Youth climate activism in Lima, Peru: Drivers and ways of engaging in organized climate activism through CSOs

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Master International Development Studies

MSc Thesis

YOUTH CLIMATE ACTIVISM IN

LIMA, PERU

Drivers and ways of engaging in organized climate activism through CSOs

‘Don’t burn our future’, poster of youth climate activists in Lima. Source: The author.

Marie-Theres Dyckhoff Student number: 12787337 Contact: my.dyckhoff@web.de

Thesis supervisor: Dr. Mirjam A. F. Ros-Tonen Second reader: M. Andres Verzijl MSc Submission: Amsterdam, 14 June 2020

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Abstract

Home to a variety of climatic and geographic zones, Peru is particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Looking ahead, young Peruvians have the most to gain and lose – still, their voices often go unheard. Therefore, youth in Lima engages in civil society organizations (CSOs) to address the climatic challenge. While most research on youth’s climate-change ac-tion has focused on cases in the global North, little is known about such activism in Latin Amer-ica in general and in Peru in particular. Hence, this study asks how and why young Limeños engage in organized climate activism through CSOs. For this purpose, qualitative data was gathered using participatory observation and semi-structured and in-depth interviews with CSO representatives and youth activists. Findings reveal, first, that young Limeños majorly engage in eight CSOs. Second, they employ a variety of strategies directed towards the society, the state and activist training, and pursue a common aim to connect with more CSOs to strengthen their impact. Third, while activists are driven by diverse motivations, they often use their en-gagement to solidarize with those Peruvians who either lack a certain privilege to participate or are silenced because of their distance to the centralized capital. Overall, while youth climate activism in Lima follows a global trend of emerging civic engagement on climate issues, it distinctively focuses on Peru’s local social realities and vulnerabilities, and refuses to use the global North’s activism as a copy-paste-model. By elucidating a case of youth climate activism from the Latin American region, this study adds important theoretical findings to existing the-ory from the global North. Moreover, these insights can help young Limeños and their respec-tive CSOs strengthen their engagement and spread their voice.

Keywords

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Dedication

I would like to dedicate this thesis to the organizations that were involved in my field research in Lima, and especially to the affiliated youth activists who participated in this study. Thank you for your time and interest, for your openness in sharing your experiences, and for your friendship that guided me through my stay in this overwhelming city. I am eternally grateful for every single conversation in which we discussed our common passion to combat climate change and the cultural differences of our home countries. What is more, I sincerely thank you for letting me be part of your activism, and for involving me as not only a researcher, but also as a friend. Even though the outbreak of COVID-19 forced me to leave Peru earlier than ex-pected and I did not get a chance to say goodbye, I still feel deeply connected to you. As I follow your online activities in social media, I am impressed by the way you continue your engagement on a virtual level during the strict lockdown that was still in place at the time of submitting this thesis. With your unconditional commitment to save our planet you are a source of inspiration to me and many other young world citizens. Thank you for allowing me to see climate change through your eyes, and I hope that this thesis can provide you with some answers on how to strengthen your impact in tackling the climatic challenge.

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Acknowledgements

My sincere appreciation goes out to my thesis supervisor Mirjam Ros-Tonen, whose patient guidance, helpful feedback and invaluable encouragement throughout the entire research pro-cess allowed me to pursue an independent research topic and develop my academic skills. Equally, I would like to express my gratitude to Andres Verzijl for being the second reader of my thesis and for leading the defence. Furthermore, many thanks to all the lecturers and staff of the Master International Development Studies at the University of Amsterdam for keeping the course going despite many complications and uncertainties due to COVID-19. I am also very grateful to my fellow students for supporting me so energetically during the thesis-writing process, even though our weekly peer-group sessions via Skype could hardly replace the time spent together and the shared laughter on campus. Finally, I would like to thank my family and friends for always believing in me, and for continuously supporting me from near and far.

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Chapter 1. Introduction

“We are fighting for our future, in many places on the planet and in many ways. We have only eleven years to save the planet, so say our scientists. The climate is changing faster around the world. Our country is one of the most affected by climate change. We are suffering from big heat waves, as well as torrential rains that are unfortunately causing losses of life and destruction in cities. However, Peru does not take concrete measures to mitigate and adapt to climate change – and that is very serious. That is why we all have to stand up today, to fight for our future and for the future of all. What do we want?

Climate justice! When do we want it? Now!” (Youth activist, 20191)

1.1 The Peruvian climate challenge – transforming the burden into action

Peru offers a multifaceted landscape of desert coastal areas, Amazonian rainforest and Andean mountains (Chevallier et al. 2011:182; Takahashi and Martinez 2017:2). Plentiful natural re-sources form the backbone of the country’s economy – a walk on the tightrope between curse and blessing, since this dependency together with fragile ecosystems contributes to Peru’s in-creased vulnerability to the adverse impacts of climate change (Takahashi and Martinez 2017:2). Even though not counting as a major emitter of greenhouse gases, the country suffers continuously from climate change-related phenomena such as droughts, increasing tempera-tures, rising sea levels, melting glaciers, and the effects of El Niño (NRDC 2014:1; Ruiz Muller 2017:69-70; Takahashi and Martinez 2017:2; Takahashi and Meisner 2013:437). Climate pol-icy is a sensitive topic in Peru and has to be seen within the context of 50% of the country’s economy being based on the extractive industry (Patrick and Bharadwaj 2016:468). Then, “only the emergence of higher levels of public awareness, as manifested in citizens’ environmental initiatives and environmental social movements, can change this state of affairs in the medium to long term” (Santelices Spikin and Rojas Hernández 2016:8). This provides citizens and par-ticularly youth who are increasingly aware of the irreversible effects of climate change with the opportunity to play a vital role in addressing this complex problem (ibid.).

The Peruvian government outlines its vision on the country’s future development in the ‘Visión del Perú al 2050‘ (CEPLAN 2019:1). One of the goals regarding the ‘sustainable man-agement of nature and measures against climate change’ entails scaling up civil society’s par-ticipation in environmental decision-making. Furthermore, the report refers to the contribution that citizens could make in collaborating with the state, the private sector, and academia in order to reduce climate change-related disaster risk vulnerability (ibid.:3). Up to now, several civil society organizations (CSOs) and initiatives at the grassroots level have been taking action to-wards addressing climate change. However, “their ability to influence policy decision making or to mobilize the public or private sectors has been limited” (Takahashi and Martinez 2017:6). Young people represent those whose adulthood will coincide most strongly with the political timeframe of 2020 to 2050. Hence, youth are said to hold the best position for and a large stake in developing durable responses to the increasing challenges of climate change within this time period (Corner et al. 2015:523; O’Brien et al. 2018:2). Nevertheless, their voices are often silenced in the present discourse on climate change, rendering both them and future generations particularly vulnerable to the policy choices being made by those currently

1_{From a speech by a young climate activist of the organization Canto Vivo, resounding in the streets of Lima}

during the global climate march of the Fridays for Future movement on 15 March 2019 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s22G7P-hNWQ).

