Leadership knows no bounds

In the Netherlands, a groupd of kids has challenged a government minister to see who can reduce their power consumption the most:

Being 14 is no obstacle to helping the planet, judging by the example of a group of Dutch school kids fired up by an idea as bright as an energy-saving light bulb.

The schoolchildren from Almere taking part in The Bet

Thanks indirectly to their efforts, vehicles at the Netherlands’ environment ministry will be running on natural gas by the spring of 2007.

The teenagers in Almere, a futuristic new town near Amsterdam, had called on the environment minister to outdo them personally in ways to save energy.

Over four weeks, and under the arbitration of environmental organisation Friends of the Earth, the two sides vied to come up with ideas for meeting the European Union’s minimum Kyoto goal of 8% savings.

Children from Helen Parkhurst School, which already has its own wind turbines, pursued The Bet at home, in class and in local businesses.

If they lost, the kids – average age 14 – would have to pull State Secretary Pieter van Geel around The Hague for a day in a rickshaw.

And guess who won?   The kids reduced their energy consumption by 33% beating the minister’s 20% reduction.

This is an outstanding idea.   I wonder what other challenges kids could think of to put in front of politicians?   Pure passion bounded by responsibility.