4. A Seminar on Seniors and Climate Issues – Helping Both

4.1 Preparing the Seminar

As noted in the foreword of this report, the project being discussed here is divided into three steps or work components:

Compiling an overview of parties, collaborations, and projects of seniors in the Nordic countries in the field of climate issues.
Preparing, convening, and leading a seminar on seniors and climate issues.
Compiling a report with basic information, a summary from the seminar, and recommendations to the authorities in the Nordic countries about what they could do to support the work of seniors in the field of climate issues.

The aforementioned seminar was held in Reykjavík on September 27th and 28th of 2023. Representatives of all the organisation and groups discussed in Section 2 of this report were invited to the seminar — specifically, approximately two participants from each of the Nordic countries and one from outside the Nordic countries – to either give lectures or take part in panel discussions. The aim of the seminar was to create a platform to share the experiences of older people regarding climate matters and generate a dialogue about how the governments of the Nordic countries can support the work of Nordic seniors regarding climate issues.

The selection of participants and panellists focused on individuals with experience in the establishment of organisations of seniors who were active in climate issues or individuals who have participated in the work of such organisations or groups. This selection was intended to promote the sharing and gathering of useful information and experience from others, which could later be incorporated into local actions after returning home. Since long journeys to the seminar were considered to be at odds with the topic of discussion, people were also invited to watch the proceedings live. The seminar was in English, to enable equal language access to as many participants as possible, and every attempt was made to prioritise the Nordic Swan Ecolabel certification when purchasing products and services in connection with the seminar.

During the preparation for the seminar, it became clear that many members of groups and associations of older climate activists in the Nordic countries did not consider air travel an option, least of all to participate in a seminar on climate issues. Following that, the possibility of moving the seminar to Copenhagen was discussed, so that as many participants as possible could travel by land or by ferry to the site of the seminar. Since Iceland was chairing the project, it was not considered appropriate to stage the seminar in another country, and, despite everything, many of the prospective participants were eager to visit Iceland. Many of the participants who attended it in person, also stated that they felt that streaming could never entirely replace an in-person event, as the coffee breaks and impromptu conversations and discussions outside of the meeting agenda, often proved to be the most valuable parts of these events.

Participants in the seminar were 41 in total, not counting those who participated in the event remotely. Mr. Guðni Th. Jóhannesson, the president of Iceland, honoured the assembly by addressing the guests at the opening of the event. After that, several presentations, panel discussions and group work were on the agenda. The seminar lasted from noon on Wednesday to noon on Thursday, and at the end of it, participants were invited to a guided tour of the Reykjanes peninsula, where they were able to explore the various types of geological activity in the area.

The agenda of the seminar, a list of all the participating organisations and a list of the individuals that participated in the seminar can be found in appendices.

Image 1. The President of Iceland addresses a seminar on seniors and climate issues in Reykjavík, on September 27^th 2023. (Photo: Stefán Gíslason.)

4.2 Key takeaways from the lectures and panel discussions

The speakers at the seminar all gave a brief introduction to the organisations and groups they work with and gave a review of each group’s history, projects, and methodology. What follows is a summary of each lecture in chronological order according to the agenda.

4.2.1 Elisabeth Stern, Klimaseniorinnen Schweiz

Title of the presentation:
The Organization‘s Court Case Against Switzerland on the Impact of Climate Change on Human Rights

Elisabeth Stern is an active participant in the organisation Klimaseniorinnen Schweiz. She used teleconferencing equipment to participate in the seminar, as the women of this organisation refrain from flying and travel only by public transport to reduce their carbon footprint. The organisation is entirely a women's organisation, as studies show that women are generally less to blame for climate change than men but suffer more from the consequences. In total, the women in Klimaseniorinnen Schweiz are now around 2,450. Elisabeth said that the average temperature in Switzerland was already 2.2 degrees higher than before the industrial revolution, and that in the last 20 years heat waves had been more frequent in Switzerland than before. Around 1,000 people had already died in Switzerland due to heat waves, and that group contained more women than men. Klimaseniorinnen Schweiz was created on the basis of these facts. In 2016, the organisation sued the Swiss authorities for inaction on climate issues, which the organisation saw as a breach of the government's duty to protect the lives, homes, and families of Swiss citizens. After the case had been dismissed three times from the Swiss courts, Klimaseniorinnen Schweiz decided to take the case to the European Court of Human Rights. The court agreed to take the case for material processing, and it is expected that a decision may be made by the end of the year.

