How did the Three Asks come about?
In 2018, we asked the question:
‘If you could change one thing for you and the environment, what would this be?’
We collected more than 700 ideas from young people and youth workers during eight events and youth-led research. Young people replied that they wanted three key changes around the following themes:
  • Ask 1: more time spent learning in and about nature
  • Ask 2: support to get into environmental jobs
  • Ask 3: policy makers, employers, businesses, schools and charities to pay more attention to the needs of young people and the environment
What’s an ‘ask’?
An ask is a change we want to happen, usually a positive change in society. An ask sets out the ambition we have and often comes with a short explanation about how we want people to help us achieve it.
Asks are often created to compliment a campaign; a long-term plan to raise awareness about and address a particular issue. In our case, the Three Asks aim to address issues that affect both young people and the environment.
What did we achieve?
#LearnMoreOutdoors campaign
Ulster Wildlife ran the #LearnMoreOutdoors campaign in early 2021. It delivered four training sessions for youth advocates. The young people filmed clips for a series of six videos on the theme of outdoor learning. These videos were widely shared together with social media messages. Click through to the Ask 1 page to watch them all.
As part of the campaign, the young people wrote to the Minister for Education Mr. Peter Weir MLA and met him in March 2021. As a result, young people had the opportunity to share guidance on outdoor learning via the Education Authority website.
“Really impressed by @UlsterWIldlife #Grassroots students’ presentation today.
We are blessed to live in such a beautiful country, we need to look after it & help our children to both enjoy it & respect it” – Peter Weir MLA, Twitter
Green Recovery Challenge Fund
In May 2020, Our Bright Future supported senior staff at The Wildlife Trusts to engage with Defra. We supplied evidence, feeding into a review of the skills and training landscape. At the end of June 2020, the Government announced £40 million Green Recovery Challenge Fund, which was intended to support people to secure and to safeguard jobs in the environmental sector. The Fund was later doubled to £80m.
“I know that Defra have looked closely at Our Bright Future for thinking about how to maximise job potential through funding through the Green Jobs Challenge Fund.” – External stakeholder
Youth voice
At the end of 2021, more than half of Our Bright Future partner organisations had established or planned to establish youth-led or youth governance processes or structures in their organisations.
Our Bright Future projects have successfully provided formal routes for young people to engage in governance and decision-making at project and organisation-level.
“I think there were bits and pieces happening around youth voice, but it was needed for a programme / organisation to demonstrate that embedding and championing youth leadership is possible at scale, and at a sector level. So that is a gap that I think the programme has filled.” – External stakeholder
Click below for more information, resources and achievements for each of the Three Asks