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in power (Gibbons 2014:23-24; O’Brien et al. 2018:2). Young people in poor countries dispro-portionately face increasing climate-change risks, which negatively affect their health and sur-vival, and should, as noted in the ’Convention on the Rights of the Child’, have the right to actively engage in decision-making processes affecting them (Gibbons 2014:20-21, 23).

1.2 Relevance and research objectives

As Peru is extremely vulnerable to climate change, the country’s youth is suspected to suffer the most. Acknowledging that “young people arguably have the most to gain and the most to lose” (Corner et al. 2015:523), youth in Lima can – and already do – play a crucial role in actively tackling climate change. Considering their central stake in climate-change mitigation and adaptation, insights into what drives them to engage in organized climate action through CSOs and how their engagement may currently be constrained is pertinent.

The findings of this study may serve to improve Peruvian society’s awareness of and resilience towards climate change by taking the often-neglected voices and fruitful suggestions of young citizens into account. Ultimately, the research aims to compile data on how these youth activists and their respective CSOs in Lima can enhance their engagement in order to positively affect the Peruvian climate-change agenda. As such, this research aims to empower young Limeños in their struggle against climate change, considering that adult perspectives have often highlighted the shortcomings of youth activism in Latin America (Coe et al. 2015:21).

In addition to these social objectives, the study strives to provide orientation for policy-makers on how to involve youth in the discussion of climate matters, and how to deal with their activism.

In terms of the knowledge gap addressed, most research on climate-change action has thus far been done in the global North, and little is known about such actions in the global South. This is true for mitigation policies (Steg 2018:761), but particularly striking regarding the role of young people involved in climate activism. While several studies mainly look into cases in Australia, Europe, and North America (Buttigieg and Pace 2013; Corner et al. 2015; Feola and Nunes 2014; Foran et al. 2017; Gallay et al. 2016; Holmberg and Alvinius 2020; Kleres and Wettergren 2017; Ojala 2012; Stapleton 2019), investigations in other parts of the world are scarce (Chersich et al. 2019; Fisher 2016; Tanner 2010). However, the mere assump-tion of climate activism in the global South being similar to that in the global North could be misleading, as different climatic and social realities structure the lives of young people in the global South. No research has so far been undertaken on the role of youth in climate activism in Peru, revealing a gap in academic literature addressed in this thesis. Empirical findings can then serve to understand how young people in a country like Peru, in which climatic effects are so acute, face the global climate challenge.

Furthermore, there are only a few studies engaging with the ways in which youth’s ac-tive participation could be reinforced (Corner et al. 2015:523). Therefore, this research contrib-utes inductive findings on young people’s drivers and barriers to organized engagement in cli-mate activism. This data can then guide further investigations on the topic in similar regions or act as a comparison to countries in the global North. It thereby broadens the academic knowledge base on youth climate activism, while helping to strengthen young people’s say in climate matters.

1.3 Research questions

The main research question addressed in this study is:

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This encompasses the following sub-questions (SQs):

1. How does climate activism in Lima look in terms of CSOs, their climate agenda, and focus on youth?

2. How is climate activism among youth shaped in terms of actions and strategies? 3. What drives and constrains young people to engage in climate activism through these

organizations?

4. How do youth climate activists and other actors see young people’s role in combatting climate change now and in the near future?

1.4 Thesis setup

After this introduction, Chapter 2 provides the theoretical framework for this study, drawing on civic engagement and youth climate activism. Chapter 3 explains the qualitative, semi-grounded methodology upon which this research is based, and reflects on ethics, quality, and limitations. Chapter 4 situates the research context in Lima and examines the climatic chal-lenges striking Peru and respective governmental reactions, before providing insights into youth engagement and activism in the country. Chapter 5 – the first of two empirical chapters – pre-sents the eight CSOs covered in this study, and further hones in on actions and strategies used by affiliated youth activists. Chapter 6 analyses young Limeños’ drivers of and constraints to engaging in organized climate activism. Moreover, it highlights youth’s self-perceived role as ‘activists’ vis-à-vis other actors in Lima and the global North, and the perceptions of political and civil-society actors of youth climate activism. Finally, Chapter 7 synthesizes the findings to answer the research questions; reflects on the theory used; and provides recommendations for future research, policy, and practice.

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Chapter 2. Theoretical framework

Two theoretical strands guided the fieldwork: civic engagement (Section 2.1) and youth activ-ism on climate change (2.2). A conceptual scheme visualizes the assumed connections between concepts and dimensions (2.3), after which the chapter concludes with a short synthesis (2.4). Additional concepts were derived from inductive coding (see 3.5). I add these data-driven con-cepts to a refined conceptual scheme in the theoretical reflection in the final chapter (7.2).

2.1 Civic engagement

This section presents civic engagement in its collective form (2.1.1); as environmental civic engagement (2.1.2); and in terms of youth agency (2.1.3).

2.1.1 Collective civic engagement

Civic engagement encompasses various aspects, dimensions and phenomena (Adler and Gog-gin 2005:240; Checkoway and Aldana 2013:1894). The term has been defined in such diverse ways as ‘collective action’, ‘community service’, ‘political involvement’, or ‘social change’ (Adler and Goggin 2005:238-239). Ekman and Amnå (2012) distinguish between collectively organized or performed actions and individual forms (p. 289). Within collective forms, a further distinction can be made between community activities (e.g. joint cleaning or welfare activities) and political action (e.g. taking part in a political party, campaigning, protesting) (Adler and Goggin 2005:240, drawing from Crowley n.d.).

Although I acknowledge the individual component, it is further neglected in this re-search for reasons of feasibility. Thus, I use Checkoway’s and Aldana’s (2013) definition, who frame civic engagement as “a process in which people take collective action to address issues of public concern” (p. 1894). In the following, the terms ‘civic engagement’ and ‘engagement’ are used interchangeably. Engaged citizens, then, are understood as those being “aware of their rights and responsibilities in society and actively participat[ing] in shaping the system norms, resources, regulations and operations that comprise the foundation of their respective society” (Riemer et al. 2014:554). More specifically, this study focuses on political action or activism (2.2).