4.2.2 Erik Elvers, Gretas gamlingar

Title of the presentation:
Greta’s Oldies, Sweden

Gretas gamlingar is the collaboration network that was the inspiration for this project. It was launched in 2019 with Greta Thunberg as a role model. Shortly after Greta's first protest in August 2018, a group of senior citizens gathered in Gotland and protested the same thing, i.e. the government’s inaction on climate issues, thus neglecting to protect and treat the planet well. These protests spread all over Sweden, and so the collaboration network Gretas gamlingar was born. However, the participants are not only protesting the inaction due to concern for the young, but also for the elderly, as climate change has a major negative impact on and leads to deaths in that age group. That is why this is a common interest of all generations. The collaboration network consists of 10–15 independent groups from all over Sweden. Great emphasis is placed on what the participants can do as individuals, because "no one can do everything alone, but we can all do something together". The members of Gretas gamlingar meet weekly in groups and had, amongst other things, discussions with political parties for the local elections in 2022. Representatives of all the groups then meet annually. The network also protests weekly outside the Swedish Parliament, along with WWF, Greenpeace, Naturskyddsföreningen and senior citizens associations. Members of Gretas gamlingar have also talked to grocery stores in their hometowns about reducing food waste and focusing on increasing the availability of ecological and locally produced products. They have received positive responses both from supermarkets and politicians, as well as from a large number of participants in the weekly meetings. In the lecture it was stated that older people could help younger people in protests, as older people had more time than younger people, and had experience that they could pass on.

4.2.3 Helena Kääriäinen, Aktivistimummot

Title of the presentation:
The Nordic/Global Health Consequences of the Climate/Environment Crisis

Just like Gretas gamlingar, Aktivistimummot, or Activist Grandmothers, draw inspiration from Greta Thunberg. The group was founded in 2020, received a lot of attention from the beginning, and now has around 10,000 members. Members are spread all over Finland, but the group does participate in protests whenever possible. Helena is an expert in medical genetics and rare diseases and worked until recently as a professor of genetics at the universities of Helsinki and Turku. In her speech she said that climate change has both direct and indirect effects on health. Besides that, the Western healthcare system has an extremely large carbon footprint, as there is a lot of disposable tools and packaging, and these items are often purchased from abroad where they are cheapest and transported long distances with associated carbon footprint. Climate is related to public health in various ways, e.g. the increased use of public transport can simultaneously help to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases, and improve the health of the population, in addition to less pollution resulting from emissions and particles from car tires. Likewise, lowering the temperature in houses, and especially bedrooms, is good for the environment and simultaneously good for people's health, as studies indicate that it is healthier for the body to sleep at 20 degrees than 24 degrees. Climate change also has a direct impact through the increased rate and spread of tropical diseases due to rising temperatures. More rain could reduce the quality of drinking water and increase the risk of mold in houses due to humidity, which in turn can lead to respiratory diseases. There are more examples of the connection between climate change and health that could be mentioned. For instance, the decreasing snow cover in Finland seems to be reflected in the number of depression cases, but in recent years there has been less snow, which makes the winter much darker than otherwise. The average temperature, which is now usually around the freezing point in winter, means that roads and paths are more slippery than before, which again means that many more people break bones or are injured on the slippery ice than in the past when the ground was usually frozen in winter. More frequent heat waves in the summer have also led to more people buying air conditioning for their homes, which of course leads to increased electricity consumption. The rising sea level will lead to more people fleeing to the Nordic countries in the future, and this will lead to an increase in the frequency of diseases that are otherwise not common in these areas.

Image 2. Helena Kääriäinen, a medical doctor, discussed the effects of climate change on people's health. (Photo: Stefán Gíslason.)

