discussions and ambition for nature conservation in Iceland!
We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible at our next National Meeting on Climate Change in January.