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In 2023, during the Africa Climate Summit (ACS), hosted in Nairobi, Kenya, on September 4 – 6, Kenya clocked a key milestone in meaningful youth engagement in climate policy processes, the launch of the Kenya National Youth Climate Action Plan (NCCAP III), 2023-2027. A pivotal document whose formulation process was facilitated by SID, through the Energy, Environment and Climate Futures Programme, in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Forestry (MoECCF).

Leveraging on this success, we sort partnerships with other likeminded organizations, to forge and advance implementation options for youth engagements in climate at the global arena - the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s (UNFCCC) Conference of Parties (COP28), hosted in Dubai, UAE on November 30, to December 13, 2023. 

The COP 28 was christened as the ‘COP on Climate Action’, aiming to reignite and revitalize efforts ‘to keep 1.5°C within reach’- a threshold set to limit the world’s surface temperature to rise not more than 1.5°C warmer that the pre-industrial levels - the industrial revolution time where when Britain, followed by the rest of Europe, North America, Japan and other nations, began emitting large quantities of fossil carbon. At the heart of the COP 28, were four Action Agenda items: 

  1. Fast-tracking a just and orderly transition  
  2. Fixing climate finance 
  3. Focusing on nature, lives and livelihoods, and; 
  4. Fostering inclusivity for all 

This, therefore, presented an opportune time to amplify youth voices in climate engagements at a global scale, such as the one presented by the COPs. 

In an aim to enhance the youth Climate Futures Project under SID’s Energy, Environment and Climate Futures Programme, we partnered with Kenya’s Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Forestry, Stanley Centre for Peace and Security, Christian Aid, HIVOS, Voices for Just Climate Action (VCA), and Next Generation Foresight Practitioners (NGFP) Network hosted by School of International Futures (SOIF), and organized three side events, at the sidelines of COP 28, engaging youth delegates, climate advocates, experts, policy makers, development partners working on energy and climate to utilize these global avenues to influence climate policy processes at national and multilateral levels. 

The three side events were themed as below: 

  1. Energizing Tomorrow: Back casting a future of green skills and Sustainable Energy (At Children and youth Pavilion) - (December 5, 2023) 
  2. From Policy to Practice: Meaningful African Youth Engagement in Climate Change Policy Processes (Kenya Government Pavilion) - (December 8, 2023) 
  3. Enabling Youth Action in SDG 7- Global Renewables Hub Pavilion (IRENA pavilion) - (December 8, 2023) 

Objectively, the aim of these side events was to achieve: Continued push and influence in climate action in Kenya and Africa at national levels and within the UNFCCC space; Pioneer similar conversations in East Africa at both national levels, like Kenya’s youth engagement, and broader regional conversations engaging African youth climate advocates more meaningfully, and; Develop a broader vision for an African climate future as articulated by youth which feeds into the African Union, leveraging Kenya’s current role in the AU as climate champion. 

We highlight, in brief, some of the issues raised and shine a spotlight on key recommendations that form the outcome of the three organized side events. 

Side-event 1 (December 5, 2023): Energizing Tomorrow: Back casting a future of green skills and Sustainable Energy  

Facilitated by the NGFP Network Climate Hub members, this first side event targeted an intergenerational audience for a visioning exercise towards contributing to a draft African youth climate and energy futures manifesto. This event brought together a diverse group of participants, including policy makers, experts, youth, private sector players in a visioning exercise to map out the future we want to see (with Year 2050 as the vision year), looking at the current state of energy and climate and identifying pathways to reach the desired futures as outlined. These would help build out conversations and key areas of future youth engagements toward the development of the Manifesto to be presented during the United Nations General Assembly ‘s Summit of the Future on 22nd to 23rd September 2024.  

Watch this session YouTube: COP28 Children and Youth Pavilion: Energizing Tomorrow: Back casting a future of green skills and Sustainable Energy

Utilizing the visioning exercise, participants outlined a desired future, while considering present circumstances and factoring possible interventions to some of the challenges at the present, here are some of the key highlights of this exercise: 

On the future – by the year 2050, participants visioned a world with: 

  • More green jobs, readily available for youths  
  • Improved policy development that identifies solutions for pertinent issues such as security, development, and human rights. 
  • Policy makers are aligned and more receptive to the green agenda and support green strategies taking account youth needs. 
  • Complete energy transition, heightened awareness on sustainable energy due to introduction of sustainable energy systems in curriculum at the lowest level of education. 

On the scope of present challenges, and issues (Now – year 2023), participants highlighted the existing circumstantial issues; 

  • Lack of access to Green Education, awareness, knowledge, harmonization, and misinformation on the importance of renewable energy and climate change especially in rural areas. 
  • Insufficient youth representation, high unemployment rates, lack of youth trust funds at national governments, lack of technical expertise, technology, and inaccessibility to the available technology. 
  • Poor policy implementation on environment and climate change matters, minimal inclusion and huge gaps between policy and practice. 