4.2.4 Birna Sigurjónsdóttir and Þóra Ellen Þórhallsdóttir, U3A

Title of the presentation:
Be Active Through Life-Long Learning

As previously stated, there is no active group or organisation of senior citizens in Iceland specifically dedicated to climate issues. However, a special environmental group operates within U3A Reykjavík. In September 2022, U3A Reykjavík had 1,300 members and a lot of effort is put into weekly lectures and education on various issues. All lectures are also streamed and are available online for a full week afterwards. The aim of U3A Reykjavík’s environmental group is to educate and inform about things that threaten Iceland's nature, both geological formations and the ecosystems of land, fresh water, and sea. At the same time, attention is drawn to ways to protect the environment and nature and promote actions that improve the environment and prevent climate change. Þóra Ellen’s talk mainly discussed land use in Iceland. Many biologists are concerned about forestry as it is practiced today, where there is a lot of invasive tree species being planted without much thought about site selection. There is also a noticeable trend of foreign buyers purchasing large plots of land in many parts of the country.

4.2.5 Beate L. Samuelsen, Landsfelag Pensjónista

Title of the presentation:
Relevant Older People Activities in the Faroe Islands

As previously stated, there is no active group or organisation of senior citizens in the Faroe Islands specifically dedicated to climate issues. Nevertheless, three representatives of senior citizens in the Faroe Islands participated in the seminar in order to gain knowledge and prepare for the possible establishment of such an organisation when they returned home.

Landsfelag Pensjónista is a senior citizens association in the Faroe Islands. It is a non-political umbrella organisation for 16 smaller senior citizens associations. As an example of the development of environmental issues in the Faroe Islands, the sorting of waste was mentioned, but 50 years ago almost all waste was thrown into the sea. In the presentation, it was stated that environmental issues were not specifically addressed by Landsfelag Pensjónista, but there was a good chance that this would change after receiving the knowledge that the Faroese group would take home from the seminar. The Faroese people's environmental awareness has increased, and people are showing greater interest in environmental issues.

4.2.6 Andrew P. Kroglund, Besteforeldrenes klimaaksjon (BKA)

Title of the presentation:
How the Norwegian Grandparents’ Climate Campaign Work Nationally, and Interact Internationally

In Norway, there are few but large groups of senior citizens working on climate issues. Andrew's presentation stated that since the establishment of BKA in 2006, the number of members has increased to over 6,800 members, which guarantees them an annual subsidy from the state. It is important for organisations of this type not to be afraid to criticise the government, even if they have provided the organisation with financial support. The organisation is responsible for telling the community about what is happening, and at the same time influencing politicians to make decision-making easier for them. The organisation's main issue is to stop further oil drilling off the coast of Norway. It is important to be both visible on the streets, and to work behind the scenes with politicians to change the law. It is also very important to work with other organisations, both in Norway and internationally, because such organisations are stronger together. An official collaboration network helps promote the work and make it visible. Besteforeldrenes klimaaksjon wear a uniform when they are out on the streets (a red hat,) they are guided by positivity, and know from experience that this yields much more than constant coverage of the negative consequences of climate change.

4.2.7 Kira Gilling Hansen, Sammen om verdensmål

Title of the presentation:
Libraries as Platform for Citizen Involvement and Sustainability. United to reach the global goals

Kira spoke about activities that have been offered at selected libraries around Denmark, where residents can help develop ideas and solutions in their hometown to support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Among the main ideas that have been worked on are repair cafés, sewing machine lessons, and the reuse of tools and furniture. A total of 36 libraries have joined the project and several hundred people are active in them. Two to three employees from each library have received training and participate in various sustainable and community-creating projects. All the libraries continue to use the Sustainable Development Goals as a basis for their work and have been joined by several new collaborators. Participant feedback and survey responses indicate an increased sense of well-being among those who have participated in the project, probably because they are contributing to something that benefits both people and the planet. A lesson that can be learned from the project is that three factors are more important than others to increase the well-being and activity of senior citizens in projects like this:

Focus on people's basic psychological needs.
Offer practical ways to actively promote sustainability.
Integrate nature into the activities to strengthen people's relationship with nature.

