By Inbar Avrahami Saraf

Going to social justice events and speaking out, along with thousands of people, I felt a growing frustration at our inability to make a difference in our country, province, and city.

I started to question the “supreme power” vested in me and my fellow citizens, and whether our system of representation was accurately representing us and taking into consideration our needs, concerns, and our sustainable future. I was curious to find out if other youth felt the same powerlessness and frustration as I did, so I developed an online survey, aimed at North American youth ages 14 to 25, asking for their opinions on the matter.

Here is some background: sustainability is defined as the endurance of systems and processes; in order to have a sustainable system, one needs to exercise sustainable development, defined by the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) as “the kind of development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” This definition is often used in relation to the environment and the usage of Earth’s resources, but sustainable development applies to four interconnected domains: ecology, economics, politics, and culture.

Looking at the political domain, the Sustainable Governance Indicators project examines countries through a variety of lenses, and is an international tool used to assess how sustainable a governing body is. Some of the components under examination are: economic, social, and environmental policies; the quality of democracy; and the executive capacity and accountability of the government. Democracy is one of the foundations for sustainable government, and a democratic government is “a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections.”

A sustainable government should emulate this aspect of representation and power of the people, as well as adhere to sustainability development practices of sustaining the present generation without comprising the needs of future ones.

The survey, which had 208 respondents, was designed to address the youths’ opinions and insights on the question of democratic sustainability. Over 70 percent agreed that the current form of government is unsustainable. Roughly 50 percent felt they had inadequate impact on their government’s actions and policies, even though many reported taking action in the past year. They had signed petitions (86 percent), participated in rallies (43 percent), took part in political forums (37 percent), went canvassing (24 percent), voted (19 percent), wrote letters to politicians (19 percent), or volunteered for their government (15 percent). When asked what they thought could be the causes for governmental unsustainability, the overwhelming response (90 percent) pointed fingers at the growth in the unequal distribution of wealth in society, followed closely by corporate influence over government (88 percent). Growing population size (62 percent) and clashing agendas between generations (60 percent) were also thought to be important factors. When asked what could improve their individual impact on government, 90 percent of respondents said they wanted to see an increase in political education in schools. Respondents were also interested in a more direct and technological democratic method where citizens could vote on bills and laws online (71 percent), as well as making a more feasible process for recalling a politician (68 percent), which currently requires in B.C. the signatures of more than 40 percent of eligible voters in an electoral riding.

The results of the survey revealed that I was not alone in my frustration and concerns; the youth clearly recognize problems with their government and feel a growing sense of powerlessness in the face of governments’ actions, which grows as they are unable to affect these actions. They were able to identify tools and policies to improve the system to enable young people to stay connected and have a direct impact. They remain optimistic: 93 percent believe that it is entirely possible and within reach to have a better democratic system which benefits everyone. It is important to remember that while youth are often overlooked when it comes to politics, the outcomes of said politics impact them the most.