2.1.2 Civic engagement for environmental action

Civil society has often engaged in pro-environmental actions, particularly through participation in appropriate organizations that motivate such behaviour (Buttigieg and Pace 2013:17). In their attempt to actively impact on policymakers and the public to implement pro-environmental measures, involved citizens invest time and energy in shaping alternative responses to environ-mental problems (ibid.:17, 41).

With climate change being the biggest challenge that people are facing in this century, citizens have become increasingly active in combatting its manifold problems (Fisher 2016:229; Santelices Spikin and Rojas Hernández 2016:4). Through CSOs they stress local consequences as well as the disproportionate risks for vulnerable populations, thereby attempt-ing to counter the state’s non-action. It is widely acknowledged that the better their organization and the more efficient their mobilization, the greater the leverage of these CSOs (Mittag 2012:999, 1001). Thus, it is vital to study how people can be more effectively encouraged to actively engage in climate-change actions (Steg 2018:761). This research does so by assessing drivers of and constraints to youth civic engagement for climate activism (Chapter 6).

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2.1.3 Youth agency in civic engagement

Since civic participation has historically mainly targeted youth (Adler and Goggin 2005:237), it seems particularly instructive to analyse young people’s activities in this regard. In theories on youth engagement, specific attention has been paid to the meaning of ‘agency’, a term which has generally been described as “space for manoeuvre” (Lopes Cardozo 2015:6). Notably, this ‘space’ leaves room for varying interpretations, as to who has space, when, and how much.

The agency of youth regarding civic engagement has often been neglected. Feelings of powerlessness, exclusion from decision-making processes, not being taken seriously, and serv-ing as a token at events are common concerns (Checkoway and Aldana 2013:1897; Corner et al. 2015:527; Earl et al. 2017:8; Narksompong and Limjirakan 2015:173; O’Brien et al. 2018:3). Yet, several authors argue that youth should be recognized as competent citizens with political agency here and now, admitted to participate in meaningful decisions, and involved in various forms of activism (Checkoway and Aldana 2013:1897; Gallay et al. 2016:130; O’Brien et al. 2018:4). Waiting until youth turn into adults before they can take action is a lost oppor-tunity to incorporate their skills already now (Narksompong and Limjirakan 2015:175).

Taking these theoretical considerations into account, this research considers young peo-ple (those between 15 and 29 years, see 3.2) as active agents who engage in civic spheres in order to address climate issues and bring about meaningful change. This is reflected in the anal-ysis of how youth themselves and other actors perceive the role of young Limeños in climate activism (Chapter 6).

2.2 Youth activism on climate change

Young people’s engagement in designing sustainable solutions to mitigate climate change has been recognized as vital (Johnson et al. 2013:29). In order to achieve their goals, youth often engage in a specific form of (collective) civic engagement called political action or political activism. This is defined here as an “orientation to engage in various collective, social-political, problem-solving behaviors spanning a range from low-risk, passive, and institutionalized acts to high-risk, active, and unconventional behaviors” (Corning and Myers 2002:704).

As youth will have to endure the future effects of climate change, they must actively engage in finding solutions (Narksompong and Limjirakan 2015:172-173). Youth climate ac-tivists can then be described “as people contextually considered youth who intentionally engage in actions connected to the political and collective aims of addressing the problems of contem-porary anthropogenic climate change” (Fisher 2016:231).

In this research, Lima offers an example of a city where young people engage as climate activists. To assess their engagement, this section first presents the frameworks used to design this study (2.2.1), and further outlines the role of climate justice in such engagement (2.2.2).

2.2.1 Frameworks for measuring youth climate activism

Civil society’s and youth’s contribution to “combating climate change should be assessed crit-ically, rather than assumed” (Mittag 2012:998). This demands scrutinizing the complex rela-tions of how and why Liman youth engage in climate action.

First, looking at organizational structures (leadership, organization type) and strategies (socialization, influence, power, and partnership; Table 2.1) deepens the understanding of how young Limeños engage in CSOs to address climate change (Ho et al. 2015:55; Riemer et al. 2014:560). Therefore, I use input from the frameworks on ‘youth-led social change’ (Ho et al. 2015) and ‘youth-based environmental engagement programmes’ (Riemer et al. 2014). More-over, investigating how CSOs engage youth adds to the comprehension of youth climate

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activism. For this purpose, I follow Elliott’s and Earl’s (2018) distinction between targeting youth as audience and targeting youth as active participants in protests (p. 5).

Table 2.1 Strategies of youth-led social change

Strategies Definition

Socialization Awareness-raising, making others aware of or care about an issue Influence Indirectly influencing others (decision-makers, organizations,

popula-tions, individuals) to address an issue and take action

Power Directly taking action on the issue by being/becoming the decision-maker Partnership Directly taking action on the issue by cooperating with others

(decision-makers, organizations, populations, individuals)

Source: The author, drawing from Ho et al. (2015:55).

To further grasp the how of youth’s engagement in climate activism, I additionally adhere to the framework developed by O’Brien and others (2018) on analysing forms of activism in terms of dutiful, disruptive, and dangerous dissent (Table 2.2). These types are not mutually exclu-sive, but rather “capture the different ways that youth activism engages with political power and is likely to contribute to desired changes in the status quo” (p. 4). So far, this framework is the only of its kind on youth climate activism. Although focusing predominantly on young people in high-emission countries (ibid.:1), it can also help understand the practices being con-ducted by those living and engaging in climate activism in lower emission societies. Testing this theoretical framework that is based on ideas from the global North in the context of Lima can offer valuable insights into the performance of youth climate activism in other parts of the world.

