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On Monday 31 March 2025, all five Good Life Schools from the South Wales county of Carmarthenshire visited the Senedd Cymru (Welsh Parliament) as part of the Carmarthenshire schools’ Climate Action Group (CAG) meeting.

Good Life Schools is a youth-led schools programme, delivered by environmental charity Global Action Plan, funded by National Lottery Community Fund, which supports young people to prioritise wellbeing, connect communities and create change, challenging the pressures to consume.

Student representatives from the five Carmarthenshire Good Life Schools visiting the Senedd presented various climate action projects taking place at their schools in the following order:

• Ysgol Bro Dinefwr – Chairs of the meeting
• Ysgol Coedcae
• Ysgol Bryngwyn 
• Ysgol Gyfun Maes Y Gwendraeth (the school discussing GLS specifically)
• Queen Elizabeth High School 

They were joined by CAG group regulars Ysgol Penrhos and Ysgol Ffwrnes primary schools who also gave presentations, plus their teachers, Good Life Schools council lead Louise Morgan, Councillor Aled Vaughan Owen, representatives from Swansea University including Jennifer Rudd (who is as a member of the Good Life Schools Academic panel) and other organisations.

The day began with a tour of the beautiful Senedd building including the public viewing gallery, looking down into the main Plenary Chamber, where important discussions, policies and laws are made.  

The group were delighted to be welcomed by Lee Waters MS, Member of Senedd for Llanelli (the constituency of many of the Carmarthenshire Good Life Schools), who chatted with the students about everything from the architecture and sustainable choices during the Senedd’s construction, such as the type of materials used, the collection and reuse of rainwater and the decision to include a glass barrier in the viewing platform to promote transparency within democracy here in Wales.

He explained that everyone can view the plenary sessions, which happen on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and there are even resources such as electronic tablets to make viewing and bilingual communication more accessible for both Members of Senedd in the Plenary Chamber and viewers above.

The students then took a short lunch in the upstairs area called Oriel (meaning gallery in English) underneath the stunning self-preserving cedar wood funnel, which provides not only natural light to the Plenary Chamber below, but also natural ventilation and enhances acoustics to aid communication during debates.

Next up was the main event, the Climate Action Group meeting, which took place in the beautiful open space called the Neuadd (or hall in English), with stunning views across Cardiff Bay and the Pierhead building. We were all delighted that both Lee Waters MS and Councillor Aled Vaugh Owen (Cabinet Member for Climate Change, Decarbonisation and Sustainability) also took the time to join the main meeting, listening to each presentation and contributed to the Q&A sessions following each presentation.

Each school gave a presentation on their own sustainability-focused projects with topics ranging from fast fashion to seasonal school menus.

Helen O’Sullivan (Good Life Schools Community Engagement Lead for South Wales) also spoke about the excellent progress being made across Carmarthenshire schools. Helen expressed the unique aspect of the programme is connecting young people with their wider communities, for the wellbeing of both people and planet. She explained the key takeaway is that although our poor wellbeing and the environmental crisis seem unrelated, they share a root cause - consumerism.  

Good Life Schools aims to address this by equipping students with the confidence to critique and challenge advertising, while also connecting young people with their wider communities. She discussed the next steps of this academic year and recruitment and plans for next year, before handing over to the students themselves.  

Year 9 students Nerys and Kylan from Ysgol Gyfun Maes Y Gwendraeth spoke about their Good Life journey in Welsh, which was live translated into English through headsets.  

Ysgol Maes Y Gwendraeth, located in Cefneithin, were the first school to launch the programme, both in Wales and the wider UK. They were also featured in a previous BBC Newyddion Ni programme, broadcast on Black Friday in November 2024. As they are so far along in their Good Life journey, they were the best placed to share their experiences so far and act as role models and inspiration for other schools. 

The students opened their presentation with the following statement:

“The Good Life Schools project is an initiative that supports young people like us to live in ways that are good for the community and the planet. Through this project, we have gained a deeper understanding of the challenges associated with excess and have developed skills and knowledge to tackle these issues.”

The students then presented a range of topics relating to what they have learned from the Good Life Schools programme, and how this has affected not only their own lives and wellbeing but also their wider communities.

Topics included their improved understanding of the effects of overconsumption, how the programme has developed their critical thinking skills and how all of this combined has helped them to start creating their Good Life charter.

The students then discussed how the programme has equipped them to lead change in their own communities and the benefits of working with community partners. They explained that working with local practitioners and even scientists such as Dr Stephanie Matthews of The Young Darwinian, who supported them to explore the microplastics of synthetic fast-fashion clothing, has helped to foster “a deeper awareness of the links between our everyday decisions and the health of the environment.”

The students then shared their excitement for working with more creative community partners following the Easter holidays, to apply their new knowledge into practical and creative application, leading to the implementation of their own ideas for change.

They said:

“It is clear that the Good Life Schools project not only fosters knowledge, but also encourages us and our fellow pupils to act on what we learn and become leaders for change within our communities.”

This event was a fantastic opportunity for these brave young changemakers to share their Good Life journeys and experiences, not only to their peers and wider community but also with schools, politicians, government officials and academics across the whole of Carmarthenshire! 

I’m inspired to see them commit to creating change in such a pro-active and passionate way, and I can’t wait to see what happens next in their changemaking journey.

More information on Good Life Schools