How should the youth be involved in Climate change Adaptation?
Whereas it is evidently clear that majority of the populations in developing countries constitute young people, How many of them have made any significant efforts to incorporate the young in climate change discourse.
In Africa, and indeed across the globe, most young people are left to fight for climate justice through activism, which creates a generation war instead of integrated fight against the common enemy; climate change.
So how then should young people be involved in climate adaptation? to answer this question, we need to ask ourselves three fundamental questions. First, are the youth currently involved in climate change discourse? second, why are young people feeling left out of climate change discussions? and third, at what point, should the youth be involved in the climate change debate?
It is fundamentally clear, that young people are not sufficiently so far involved in climate change discussions. This is because, climate policies and laws are developed and the youth expected to be included at the end of the food chain. Such exclusions leaves young people feeling that climate change is an idea of another generation that is imposed on them hence met with a lot of resistance.
To fully integrate and incorporate young people in climate change discussions, respective governments and Non governmental organizations should start by including the ideas of the youth from inception, through early learning and capacity building institutions, gearing industrial development towards youth centered sectors like ICTs, including young people in decision making positions to enhance representation among other strategies.
In addition, youth adaptation financing must be at the center of the overall discussion. Most young people, are repositories of great ideas, which if not financed, can never see the taste of time, yet, historically, it is clear that most of the innovative solutions are generated by young people.
Climate change adaptation is possible, but, if young people are also brought on the Negotiation table and their voices heard.
Chopped by