Table 2.2 Forms of youth activism on climate change

Form Definition Actions

Dutiful dissent Expressing climate concerns via existing in-stitutional arrangements (political parties, non-governmental organizations – NGOs) Strengthening and challenging prevailing practices to advance alternative climate-change responses from within and throughout the system

Membership in environ-mental/political CSOs, prioritizing climate re-sponses through poli-cies/practices

Disruptive dissent Challenging underlying power relations and authorities perpetuating them

Critiquing the system that drives climate change

Marches/rallies, boy-cotts, petition cam-paigns, interrupting in-ternational climate meetings

Dangerous dissent Challenging established rulers in the longer run by opposing business-as-usual arrange-ments and promoting alternative ways of structuring economic and social relations

Advocating for climate justice/degrowth ideas, non-commercial art practices in public places

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Table 2.2 shows that certain forms of activism result in specific actions. In addition, research identifies a broad set of activities including, among other things, manifest activities such as demonstrations, protests, strikes, walkouts, sit-ins, and die-ins; the design and implementation of climate-related projects and campaigns such as clean-ups; advocacy, consultation, and lob-bying; and information, education, and capacity building (Arnold et al. 2009:29; Checkoway and Aldana 2013:1895; Ekman and Amnå 2012:292; Elliott and Earl 2018:5; Fisher 2019:430; Narksompong and Limjirakan 2015:178; Tanner 2010:347). For reasons of feasibility, I cate-gorize these actions according to the scheme of O’Brien et al. (2018) in the operationalization table (Appendix 1). This framework provided deductive guidance, but is not reflective “of how youth see or judge their own action” (ibid.:4). Hence, this study additionally inductively gath-ered information of how young Limeños categorize their actions against climate change. I fur-ther reflect on the implications of combining a deductive (concept-driven) and inductive (data-driven) approach in Section 7.2.

Second, investigating the drivers of initiating and sustaining young people’s engage-ment for climate action is crucial for grasping the why of their climate activism (Riemer et al. 2014:558). Previous research identified several drivers – not differentiated by their initiating or sustaining effect – to engage in environmental or climate action, such as the impact of parents, friends, teachers, role models, and media; positive youth or childhood experiences outdoors to bond with nature; the observation of negative incidents in nature such as pollution or environ-mental damage; education; the encouragement of agency; the belief to make a difference; and time shared in youth groups or get-togethers (Arnold et al. 2009:29-30, 33; Buttigieg and Pace 2013:23-27, 30-32; Ojala 2012:633, 637; Riemer et al. 2014:562-563). On an emotional scale, a combination of fear and hope can motivate engagement for climate action. Whereas fear of climate change may be rather abstract in the global North, experiencing its disastrous effects as an already manifest threat drives Southern activists (Kleres and Wettergren 2017:508, 516). Then, “hope is not only a pleasant feeling, but can also work as a motivational force” (Ojala 2012:625). Factors that particularly sustain organized engagement include personal satisfac-tion, commitment to help, collective work, positive relationships (e.g. friendships), recognisatisfac-tion, enjoyment, learning opportunities, personal development, early successes, and the perceived relevance of the cause fighting for (Buttigieg and Pace 2013:37-40; Pancer and Pratt 1999:47; Riemer et al. 2014:558, 567-568).

However, it is also essential to address constraints that hinder pro-climate engagement in order to generate insights into possible weaknesses of youth civic engagement for climate action and ways in which it could be strengthened. In this regard, research suggests that a lack of bonding experiences with nature might hamper young people’s development of environmen-tal responsibility. Moreover, engaging in climate action may be challenging if one already needs to cope with other life pressures – work and family – or when perceiving that one’s actions lack success (Buttigieg and Pace 2013:29, 36). Working in an unpleasant environment or on disa-greeable tasks may form another constraint (Pancer and Pratt 1999:47).

Finally, looking at how young Limeños perceive their role in climate activism also helps understand why they engage in certain actions. External perceptions of politicians and citizens may further shape this role. While there is no framework yet to measure the role of youth in climate activism, this research aims to contribute to this.

2.2.2 Climate justice

Within climate activism, a particular idea has repeatedly influenced global movements. In the streets of Lima, young activists have voiced it as “¡Justicia climática ahora!” (‘Climate justice

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now!’). A closer look at the concept that “puts a human face on the impacts of climate change” (Stapleton 2019:734) reveals the emergence of two different strands: intragenerational and in-tergenerational climate justice.

The former addresses inequities of climate-change impacts at local and global level, underlining the increased vulnerability of certain populations and developing countries respec-tively, and stressing their minor contribution to greenhouse-gas emissions (Narksompong and Limjirakan 2015:171-172; Tokar 2015:69).

By contrast, intergenerational justice refers to the disproportionate threat climate change poses on youth and future generations compared to today’s adults who will only experience an extenuated version of these hazardous effects (Chersich et al. 2019:615; O’Brien et al. 2018:7). Since present actions and decisions thus predominantly affect youth, their activism is becoming increasingly important (Gallay et al. 2016:113-114, 129).

Acknowledging that youth activists “stand in a particular relationship to the issue of intergenerational justice which lies at the heart of the climate crisis” (Foran et al. 2017:361), this research investigates how climate justice informs both sustaining drivers and the role of Liman youth activists in combatting climate change.

2.3 Conceptual scheme

Figure 2.1 brings the different theoretical strands and concepts together as an initial guidance to the collection of field data.

Figure 2.12_{Conceptual scheme}a

a _{Numbers refer to the sub-questions (see 1.3).}

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2.4 Conclusions

This chapter presented the theoretical framework of this study. It discussed youth climate ac-tivism as a specific form of civic engagement, and visualized the assumed links between the concepts derived from the literature in a conceptual scheme. The next chapter provides the methodological setup of this study.

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Chapter 3. Methodology

This study is a single case study (Bryman 2012:66) of CSOs and their youth affiliates in Lima. Due to the absence of prior investigations on the topic, it is exploratory in nature and employs a qualitative research design (ibid.:41). Firstly, the operationalization of the study’s main con-cept is outlined (3.1), after which the chapter explains the unit of analysis (3.2), units of obser-vation and sampling procedures (3.3). Followed by detailed accounts of data collection methods (3.4) and data analysis (3.5), it reflects on research ethics (3.6) and quality and limitations of this study (3.7). It concludes with a brief synthesis (3.8).

3.1 Operationalization

The major concept informing this research is youth climate activism. It was operationalized prior to fieldwork, and its dimensions, variables and indicators (see Appendix 1) are largely based on literature reviewed in Chapter 2. It thereby enables an understanding of linkages as presented in the conceptual scheme (2.3), and informed the interview guides for CSO repre-sentatives and youth activists (Appendix 2). During fieldwork and analysis, some of the varia-bles and indicators were adjusted to better reflect the aspects that CSOs and activists deemed relevant (see 3.5 and discussion of its implications in 7.2).

3.2 Unit of analysis

The unit of analysis comprises organized climate activism by young Limeños participating in CSOs. The latter are defined as “all non-market and non-state organisations outside of the fam-ily in which people organise themselves to pursue shared interests in the public domain” (OECD 2011:10). In accordance with Peruvian youth policy, this study defines ‘youth’ and ‘young peo-ple’ as those in the age range between 15 and 29 years. They constitute 27.5% of the country’s population, with 84.3% living in urban areas (SENAJU 2012:15).

