Nearly everyone is worried about climate change.

A ground-breaking global survey of 10,000 young people in 10 countries – including Australia – published in The Lancet in 2021 found that 84% were worried, with more than half feeling sad, anxious, angry, powerless, helpless, and guilty. Last year, the Climate Council reported three-quarters of Australians were worried about climate change. And right now, local association Good for the Gong is running a community survey that opens with the question: “The Illawarra is already experiencing more extreme weather and rising temperatures. What climate action do you think governments should focus on most?”

Today The Illawarra Flame joins publications around the world to mark the start of Joint Coverage Week — part of a broader, year-long effort called The 89 Percent Project, an initiative of the global journalism collaboration Covering Climate Now. It's based on evidence that between 80 and 89% of the world’s people want their governments to be doing more to address climate change and the idea that it is time to share their stories.

"This huge yet silent climate majority flips the script on narratives of climate change as a niche concern and shows that most governments are profoundly out of step with the public on this issue," the Covering Climate Now team says. "What’s more, according to the same studies, many in this silent climate majority don’t realise that they’re in the majority — that many of their neighbours and fellow citizens feel the same as they do — perhaps because they seldom see their views reflected in news coverage or on social media."

So who are the 89 Percent in the Illawarra?

Meet Phebe the conversation starter, Maddy the protestor and Tom the letter writer – three local residents each doing it their way.

The day after 2025's Federal Budget, on March 26, four members of Wollongong’s Tomorrow Movement held a Toilet Art Protest outside Illawarra MPs offices, setting up little plastic potties and holding signs reading “Labor’s Budget: Flushing our future for big business” and “Liberal’s Budget Reply: Same shit, different party”.

“I think that the action that we took is really a bit fun to draw attention to the issues that young people are facing,” says Maddy Yerbury, a UOW graduate who works for the Tomorrow Movement as an organiser.

The young people believe today's problems are unprecedented: a climate crisis, unaffordable housing, insecure jobs and an ailing healthcare system. And if it takes toilet humour to tackle them, so be it.

“I think that it reaches an audience of people that are maybe often apathetic and disillusioned by politics,” Maddy says. “And I think that bringing humour to actions that are about things political brings people along in the story.”

2025’s federal election will be the first in which Gen Z and Millennials outnumber Baby Boomers at the ballot box and the Tomorrow Movement is running a national campaign to mobilise young voters.

“Our Youth Voter Bloc campaign is about building the power of young people around issues like climate but also cost of living, housing, other issues that are facing young people,” Maddy says. “The campaign is demanding transformative solutions from our politicians for a future that works for everyone, not just big business.

“Young people have tried lots of different tactics and approaches to get the major parties to listen to us – in the Illawarra, that’s the Labor Party.

“I think that it’s pretty obvious to us that we're not being listened to and the kind of things that Labor are offering in their budget are really scratching the surface at things like the cost of living … a small amount in tax cuts for people on middle income and more funding for bulk billing for GPs. They are important things, but I think that they are really scratching the surface and young people don't feel like that those are going to make a real difference.

“As long as both Labor and the Liberal party are in the pockets of big business, they aren't going to be making policies that are for young people and for everyday people.”

With about 20 active members, Wollongong's branch is part of the national Tomorrow Movement, which launched in 2020 around principles of being strong but non-violent, creative but disciplined.

“We have hundreds of young people that are involved on the ground and we have a lot more people that are kind of following us online,” Maddy says. “We have around 4000 pledges to us – to support good jobs, great public services and a safe climate for all.

“Making a statement like this is how we have our voices heard, because currently young people don't have a seat at the table.

“We don't have the money to lobby the government and to get our needs and our voices heard that way. So yeah, this is one of the tools that we have.”

In principle, they're not afraid of confrontation with federal representatives.

“I think that if they are upset about it, then, you know, young people are upset about their lack of action on the issues that are important to them,” Maddy says.

In practice, any Toilet Art confrontation took place in the virtual world.

Winning points for efficiency and organisation, the young people rose before dawn to fit in all their protests, visiting the MPs offices soon after sunrise, taking photos, then moving on to their next gig.

“We didn’t hang around to, I guess, get a direct response from Stephen Jones and Alison Byrnes because we then headed up to Sydney to do the same action at the Prime Minister’s office,” Maddy says.

Labor MPs may not have known they were there, if it weren’t for the social media splash.

This is how 2025’s campaign has been played all round, though – politicians have courted the youth vote on Instagram and TikTok, and invited influencers to cover their events.

But those born in the time of the smartphone can see when new filters are being put on old policies.

Maddy says: "If they want our vote, they need to fight for our future.”

Read more

3 Ways with Climate Action: Meet Phebe the conversation starter, Maddy the protestor and Tom the letter writer – three local residents each doing it their way.

This story is part of The 89 Percent Project, an initiative of the global journalism collaboration Covering Climate Now.