Rebels without a vote:Youth climate activism, deliberative democracy, and institutionalised politics

This chapter discusses young climate activists’ relationship with institutionalised politics. The focus is on what is considered the “new climate movement”, exemplified by the Fridays for Future and the Extinction Rebellion movements. A remarkable feature of the new climate movement is that many young people who have engaged in the activities are not only young but also children. By default, they lack access to the most important institutionalised participation forms such as voting. The young activists are rebels without a vote, forced to take other avenues to make their political views heard. Empirical evidence suggests that there are two ways young climate activists relate to institutionalised politics: they are supportive of political institutions despite disappointment in political actors, or they want to bring forth radical systemic change. I also explore the Extinction Rebellion's goal to “go beyond politics” and introduce a climate Citizens’ Assembly to representative democratic systems as an example of demands for systemic change and how “young people's politics” entrench movements such as the Extinction Rebellion.