The project ends in December 2023.

4.2.8 Bengt Sundbaum & Lena Hammarbäck, Grandparents for Future

Title of the presentation:
Voluntary Work & Social Media

Bengt is a former teacher and Lena is a retired psychologist – and both are members of Grandparents for Future in Sweden. In their talk, they said that the current government of Sweden is substantially lowering public contributions towards climate issues and that Sweden's climate goals would not be met.

The presentation stated that seniors (65+) make up 17% of all volunteers in Sweden. Social media has both advantages and disadvantages in this type of work when older people are involved. According to a survey conducted in 2022, 43% of Swedes aged 65–74 are active on social media, which presumably means that messages on social media only reach part of the age group. About 90% of Stockholm's 69–79-year-old residents use the internet, but only 50% of those that are 80+.

All communication between Grandparents for Future takes place in the organisation's Facebook group. Disadvantages of this include that everything is in Facebook's hands and that Facebook could remove anything that goes against the rules of the medium. In addition, online trolls could interfere with the activities. Since the group does not have a democratically elected board, a lot of responsibility rests on the administrators of the site - and since the group is informal, it is not entitled to any subsidies from the state.

The main advantages of social media in these kinds of activities lie in how easy it is to keep in touch and inform the group about what is happening in different parts of the country. They also mentioned that this arrangement gave a good sense of solidarity. When people constantly see the names of other members of the group, they don’t feel alone, but feel like a part of a group. Another advantage is how easy it is to share photos, as this is a very important part of the activities. The group can also easily work with other organisations, such as with young environmentalists. Finally, it should be mentioned that this arrangement allows for space to use the time in the interest of climate issues, instead of having to put a lot of effort into bureaucracy and formalities.

4.2.9 Matti Nummelin, Ilmastoisovanhemmat

Title of the presentation:
Grandparents for Future

Matti Nummelin has a doctorate in ecology and has worked as an assistant professor in environmental sciences at the universities of Helsinki and Turku, as well as working on international collaborations and consultations with governments. He was, for example, involved in the negotiations in the run-up to the 2015 Paris Agreement. Matti is the current secretary of Ilmastoisovanhemmat, an organisation that holds protests outside the Finnish Parliament every Friday. There, the members of the organisation have signs in approximately six languages, in order to appeal to tourists as well. The presentation stated that members are spread all over Finland, and therefore must rely on technology to reach everyone. The organisation has a reading group that meets monthly online and discusses two books, either environment or climate related. This group has been very popular. The organisation issues declarations and sends letters to the government, and that work is also all done online. It was said that the newly elected government of Finland places little emphasis on climate issues, and even denies climate change. According to recent opinion polls, Finns are less interested in climate issues than before. In 2019, 83% of Finns said it was important to reduce climate change, but in 2023, only 72% of Finns shared that opinion.

Image 3. Matti Nummelin, doctor of ecology and member of Ilmastoisovanhemmat. (Photo Stefán Gíslason.)

4.2.10 Anne Grethe Hansen, Bedsteforældrenes Klimaaktion

Title of the presentation:
How Do We Reach New Members?

Anne Grethe discussed the foundation of the organisation and how it is visible on the streets of Danish cities, both through education and protests. As a grassroots movement, Bedsteforældrenes Klimaaktion has neither a board nor a chairman. It is therefore the active members who decide and get to shape what the movement stands for, and what initiatives are taken. The organisation tries to attract people by adapting communication channels to people's personal values and pointing out the possibilities for creating a better future, instead of emphasising the negative and difficult. The organisation is focused on being visible and holding demonstrations and offering education in city centres, where it is likely that people will pass by and notice them. They are also very active on social media and have a good relationship with the media when hosting events. The organisation itself has not worked systematically to add many members, since in their opinion it is more important to get the right people than to get many new members to the group.

