Doha climate conference diary: youth activists bring energy and urgency

When the US university student Anjali Appadurai lambasted diplomats from 194 countries for their lack of action and ambition at last year's climate talks in Durban, she shocked the UN and galvanised the meeting. She told them:

"I speak for half the world. We are the silent majority. You've given us a seat in this hall, but our interests are not on the table. What does it take to get a stake in this game? Lobbyists? Corporate influence? Money? You've been negotiating all my life. In that time, you've failed to meet pledges, you've missed targets, and you've broken promises, but you've heard this all before."

Chart: Among youth, unemployment is not always the issue

From the World Development Report 2013

621 million young people are “idle”—not in school or training, not employed, and not looking for work. Rates of idleness vary across countries, ranging between 10 and 50 percent among 15- to 24-year-olds.

Source: http://blogs.worldbank.org  

Mobile Technology and Social Change. By Ryan MacLean

The opportunities for youth to be agents of change are increasing in number dramatically, with the spreading use of mobile technology and pace of its innovative applications. Twelve youth across nine countries – Canada, the US, Brazil, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Italy, Belgium, and the UK – were convened by TakingITGlobal on September 4th, 2012 to discuss some vibrant examples of recent mobile web technologies that are facilitating social change, many of which are being created or used by these same participants.

The youth climate movement was well-represented at this Cisco-enabled teleconference, as these young leaders build upon the momentum of Rio+20 and look ahead to the COP 18 Meeting in Doha.

Women and Youth as Catalyst for Agribusiness Development and Growth.

On October 6 – 9, 2012, the leadership of UNIDO Regional Office in Abuja-Nigeria in partnership with IFAD, UNWoman, FAO, UNDP, Songhai Centre & OXFAM organised a four day workshop in Port Novo tagged ‘Youth & Women As Catalysts For Agribusiness Development And Growth in West & Central Africa’.

The event started with a trade fair showcasing agribusiness produces and processing machineries and culminated in a consultative forum which explored strategies for attracting more women and youth in agribusiness - as a credible job and wealth creation option for the sub region.

#NGFloods: THE IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND THE SOUTH-EAST RESPONSE. BY Akachukwu Okafor

The floods are finally here, no doubts about that.  It has come with its full rage totally submerging communities, farmlands, destroying lives and property along its path, with thousands rendered homeless, now taking shelter as Internally-Displaced Persons (IDPs) and over 25 million predicted to be affected. No thanks to the increase in annual rainfall this year that caused excess water at Lagdo dam in Cameroun, Kainji, Shiroro, Jebba, Warama, Kiri dams in Niger, Kwara Kano, and Adamawa states respectively to be released. This resulted to over flow of the River Niger and River Benue in the form of flash and massive flood into communities along its plains and tributaries. Affected states includes: Niger, Kogi, Benue, Delta, Anambra, Sokoto, Kebbi, Bauchi, Katisna, Imo, Ebonyi, Adamawa, Kano, Jigawa, Gombe, Rivers, Cross River, Ondo, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom, and Lagos. The magnitude of the devastation can only be expressed by calculating the total land mass of affected area, number of persons killed and displaced, impact on affected population, worth of property destroyed, impact on local and national economy and post flood recovery costs.

National Climate Change Policy and Nigerian Floods.

Climate change, Floods and government responsibility.

Climate change is no longer an issue that is only discussed by a few elite groups in Nigeria. An ordinary Nigerian is currently facing the impacts, making life harder than it already was and governments keep saying that they are doings something about it. Well yes there are.

Youth Meet-Up on MDGs & SDGs in Nigeria #EducationFirst

EDUCATION IN CRISIS AND THE POST-2015 FRAMEWORK 

#EducationFirst #yahuzameetup 

On June 22, 2012, at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (RIO+20), governments of countries agreed on a Future We Want outcome document which includes commitments to certain sustainable development goals. However, how ambitious these commitments are still remains a point of arguments amongst concerned parties, and as we approach the post-2015 era we hope to amplify the voices of people directly affected by poverty, injustice and their perspectives on a future global post-2015 framework.

The role that quality education (one of the SDGs, paragraph 229) plays in development emphasizes its capacity to reverse the rate of poverty in Nigeria, while in recent years key correlates of fragility in Nigeria include education.

The Task Belongs to the Youth to Save Nigeria. By Rayyan Umar

I AM 24 years old; I hold a BSc. as well as an MSc., from a reputable business school in England; I am well on my way to making the transition from “student member” of the ACCA (Association of Certified Chartered Accountants) to full membership; I am a couple of months away from finishing up my Youth Service in a government agency. In an ideal world, I would be the poster boy for optimism with regard to my future, yet I find that this is not entirely the case.

400 children die from lead poisoning in Zamfara

Source: zainabusman.wordpress.com 

An estimated 400 children have died from the inhalation of lead poison in six communities in Zamfara state, Nigera, due to improper mining practices.

Mr. Hamzat Bala Lawal, the National Coordinator, African Youth Initiative on Climate Change (AYICC), Nigeria chapter, disclosed this while speaking with newsmen yesterday in Abuja.

Lawal, who is also the Advisor, Nigerian Youth Climate Action Network (NYCAN), said that the root cause of the lead poisoning was unsafe mining and ore processing.

Tweet-Meet on Oil Spills in the Niger Delta

The Niger Delta is the location of massive oil deposits, which have been extracted for decades by the government of Nigeria and by multinational oil companies. Oil has generated an estimated $600 billion since the 1960s. Despite this, the majority of the Niger Delta’s population live in poverty, with crumbling social infrastructure and services, high unemployment, social deprivation, abject poverty, filth and squalor, and endemic conflict. The majority of the people of the Niger Delta do not have adequate access to clean water or health-care.  

Lawmakers pass National Climate Change Commission Bill

Nigeria’s House of Representatives has passed a Bill for the establishment of the National Climate Change Commission.

This is the second time the House is passing the Bill after the harmonised version that was sent to the President was not assented to before the expiration of the last assembly.

Reacting to the bill’s passage the Nigeria Youth Climate Action Network commended the determination of the House for giving legislative backing to issues of climate change.

Reps pass bill on climate change

The House of Representatives has passed the Bill for the establishment of the National Climate Change Commission. This is the second time the House is passing the Bill after the harmonised version that was sent to President Goodluck Jonathan was not assented to before the expiration of the last Assembly.

Document management system for sustainable future

Maureen Chinweokwu of Young & Bailey Nigeria Limited and Hamzat Bala Lawal of the International Centre for Energy, Environment & Development (ICEED) stress in this piece that every business should strive to have a positive impact on the environment and its community by adopting and implementing sustainable policies that improve the quality of life for its customers and employees.

Everywhere, on the news; the internet; adverts; politics; social movements; entertainment and even in technology, environmental friendliness is being promoted. So we engage ourselves by using energy saving bulbs, planting trees and flowers, eating less of processed foods and recycling.