3.3 Units of observation and sampling

The units of observation emanate from the following CSOs: Canto Vivo, Clima de Cambios, Conservamos por Naturaleza, Jóvenes Peruanos frente al Cambio Climático (JPCC), Movi-miento Ciudadano frente al Cambio Climático (MOCICC), Red Universitaria Ambiental de la Universidad Agraria La Molina (RUA) and TierrActiva (5.1). Although not a CSO proper, I furthermore included the local group of the worldwide movement Fridays for Future – Viernes por el Futuro Lima (Viernes) – for its highly organized nature and importance for the climate-activism scene in Lima. While including these eight groups was based on an initial purposeful selection guided by online research (3.4), activists repeatedly corroborated their importance for my research topic.

In a second step, interviews with one representative or member of the organizations3 led me to focus on four out of the eight groups for more in-depth research: Canto Vivo, JPCC, MOCICC and Viernes. I selected these CSOs based on a good spread of organization type, leadership structure and employed actions and strategies. Next, I chose to collaborate with four Limeños of each of the groups where I conducted only interviews (JPCC and Viernes) and five each where I additionally did participant observation (Canto Vivo and MOCICC). Participants ranged between 16 and 29 years and thus complied with my definition of youth (3.2). Three of the nine initial CSO respondents also fell within this age range while actively participating in the groups they represented. This renders their answers relevant for both an overview of the

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CSOs and activist perspectives. With only one exception, all interview respondents lived in Lima during the time of my research. The female/male ratio of the young interviewees was 12/9.

Regarding the selection of young interview participants, ‘snowball sampling’ via net-works in the climate-activism scene accounted for feasibly collecting field data (Bryman 2012:424). Generally, initial CSO respondents guided scheduling a first interview with a group participant. This had a catalysing effect, as further recommendations and joining events helped me to connect with more activists. When selecting them for participation in this research, I gave preference to those with high engagement in the organization and availability.

3.4 Data collection methods

I employed a diverse set of qualitative methods to achieve an “in-depth understanding [of] the behaviour and process within individuals or groups” (Landiyanto 2018:6).

First, I made a comprehensive compilation of CSOs engaging youth for climate action in Lima, based on exploratory web analysis of these CSOs’ climate agendas and focus on youth (SQ1). To enrich this data, one semi-structured interview per adult-led organization was con-ducted with a responsible working together with youth or with a central stakeholder in a youth-based CSO (SQ1). Combining these two methods ensured a profound understanding of different agendas and levels of youth involvement and allowedselecting the four focus CSOs (3.3).

Second, semi-structured interviews were held with young activists. This revealed rich data on actions and strategies employed in their climate activism (SQ2); drivers of and con-straints to engagement (SQ3); and their role in tackling climate change (SQ4). Besides these topics, staying flexible to adjust the direction of the interview according to other emerging themes was crucial (Bryman 2012:470). As the interview process progressed, I added some questions on topics that had proved relevant in initial interviews, such as the importance of Lima for climate activism.

All 27 conducted interviews were audio-recorded and later transcribed; for interview guides see Appendix 2. In one occasion I used Skype to record an interview with an activist who had recently moved out of Lima. Appendix 3 lists all interviewees by their respective CSOs.

Regarding my personal background as being ‘young’ (3.2) and passionate about climate action, participant observation was markedly accessible and insightful. By participating in var-ious activities related to climate change during my fieldwork in Lima, I gained hands-on expe-rience on why youth engage in climate activism (SQ3, SQ4) and how their activism is shaped in terms of actions and strategies (SQ2). Adhering to an Oxfam (2019) project on youth activ-ism in Peru where “co-creation was combined with a horizontal structure and a flexible ap-proach” (p. 3), I stayed open for suggestions from the young people with whom I engaged on what to observe or where to participate. This enabled my participant observation in the follow-ing 15 events: four plannfollow-ing reunions, three meetfollow-ings for creatfollow-ing banners and posters, one environmental sensibilization workshop and tree planting, one beach clean-up and environmen-tal sensibilization campaign, one demonstration, one protest march, one mural painting, one conference, one lecture and one market with workshops. However, while participant observa-tion generally asks for the researcher’s long-term engagement in the social context (Bryman 2012:432), time constraints in the field prevented me from conducting it on a full-scale level. Rather, I engaged in a modified version of ‘microethnography’ (Wolcott 1990). By zooming in on particular settings depicting youth climate activism in Lima, I accommodated to the encoun-tered limits of time and scope (p. 64). When possible, I used a notebook during events. In all cases, observations were written afterwards.

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Finally, methods from applied visual anthropology were employed (Pink 2004:5). Pho-tographs and video sequences offered powerful frames to analyse youth activism in terms of actions and motivations (SQ2, SQ3), and were further helpful to record a demonstration where it was difficult to keep track of what was happening, thus serving as “an aide-mémoire in the course of fieldwork” (Bryman 2012:457).

3.5 Data analysis

Following the exploratory design of this research, preliminary data analysis was conducted while still in the field: emerging themes during initial interviews led to inform following inter-views (3.4).

Upon return from the field, all interviews were transcribed, after which a combination of deductive and inductive coding guided the analysis. Since conceptual tools for decoding how young people ‘do’ activism are largely designed in Europe or North America (Coe et al. 2015:4), pursuing a semi-grounded approach to engage with young people’s own understand-ings of their activism was essential. To that end, the concept-driven operationalization of youth climate activism in the global North (3.1) revealed categories that formed the basis for the sub-sequent data-driven analysis. While a prior conceptual understanding thus provided the analyt-ical framework, open coding was applied to inductively generate and explore concepts and in-sights that young Limeños themselves had mentioned (Bryman 2012:569-570; Corbin and Strauss 1990:12). This data-driven approach enabled the emergence of new indicators, espe-cially regarding drivers and constraints of youth activists. Finally, analysing observational notes and visuals from events helped enrich these findings by adding a contextual understanding to the verbatim transcripts and retrieved categories. The final coding frame is attached in Appen-dix 4. Using ATLAS.ti as a tool for both transcribing and coding was central to this analysis.

3.6 Ethical considerations

In the process of designing and conducting this research, close attention was paid to ensure that the following ethical principles were met.