4.2.11 Hjálmar W. Árnason, Friends of Icelandic Nature

Title of the presentation:
Older People in Nature Conservation

As previously mentioned, there are no active groups or organisations of seniors in Iceland specifically dedicated to climate issues. However, many older people are active in nature conservation, e.g. within the organisation Friends of Icelandic nature (VÍN). VÍN’s objective is to increase public awareness of biodiversity in Iceland. Initially, the organisation had 41 members, but two years later they are now around 80. VÍN’s main focus from the start has been forestry, specifically the importance of it being practiced responsibly so that it does not harm biodiversity. To a certain extent, they are at war with trees, not that VÍN has anything against trees, but the organisation emphasises that Icelanders set a policy where certain land is reserved and protected for future generations. Farmers all over the country are now starting to plant trees everywhere due to financial support from the government, and forestry is becoming a business because of the alleged possibility of income from the sale of carbon units. Companies have begun to encourage and pay for the planting of trees, without checking whether the respective tree species are compatible with the existing nature. Invasive species are even being used. VÍN points out that this aimless forestry can go against Iceland's international obligations, including obligations for the protection of peat and moorlands which are the habitat of birds. With growing forestry, these areas are now widely encroached upon, and bird populations, for which Iceland has a special responsibility, are in decline as a result. It was said that many members of the organisation were "older", but they had a "young spirit, a fighting spirit because we have responsibilities to the future and our children and grandchildren".

4.2.12 Ólavur Poulsen, Føroya Náttúru- og Umhvørvisfelag

Title of the presentation:
Older people and the Climate on the Faroe Islands

Føroya Náttúru- og Umhvørvisfelag was established in 1978. The Faroe Islands are now, according to Ólavur, at the top of the list of countries with the highest emissions of CO₂ per inhabitant. In particular, emissions from the fishing fleet are very high, but also due to the heating of homes. The energy transition in the Faroe Islands has been very slow. Oil has been used there for a very long time, but the share of environmentally friendly energy from hydropower plants and wind turbines is gradually increasing. Due to the small size of the islands, however, it is difficult to store energy from renewable energy sources. Ólavur said in his presentation that during Covid it had become clear that humanity could stand together and make big changes in a short period of time. Older people can do a lot to prevent climate change, such as reducing consumption, choosing used items and using products for as long as possible, being curious and increasing their knowledge of what could be useful in the fight against climate change. It is important to protest before the government makes the wrong decisions, as well as to inform and ask about the "wrong” or "strange" things we notice. People should join climate organisations and vote for politicians who actually fight climate change.

4.2.13 Bente Bakke, Besteforeldrenes klimaaksjon (BKA)

Title of the presentation:
The Work Locally

Bente Bakke is a former member of the Norwegian Parliament and currently sits on the board of BKA. She is 80 years old and was, as far as we know, the oldest participant in the seminar. In her presentation, she stated that members of BKA use uniforms to catch people's attention and stand out from the crowd. They walk around wearing red hats and billboards and sing "climate songs". The organisation was originally founded in 2006, but when Bente joined it in 2010, she bought one share in the Norwegian oil company Statoil, now Equinor. This gave her the right to participate in the company's General Meeting and submit proposals. This year, four members of BKA presented proposals at the Equinor General Meeting, but the representatives of the state, which holds 67% of the votes at the General Meeting, have traditionally ensured that their proposals were rejected. Bente said that this year the Norwegian government had announced 139 new areas for oil and gas exploration, most of them in the Barents Sea, which is contrary to the encouragement of Antônio Guterres, the Secretary General of the United Nations, who has said that all countries must stop oil exploration.

Bente Bakke stated that BKA had always collected membership fees, which she was convinced was their greatest strength. It would be impossible to finance all the activities without the membership fees, whether domestically and locally, as well as to have assessments done and reports written on important issues. As previously mentioned, environmental protection organisations in Norway with more than 5,000 paying members receive economic support from the government. This year, this amounted to a total of NOK 2,056,000 for BKA.

Image 4. Bente Bakke, former Member of Parliament and current board member of BKA in Norway. (Photo Stefán Gíslason.)

4.2.14 Panel Discussions

A panel discussion was held at the seminar after every third lecture with the participation of three relevant lecturers. Questions were collected using the app Slido and taken directly from the audience.