The following possible pathways were identified, as solutions to navigate and solve present challenges to attain the visioned future (by year 2050). 

  • Partnerships with ministries of education to educate people on green economy, while also working on education systems reforms, invest in knowledge transfer, invest and integrate climate education, and create public awareness on the importance of green economy climate change and green skilling. 
  • Increased allocation of funding for research, innovation, and infrastructure for green technologies and policy support, subsidies and financing mechanisms to support small businesses and entrepreneurs on green economy. 
  • Governments’ support for young people’s initiatives, establishing national youth trust fund on environment, and encourage venture investors to invest in youth owned businesses. 
  • Enhanced sustainable and efficient technology, with appropriate support, benchmarking youth between countries, and capacity building on modern and post-modern green technology. 

Side-event 2 (December 8, 2023): From Policy to Practice: Meaningful African Youth Engagement in Climate Change Policy Processes 

Hosted at the Kenyan Pavilion, featured Kenyan NCCAP III youth delegates, with the discussions angled towards meaningful African youth engagement in climate policy processes, replicating and expanding youth engagement beyond national level, to regional and continental levels. The panel session featured children and youth representatives and high-level guests and, although hosted at the Kenya Pavilion, the session welcomed other African youth climate advocates, expert practitioners, policy makers and development partners both physically and online participation to contribute to the discussion. 

Read our engagement in the Kenya NCCAP III process: SID at NCCAP III Youth Engagement Workshops 

Key highlights from this session were: 

  • Kenya continues to push the youth agenda in climate change by supporting over 30 young persons to attend the COP28. 
  • Partnerships with other international stakeholders such as GIZ, SID and UNFPA spurs capacity building among the youth through various initiatives such as the NCCAP III  
  • The need for Youth to shift from focusing solely on advocacy, to climate financing, capacity building, and leadership especially on environment, climate change and forestry matters. 
  • There is a need to transform and enhance skills and climate action, through learning institutions such as universities. 
  • Direct youth participation in political decision making is a key human right for development of environment and climate change.  
  • Affirmative action to include children in the climate change agenda through developing environmental clubs across schools and motivating peer to peer exchange across these schools. 
  • To unlock bankable finances for the youth on matters climate and environment funding from institutions such as the UNDP, the Youth need to develop strong proposals.  

A summary brief of recommendations from this session, include: 

  • The Government of Kenya and Kenyan youth need to enhance the growth of green jobs.  
  • Kenya through its established governance and learning institutions to prioritize children and youth engagement in climate change matters by creating youth innovation hubs across the 47 counties that can boost funding and track progress across youth networks and communities.  
  • Kenya needs to create a playbook to guide systematic youth engagement provided through innovation on climate actions. 
  • The intersection between Climate and Women & children who are disproportionally affected demographic need further research to enrich national data evidence that will speak to the Nationally determined Contributions (NDCs). 

Side-event 3 (December 8, 2023): Enabling Youth Action in SDG 7- Global Renewables Hub Pavilion  

This session sought to explore the role youth play in ensuring access to affordable and sustainable energy to power development, globally. Given that Africa has enormous potential to become a global leader in renewable energy, it was imperative that the youth, more so African youth, be included in this discussion. The session brought together key institutions championing youth action on SDG 7 and global youth constituencies, to reflect upon what more needs to be done to empower the active role of youth in achieving SDG 7 and SDG 13.  

Watch this session on YouTube: Enabling Youth Action in SDG 7- Global Renewables Hub Pavilion 

This dialogue was guided by two questions:  

  1. What opportunities exist in your institution that enable youth action in SDG7 and what impact? 
  2. How can we further collaborate to reduce the challenges and increase opportunities for youth in sustainable energy around the world? 

Some of the key take-aways of this session included: 

  • Recognizing the role of young people in advancing renewable energy (RE) through initiatives such as the IRENA youth talk and the Newgen Accelerator program that provide tools, resources and knowledge needed to generate and implement RE ideas and projects. 
  • Highlighting youth inclusion and empowerment through education, finance and skills development, and the contribution of The National Experts Programme to identify, provide support and invest in youth and their ideas.  
  • Emphasize advocacy efforts that address youth challenges, organize capacity building sessions for young people, inclusive processes in the energy transition sessions, and mentorship for youth and inclusion. 
  • Underscore the importance of intergenerational cooperation and empowering those outside the energy space to cover the knowledge and innovation gaps among youth and develop knowledge hubs to disseminate this information to the grassroots levels.  
  • Emphasis was placed on continuous progress of involving more voices of those affected by climate change as a call for continued progress and inclusivity which resonates as a vital principle for future endeavors, including COP29.