How the media can help young people create zero carbon societies

The UK media has historically focused upon the descent into climate breakdown. Where are the stories that explore alternatives to carbon-intensive economies? In this article I argue that without these discussions at the forefront of media and culture, an imagination vacuum will develop around the idea of zero-carbon societies. Drawing upon my own collaborative research with young people and climate change, I argue that young people's current climate activism helps bring the threat of future climate change into the present in ways that require new media and cultural stories. These stories must bring system change and zero-carbon economies into mainstream media discussions, and must also involve young people in writing them. This cultural task is not for the future, it must begin now.