3.6.1 Voluntary participation

All interview respondents participated voluntarily, following my messages or their friends’ rec-ommendations. Two minors participated in the study out of their own motivation, though I had also met their mothers before or during the interviews. It has repeatedly been argued that chil-dren lack competence to decide on their participation in research, thus leaving consent to their parents (Coyne 2010:235). Adults then often “view children from a deﬁcit perspective rather than recognising children’s strengths” (ibid.:230). Since this research follows the understanding of young people from 15 upwards as active agents, I adhere to Coyne’s (2010) view of respect-ing their capacities and rights to express accord or disaccord themselves (p. 235). In general, considering the often-experienced notion of not being listened to properly in Peru (6.5), all interviewees were eager to share their stories and experiences with me and often thanked me for researching this particular topic.

3.6.2 Informed consent

After initial agreement to participate in the interview, I further explained the aims of the re-search after which respondents gave informed consent. When conducting observations while simultaneously participating in activities, not all of those I was observing might have been aware of my intentions. If new people joined the activity, I did not always clearly explain my research status as it might have been interruptive of the activity or shifted the focus too much

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towards me. Hence, I handled sensitive information gathered from observations confidentially by anonymizing data used from those activists I had not also interviewed.

3.6.3 Safety in participation

Ensuring the safety of my participants and myself was crucial during interviews or events. Due to high crime levels in Lima, I trusted my respondents in choosing a safe place for an interview, thus simultaneously keeping their financial and time investment low. Only in one occasion my respondent and I were in acute danger of being robbed and had to change locations to continue the interview. Moving around in Lima always required caution, and due to issues of safety I never took a taxi when on my own. Exclusively relying on the chaotic bus system was more time-intensive, but my preferred option. When engaging in activities such as demonstrations or marches, prior consultations with locals informed my decision to participate. Finally, I made sure not to use pictures that may compromise climate activists’ safety. Pictures published in this thesis were edited to show no recognizable faces, and together with data retrieved from interviews and observations stored password protected on a laptop, two USB sticks and in a cloud. These measures served to counter the possible loss of data due to theft or robbery.

3.6.4 Confidentiality

Although youth activists did not consider that their participation in my study could harm them, I decided to use pseudonyms to avoid possible future implications for interviewees that they may currently overlook. I further assured them of the confidentiality of the audio recordings, shared written transcripts and drafts, and thus opened a space for doubts or feedback. Never-theless, treating the names of those participating in the project confidentially was not always easy to handle well. The climate-activism scene in Lima is small in the sense that almost eve-ryone knows each other. Many respondents mentioned their friends’ names in interviews or recommended them as further contacts. I joined in, telling new respondents to whom I had already talked when asked, which then fostered trust and confidence. Hence, while snowball sampling perhaps made me disclose names too easily on the one hand, it helped in establishing trust, on the other.

3.6.5 Trust

Further trust was gained in interviews where I encouraged youth activists to ask me questions as well, so as to not only gather information, but also state my personal motivation for this research and elaborate on the topic in relation to my home country. The thereby created hori-zontal structure made it easier for activists to share their views and was an enriching experience for both sides, leading to friendships with some activists. I thereby aimed to meaningfully give back to community members (Diver and Higgins 2014:5). Furthermore, my voluntary partici-pation in many activities not only provided deeper insights into the topic and supported the organizations (ibid.:6), but also increased my standing as both researcher and friend. However, my status as the latter may complicate open expressions of criticism in this thesis.

Finally, my immense carbon footprint due to flying to my research location4_encouraged me to gather valuable data such as to ‘offset’ my carbon footprint by disseminating my findings and therefore spreading young Limeños’ voices. However, as indigenous activist Lilla Watson once put it, “If you have come here to help me, you are wasting your time … But if you have come because your liberation is tied up with mine, then let us work together” (Watson 2007:47).

4_{According to the calculator of myclimate, my round trip to Lima emitted around 3.7 tons of carbon dioxide}

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Correspondingly, recognizing climate change as a global challenge that, despite our differences, unites me with Liman activists and CSOs, and reflecting on my own position was crucial for approaching participants and establishing trust.

3.7 Reflection on the quality and limitations of the research

In order to demonstrate the quality of this exclusively qualitative research, I adhere to the cri-teria of trustworthiness (3.7.1) and authenticity (3.7.2) (Guba and Lincoln 1994 and Lincoln and Guba 1985 in Bryman 2012:390-393).

3.7.1 Trustworthiness

Trustworthiness entails credibility, transferability, dependability and confirmability. By mak-ing use of these quality principles, I follow Guba and Lincoln in acknowledgmak-ing the occurrence of several accounts of social reality (ibid.:390). Considering the multiplicity of social realities and perceptions of climate activism as revealed in this thesis, trustworthiness serves as the best fit to ensure the quality of the research.

Credibility

For credibly demonstrating young Limeños’ engagement with climate activism, establishing mutual trust was crucial to enter the local context, learn about their activism and understand their social realities. Following up on trustworthy relations established in the field, I shared written transcripts and drafts with the interviewees (3.6.4). Respondent validation then enabled the incorporation of their feedback and corroborated that my findings and interpretations cor-respond to their views (ibid.:391; Diver and Higgins 2014:6). Moreover, it helped clarify any language misunderstandings that might have occurred.

Furthermore, I made use of triangulation by relying on different data sources (Bryman 2012:392). Firstly, an extensive web analysis of all chosen CSOs informed the subsequent in-depth, semi-structured interviews (3.4). Then, participant observation in two of the focus CSOs not only served to enrich the data collected during interviews, but also ensured high correspond-ence between activists’ given statements and their performed motivations, actions and strate-gies. Analysing photos and videos collected during observations reinforced these findings. Fi-nally, participant observation through my active engagement with young Limeños made me experience the local social context closely. This further helped me to better understand linkages, which I then brought up in interviews for additional corroboration or contestation.

Transferability

Regarding helping future researchers judge whether the described context also applies to their investigations, and whether findings could thus be transferred, I offer a detailed account of the local context (ibid.). The ‘thick description’ of youth climate activism in Lima and the social realities in which it is performed was achieved by combining interviews, observations, visuals and frequent journal writing (Geertz 1973:10).

This rich account might be explicitly supportive if transferring findings from Lima to other Latin American capitals where similar climatic vulnerabilities and social realities are pre-sent. High levels of biodiversity, poverty and crime, the presence of extractive industries and centralized governance as in Peru are partly shared by other Latin American countries. Hence, youth climate activism might be investigated correspondingly by referring to some of the results of this study. However, the Liman findings may not hold if research is conducted within the same context in a couple of years from now, since climate activism is as rapidly changing as

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the crisis which provoked it. Nevertheless, in this case it might be interesting to take the current research as a base for future comparisons and developments of the eight CSOs involved.

