The Cost of living is the biggest election issue. Amongst the talk about people struggling to pay their bills or put food on the table, we’re also grappling with climate change. 

The 2025 Federal Election is weeks away and this time we want to talk about how your vote can make a difference and how a vote for the climate is a vote for all the issues you care about. We sit down for a chat with Grace Vegasana, the director of the youth climate justice org, the Australian Youth Climate Coalition and Phillips Collin, Professor at Western Sydney University and the co-director of the Young and Resilient Research Centre Professor to talk about exactly how climate change intersects with the issues we’re concerned about. 

Hosted by Varsha Yajman

Polling data referred to by Grace Vegasana https://www.solutionsforaustralia.net/news/young-voters-demand-policies-that-tackle-cost-of-living-crisis-and-climate-together

Learn about the Australian Youth Climate Coalition at https://www.aycc.org.au/ 

What matters to young people? Read about the insights from a longitudinal study:  https://westernsydney.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0019/2062126/What_Matters_to_Young_Australians_Through_Turbulent_Times_.pdf 

Read more about the role of youth climate activism and advocacy in shaping democracy: https://www.westernsydney.edu.au/young-and-resilient/projects/current_projects/New_Possibilities_Young_People_and_Democratic_Renewa