I started at AIDA as a law student exploring the possibilities of working in the field of environmental law.
Four years later, I am the youngest attorney on the organization's legal team, supporting the efforts of the Marine Biodiversity and Coastal Protection Program.
I always say that the best part of my job is being surrounded by so many young, powerful and exemplary women. Their teachings have cemented my path.
Last month, I participated in the preparatory meeting for the 25th Conference of the Parties (COP25) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which took place in Costa Rica. It was my first time at such an event.
It was there that I really felt the strength of women and the younger generations, who have united to demand our place at the table to discuss solutions to the climate crisis.
In recent months, we’ve seen the strength of global and regional movements of young people outraged by what they see as the inaction of governments to curb global warming.
For the most part, young women, adolescents and even girls have led these movements. The climate meeting in Costa Rica was no exception, and reflected the generational change we are experiencing.
In that forum, young people of various professions and aspirations made our claim and sought to be heard.
We were united by a common purpose: to guarantee our future and to be better than present generations in fulfilling that goal.
Millennials (the generational group to which I belong) and the centennials (to which my 13-year-old sister belongs) are the ones who will have to live with the consequences of political inaction in the face of the climate crisis.
It is our future that is at stake.
Women are especially vulnerable to environmental degradation due to the special role we play in caring for natural resources and the people around us.
That is why it’s good news that we’re rising up and demanding clear, concrete and, above all, urgent actions.
This PreCOP was an opportunity for learning and growth.
I identified with the emphasis that the government of Costa Rica placed on the protection of the ocean and solutions based in nature.
And I was inspired to see more and more young women taking the lead in the determined and ambitious actions that the world's environmental and social crises require us to take.
Magie Rodriguez is Costa Rican and AIDA's attorney with the Ecosystems Program, working from San Jose. She has a degree in Law, with a focus on environmental law, from the University of Costa Rica. There she assisted with research on environmental law and agronomy, and developed various extracurricular activities related to marine biology. Through AIDA she contributes to the conservation of the marine and coastal environment of Latin America, especially in the conservation of key ecosystems such as coral reefs.