Dependability

During the research process, I was transparent about my study and the methods employed to-wards the CSOs that participated in this study. An outline of the questions used in semi-struc-tured interviews is attached (Appendix 2). Moreover, disclosing the number of interviews con-ducted in a transparency document served to lay open my collected data to the University of Amsterdam (Appendix 3).

The local context held two major challenges which made me change some of the meth-ods during fieldwork. Firstly, not having considered the huge amount of time it takes to move around Lima, scheduling interviews between respondents’ duties at work, university or home displayed a major challenge. Initially planned focus groups were thus skipped, since it was too difficult to find a common place and time suiting all respondents. Instead, I opted for joining more events for observation than originally intended.

Secondly, the outbreak of COVID-19 in Peru in March 2020 as part of a global pan-demic forced me to return to my home country more than a week earlier than expected. Conse-quently, I had to cancel a couple of interviews, while two reunions, a beach campaign and a four-day-long climate-activism school in which I had planned to participate were cancelled by the CSOs themselves. This was unfortunate, but regarding the amount of data I had previously collected not obstructive for the actual writing of this thesis.

However, due to these two difficulties, I did not manage to organize informal gatherings with focus CSOs and activists to share findings and jointly reflect on the research process to-wards the end of my fieldwork (Diver and Higgins 2014:6). Hence, I aim to put extra effort into communicating findings through sending out summaries and publishing an online article, which both CSOs and activists can use for spreading their voices.

Confirmability

“[W]hile recognizing that complete objectivity is impossible in social research” (Bryman 2012:392), I ensured confirmability of my findings by making myself aware of how my own subjectivity might have altered my findings. Regarding my role as a researcher, I am first of all aware of the importance I personally attribute to climate change. Along with Stapleton (2019) who finds that “we have not a moment to waste” (p. 748), I am convinced that climate change is happening and that there is an urgent need to address its roots and consequences. My previous science-based knowledge on climate change, however, sometimes led to a bias, and I had to be careful not to assume its paramount relevance for everyone. While it was indeed an important issue for interviewees, they helped me to see climate change as one problem among many others in a country where poverty and inequality still prevail on comparatively high levels. This lively exchange with respondents then ensured that findings were not swayed by my own opinions and values (Bryman 2012:392-393).

Second, while I was initially not affiliated with any of the CSOs, I chose four out of the eight organizations as focus CSOs and further actively participated in two of those. The findings taken from this participation have then to be put into the context of the comparatively larger amount of time spent in those groups and friendships established during the research.

3.7.2 Authenticity

Regarding the wider political impact of this research, authenticity is addressed to ensure its quality (ibid.:393). Out of its five criteria, only fairness, ontological authenticity and educative

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authenticity are applicable to this study. Regarding catalytic and tactical authenticity (ibid.), it is too early to make any assumptions.

Fairness

By selecting CSOs with different agendas and strategies as a focus for my research, I accounted for the inclusion of several viewpoints within the given context. However, my own subjectivity (3.7.1) led me to solely interview people highly engaged in climate activism (3.3), not taking into account critics, which might have increased fairness in this research.

Ontological authenticity

Ontological authenticity was achieved by offering young activists a space to share their stories with me as an outsider to their context. This may have helped them to further reflect on their personal experiences as climate activists and on how they perceive their own role in addressing climate change.

Educative authenticity

Finally, by including multiple organizations and actors involved in youth climate activism, I aimed to enhance mutual understanding and depict possibilities for increased future cooperation between the groups. By disseminating findings and recommendations to all involved CSOs, educative authenticity can be ensured. However, close attention has to be paid to not invoke a neo-colonialist picture of me sending recommendations to a context other than my own.

3.8 Conclusions

This chapter presented the methodological setup of this single case study that is based on a qualitative research design and semi-grounded analytical approach. Ethical principles have been applied and quality criteria regarding trustworthiness and authenticity addressed. The next chapter provides the general context of climate change and youth activism in Peru.

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Chapter 4. Context to climate change and youth activism in Peru

To set the context of this research and offer background to the empirical findings on youth climate activism in Lima in subsequent chapters, this chapter gives an overview of the research location, its young residents and current challenges (4.1); of Peru’s climate-change vulnerabil-ity (4.2); and of young Peruvians’ contemporary engagement (4.3). These three parts are re-flected upon in the concluding section (4.4).

4.1 Situating the research context: Lima

Lima, the capital of the Peruvian Republic, region and province of Lima is situated at the West coast of the country, bordered by the Andean mountains to the east and the coastline at the west (Silva et al. 2017:2-3). Temperatures in this desert city range from a low of 14.6°C in August and September to the highest average temperature of 26.5°C in February (SENAMHI 2020; Siña et al. 2016:2). According to the ‘Liga Contra el Cáncer’, Peru holds the highest solar radi-ation in the world. In Lima, the maximum level on a scale from 1 to 14 has been reached, provoking severe health risks (Ortega 2020). Precipitation is extremely low and highest in July with 1.8 mm per month (SENAMHI 2020).

Source: The author, adapted from INEI (2014:9).

Figure 4.1 Map of Lima Metropolitanaa

a _{The black focus frame (left) and the red marked}

areas (right) indicate where in Lima I conducted research.

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Lima was established in 1535 as the capital to serve the Spanish invaders’ colonial extractive enterprise (Ioris 2016:129). It has experienced a drastic population growth in the last 80 years (INEI 2017a). With around 10 million inhabitants today, the city is home to nearly one third of the country’s population (Takahashi and Martinez 2017:13) and more than 40% of Peru’s urban population (UN 2016:7). The megacity is suspected to count over 12 million residents in its metropolitan area by 2030 and currently ranks 31st_{among the most populated cities worldwide} (UN 2018:27; UN 2016:4). Lima Metropolitana’s population is spread over 50 districts that compose the five larger districts Lima Norte, Lima Centro, Lima Sur, Lima Este and Callao5 (Figure 4.1, see Appendix 5 for a more detailed account).

In 2014, 34.2% of the country’s urban population lived in slums (UN-Habitat 2016:205). In Lima, informal settlements are squeezed in the hills surrounding the centre (Figure 4.2). Poverty6_{affects 13.1% of the metropolitan population, though it decreased considerably from} 25.1% in 2007 (INEI 2019:43). While official statistics rate water-service coverage within Lima’s metropolitan area at 93.4%7_{(INEI 2014:60), this is doubted to be true in practice:} “[T]here are still no universal, reliable public services, and for large sectors of the population, water problems remain a personal, corporeal and collective ordeal” (Ioris 2016:126).