Many questions, and most discussions in the panels, were about the establishment of organisations/groups of older climate activists in the Nordic countries, the criteria for establishment, the size of the organisations, the subjects and target groups of such groups. It was stated that in order to be able to establish an organisation in a country where there was none, there had to be interest. A certain number of people would be needed to be able to divide duties – and all groups would have to have a purpose and a goal. Preparation for the establishment of an organisation of this kind often takes a long time before it is possible to get into actions. Currently, there are relatively more senior citizens in the world than before, this group contains a lot of educated people who are still in full health and want to contribute, in addition to the fact that people in general have become more aware about environmental issues than before. It was noted that the varied numbers of individuals in this type of organisation offer different opportunities. Large organizations are important to be able to work on large-scale issues, but it is also important to have smaller groups in the local environment, who could act in a more visible way, each in their own place. Both sizes serve an important purpose. The participants were asked to consider whether there were any disadvantages to such a limited age group being involved in climate issues. In relation to that, it was said that a great strength can be found in working with people of the same age, people then have more in common than otherwise and are therefore more likely to be active than they would be in a mixed group. Also, older people have it in common that they have a lot of free time. This time is a resource that younger people in the labour market do not have.

The subjects of organisations such as the ones in question here were discussed, i.e. whether it would be better to focus on a very limited subject, like Friends of Icelandic Nature, who focus solely on forestry in Iceland, or would a broader approach be more appropriate? The majority believed it would be best to have just a few main goals, but that a wider field could be covered with smaller subgroups or establishments. When there aren’t too many main goals, the message is clearer. “If you wage many wars at the same time, you will lose them all. That is why it is important to sharpen the focus, because if you are a small army, you cannot go to all wars”, as one participant put it.

The pros and cons of Nordic collaboration in this field were discussed. The participants agreed that collaboration is important in all environmental work. This is evident in the development of climate issues, but ever since Rio 1992 – and at all climate conferences since then – great emphasis has been placed on bringing people together and forming international collaboration networks. If it can be said that certain organisations are a part of a Nordic movement or collaboration network, it can sound stronger than an organisation that stands alone. By the same token, participation in such collaboration presumably leads to the organisation receiving more attention than otherwise, both in general and in the media.

The participants emphasised the importance of the media and its responsibility and opportunities to raise awareness of issues and communicate to the public. For this reason, it is important to take actions that capture the attention of the media, as well as to have good relations with the media to facilitate access.

In the panel discussions, a question arose about the effect of party politics on voluntary work such as this, i.e. whether it is possible to work together in organisations or groups on climate issues but disagree on politics. Most of the organisations that were represented in the seminar work independently of political forces. Organisations of this type are often considered rather left-wing, but the participants pointed out that there could be great strength in having right-wing individuals on board, because it could give rise to different points of view and a different approach to the same issues. The diversity of political views within the group could also mean that individuals within the group can raise issues and get an audience with representatives of different political forces. A similar discussion arose regarding whether seniors with a background in environmental issues were more likely to participate in voluntary work in this field than people with no such background. It was stated that it is always beneficial to have a good grasp of the facts, and that in this way the work can become more concise and effective than otherwise, but at the same time there is also strength in having a different background. It is also important to work together across generations.

4.3 Group work

At the end of both seminar days, there was group work to address specific topics and answer specific questions. An effort was made to divide the participants into groups in such a way that diversity within each group would be as great as possible, both in terms of ethnicity and gender. There were six groups, and they were rearranged between days, so that the same people did not sit together on both days. One group leader was assigned to lead the work in each group and effort was made to organise things so that no group leader would have the same people both days. The group division can be found in the appendix.

The groups worked according to a predetermined structure, which was the same for both days. Since the seminar schedule was tight, only 30–45 minutes were given to group work each day, and therefore the group leaders had a challenging task in time management. In the group work on the first day, the focus was on the collaboration of seniors in the Nordic countries in climate matters, and on the second day, draft recommendations were made to the government on how to support seniors in the Nordic countries who are fighting climate change. After the participants in the group work had written down their own ideas about the subjects individually, an attempt was made to reach a consensus within each group as to which were the three best ideas of the group. The main result of each group consisted of that three-item list.

