Thoughts of a change agent: Youth advocacy in a changing climate

 "This is an extract from an old blog application, but then it tells a little of my story "

 The polls are open for over 150 youth speakers from around the world to present their experiences at the Youth Session for the Global Landscapes Forum (GLF). This is in response to a call for submissions by the Young professional’s Platform for Agricultural Research and Development as they seek to have greater youth involvement in high level agricultural and environmental discussions.

This initiative along with several others on a similar fashion represents a growing number of advocacy projects coordinated by youths all around the world. The flexibility and the tenacity of these motivated individuals have attracted even more youth as well as encouraging some governments in realizing the positive impact that can occur through youth engagement and participation.

In the light of these developments, I started a climate change organization in Nigeria which centers on climate change awareness creation and eco-restoration projects while adopting the use of trees in the process of adaptation and climate change mitigation.

This initiative started off after my return from The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC COP17) in Durban in 2011 where I experienced heavy involvement from youth in the processes of the forum. This led to the creation of a burning desire to be a change element in my society.

Beginning with simple outreach activity to younger students in secondary school I adopted the use of audio-visual facilities to further enhance the knowledge sharing in the forms of videos, and PowerPoint presentations. 

Following my successful outreach volunteers where gratefully recruited and the envisaged network began, each with their targeted actions in their respective locality. This led to a major sensitization session held at the college of environmental resources of the federal university of Agriculture, Abeokuta in Nigeria. This was the basis for the recruitment of volunteers into the ‘Raise the green Wall project’.  And the Green Impact Movement both of which were entirely focused on the aforementioned topic area. With this the level of the activity, awareness level were heightened with a larger number of municipals being positively made aware as the chain of volunteers continued to grow.

Capitalizing on the religious nature of many Nigerians the campaign was then spread to several churches, a first for the country in that climate change activism became part of institutions’ outreach initiatives. Simultaneously tree planting campaigns were also initiated, with trees planted at every outreach session and among the streets of local areas. Not only was information shared and many youth involved but the trees themselves held appeal to local communities such as medicinal, food security and ornamental values.

The passion I hold for this initiative become ever clearer as the campaigns continued in the form of house to house outreach, where awareness bills are also distributed in indigenous languages. With the foundations much stronger in our drive, I started venturing out of the state of establishment and the reach-out to neighboring towns. There were actually a lot of challenges but the drive has been to at least incite and encourage a national eco-revival where all persons take on the responsibility of care for the earth in their respective capacity.

Our efforts of have been a success as the  initiative has spread  to five states in Nigeria due in major part to the movement of volunteers who have relocated to another town or country such as the republic of Benin where the initiative has begun there as well.

Greater effect for the initiative has occurred through online platform activism. This has enabled the showcasing of the works to a larger audience. The result; even more volunteers have answered the call such as those found in Green Impact India and of the Republic of Congo. Now I can say we represent a global move!

Through my experiences I can attest to the benefits that occur from answering the call for youth engagement and participation in global matters such as the GLF and the UNFCCC. I encourage you to vote the most innovative youth speakers to present at GLF youth session organized by the YPARD. Your support can lead to great benefit for those who have made the commitment to improve the structure of their environment.