Figure 4.2 Settlements in Comas8

The city’s transport system is largely reliant on buses, minivans, taxis and private cars, with only a few cycling paths. Hence, air pollution is constantly high, increasing in the traffic peak hours (Silva et al. 2017:16). Another pollution problem concerns solid waste, a recurrent theme in almost all of the interviews conducted. Per day, approximately 9,122 tons of solid waste are dumped in the streets to be collected at night (INEI 2017b), but further waste covers the city’s beaches and the streets of more peripheric districts.

During my research in Lima, air and waste pollution were constant issues I saw myself confronted with, and the slow and chaotic transport system required a lot of patience. I thereby

5_{The metropolitan area of Lima is often connected with its neighbour city Callao, which nowadays rather appears}

a district of Lima itself. Viewed separately, Lima counts 43 and Callao 7 districts (Appendix 5). In this thesis, ‘Lima’ encompasses the whole metropolitan area, including Callao.

6_{According to the monetary approach to measure poverty, “people are considered poor when they live in}

house-holds whose per capita expenditure is insufficient to purchase a basic basket of food and non-food items (housing, clothing, education, health, transport, etc.)” (INEI 2019:39).

7_{In 2018, 96.6% of Lima’s population were said to have “sustainable access to improved sources of water supply”}

(INEI 2018a), though this does not equal ‘water-service coverage’.

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came to understand the daily struggles young Limeños face when commuting between work, university, home and activist events. Additionally, the fear of falling victim to a crime is an everyday companion in Lima: 90.3% of those above 15 feel insecure (INEI 2018b:173), and almost half of young Limeños have personally experienced an act of crime.9 They thus consti-tute the most vulnerable age group, with women being slightly more affected than men (INEI 2014:77).

At the national level, Lima Metropolitana comprises the largest number of youth (INEI 2015). Currently, about 2.7 million young people live in the capital; nearly a third of the coun-try’s young population (SENAJU & UNFPA 2018:20). Among them, a tenth is considered poor in comparison to the national average of 18.6% for their age group (ibid.:29). Of the young Limeños 32.4% to 41.6%10 are currently working (Urrutia and Cuenca 2018:20), mostly in the service sector (52%), commerce (25%), manufacture (15.4%) and construction (7.5%) (INEI 2015). However, informal employment of Peruvian youth generally transcends its formal coun-terpart in percentages (SENAJU & UNFPA 2018:53). Looking at education in the capital, 32.5% of 17- to 24-year-olds attend higher education, thus exceeding the national average by five percentage points (ibid.:38). For many young Limeños, it is common to work while com-pleting a degree at university. Finally, around one fifth of youth in Lima did not work nor study in 2013 (INEI 2014:27).

The choice to geographically focus this research on the capital is not to neglect climate activism outside of Lima, but because it is the locus of economic and political power (Takahashi and Martinez 2017:13) and home to a large part of the country’s population, thus bringing many young people close to the central arena of decision-making on climate change. Investigation online prior to fieldwork revealed that indeed many young Limeños take climate action through several CSOs. In combination with Peru’s extraordinary vulnerability to climate change, to be addressed in the next section, these factors favoured the choice of Lima as a research location.

4.2 Climate change in Peru

This section gives background on what young Limeños are addressing when engaging in cli-mate activism. This includes Peru’s vulnerability to climatic variations (4.2.1) and the govern-ment’s response to the issue (4.2.2).

4.2.1 Peru’s vulnerability to climate change

In terms of climate change, Peru counts as one of the most vulnerable countries in the world (Avilez et al. 2016: 147; Paerregaard 2020:114), and scores ‘high’ on a climate-change vulner-ability index (CAF 2014:811_{). This results from its vast variety of geographical factors as well} as natural and climatic regions, where climatic variations – changes in temperature and precip-itation patterns – are expressed differently. Possibly, Peru’s poorest population will be affected the most (CEPLAN 2011:245; Chazarin et al. 2014:98). However, climate change in Peru is not just a distant future scenario – the country already suffers its consequences today (CEPLAN 2011:262).

In line with the common division into three main geographic regions – the Andean Mountains (Sierra), the Amazonian Rainforest (Selva) and the Pacific Coast (Costa) (Chevallier

9_{More recent data from 2017 shows that 33% of young urban Peruvians experienced a criminal act within the last}

twelve months (INEI 2018b:162). However, there are no specifications on Lima in particular.

10_{The numbers vary according to the city districts in which young Limeños reside.}

11_{The scale developed by the Development Bank of Latin America for the Latin American and Caribbean region}

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et al. 2011:182) – the following outlines the most significant climatic effects of climate change in Peru.

Sierra

Peru hosts 71% of the world’s tropical glaciers (Rabatel et al. 2013:82). Monitoring shifts in glacier-mass balance indicates that glaciers have retreated significantly within the last two dec-ades (Figure 4.3), which has been accelerated by El Niño events (ibid.:88). By now, more than half of the country’s glaciers have vanished (Ruiz Muller 2017:70).

Figure 4.3 Retreating glacier, Huaraz Figure 4.4 Glacial Lake

The ongoing glacial recession holds lasting consequences for local livelihoods. Shrinking glac-iers that usually feed mountain catchments impose a severe risk of water shortage for regions highly dependent on these supplies (Rabatel et al. 2013:97). Furthermore, the growing number of glacial lakes in the region increases the risk of Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs12; Figure 4.4). Moreover, Peruvians are likely to suffer from increased intensities of droughts and frosts in high-altitude zones as well as landslides due to climate change (Ruiz Muller 2017:70).

Selva

The Amazon rainforest covers about two thirds of the country (Takahashi and Martinez 2017:2) and with 13% it holds the second most important share of Amazonia in South America (Chazarin et al. 2014:98). It is sparsely populated, and most people self-identify as indigenous (USAID 2012:17). Generally, less attention has been paid to climate change-related threats in the Selva (ibid.:53), and more discussion evolves around deforestation as massively contrib-uting to emissions (CEPLAN 2011:246). Nevertheless, locals’ vulnerability to climatic altera-tions has also been recognized (Chazarin et al. 2014:102): among other things, climate change increases the risk of forest fire hazards (CEPLAN 2011:227).

12_{Meaning that “glacial lakes could burst their banks at any time, the resulting flood waters […] would lay waste}

Youth climate activism in Lima, Peru: Drivers and ways of engaging in organized climate activism through CSOs

MSc Thesis