Image 5. All participants in the seminar gathered outside the meeting place in Reykjavík. (Photo Nauthóll.)

4.3.1 Collaboration of seniors in the Nordic countries

The main ideas and results of the groups are as follows.

A collaboration network of organisations and groups of seniors in the Nordic countries dedicated to climate issues needs to be established, even if the working practices of the groups are very different. Groups and organisations are always stronger together.
The existence of a collaborative network opens the possibility of maintaining contact through active email communication and remote meetings. In this way, joint webinars could also be offered.
One of the strengths of a collaborative network lies in the fact that if uniform procedures are adopted, everyone can say that "this is the arrangement in all the Nordic countries".
A collaboration network would be an opportunity for the Nordic countries to be pioneers on a global scale, as there are no other examples of such collaboration.
Cooperation in a collaboration network could provide incentives for other groups and organisations.
In a collaboration network, it is possible to develop joint co-Nordic statements to parliamentarians in individual countries.
The idea of a collaboration network could be expanded even further, and in the future, it could be extended to other countries, such as the United States. Thus, connections could be formed for collaboration in the future, and this could be reflected in the media.
A collaboration network could be the basis for joint actions that would be timed at the same time in all the countries. Such projects would be suitable for capturing the attention of the media, and thus could have a greater influence on political decisions than individual actions.
It would be desirable to have a joint Nordic website (or a "joint Nordic knowledge bank" as it was phrased in one of the groups.) There, it would be possible to enter information about projects and create a platform to share experiences, knowledge, and ideas from the work of individual groups and organisations. Not everyone needs to reinvent the wheel.
On a joint website, it would also be possible to publish and share published material from groups and organisations in the Nordic countries, such as reports and proposals to the government.
A pan-Nordic newsletter published on the website could act as an incentive for other organisations and groups. A list of contacts and organisations could also be available there, so that it would be easier to get in touch with people.
The Nordic Council of Ministers could perhaps maintain a special website dedicated to this issue.
The Nordic Council of Ministers should financially support the joint meeting of senior climate activists in the Nordic countries and all of Europe in Oslo next year.
A Nordic climate forum could be held regularly, even annually, with a special emphasis on the participation of seniors.
Regular seminars could be streamed on specific projects to share information.
A Nordic Environment Day could be held with organised excursions, camping trips or nature experiences, with or without the participation of children. This would promote solidarity and team spirit and give older people the opportunity to participate in diverse environmental activities.

4.3.2 Recommendations to Nordic governments

The following recommendations to the governments in the Nordic countries are based on the results of the groups.

Recommendations to governments at the national level:
1. Provide financial support to climate-related groups of senior citizens, such as BKA in Norway receives, to facilitate their coordination of their work at the national level and enable them to cooperate with their colleagues in other Nordic countries and outside the Nordic countries.
2. Invite these groups to a discussion/consultation, such as in the preparation of public climate policies, climate plans, laws, and regulations.
3. Promote education for sustainability for all generations by promoting and supporting connections between generations, especially between older people and young people.
4. Create or provide a platform for events, meetings, and protests by seniors’ climate-related groups.
Recommendations to the Nordic Council of Ministers:
1. Invite seniors’ climate-related groups to Nordic meetings and courses to benefit from their knowledge and experience and give them a voice in the discussion.
2. Organise annual Nordic climate conferences in order to create a platform for new connections and the spreading of knowledge and ideas.
3. Provide financial support to build a foundation for uniform sharing of information, such as through a Nordic website, webinars, etc.
4. Support the coordination of projects at the Nordic level with the participation of seniors’ climate-related groups in all the Nordic countries.
5. Identify opportunities to make the climate work of Nordic groups of seniors visible outside the Nordic countries in order to strengthen and preserve the position of the Nordic countries as pioneers in this field.
6. Consider the creation of a "Nordic Council for Seniors and Climate Issues".