As the Africa Youth Climate Assembly kicks off on the sidelines of the Africa Climate Summit, the time is now to showcase the critical role that youth can play in shaping the scientific processes across multilateral environmental agencies. Dr.

As our continent faces the unprecedented challenges of a changing climate, the moment's urgency cannot be overstated. From droughts to floods, our communities are on the frontlines of a crisis threatening our environment, economies, cultures, and way of life. The African Climate Summit scheduled for September 2023 in Nairobi, Kenya, provides a critical opportunity for us to rise above adversity and forge a path towards a sustainable and equitable future. 

Since the start, when four men met in a judge’s chambers to discuss the need for African conservation ownership and leadership, AWF’s agenda has been fueled and advanced by conversations, debates, planning sessions, education, and awareness-building around conservation visions and realities.

A mountain gorilla, one of just over 1,000 of its kind, chews on a bamboo stalk in a dense afromontane forest as awestruck tourists observe. An elephant uses its massive tusks to dig for water during a drought. Hundreds of buffaloes graze together in a vast savanna. Each creature is making a measurable impact on human well-being, even if that impact seems invisible. Through the lens of maintaining healthy ecosystems, the contributions of these iconic African wildlife species are as clear as day.

“We are part of an intergenerational mission, and our success relies on our ability to equip upcoming generations to take on the baton.”
Simangele Mbali Msweli,
AWF Youth Program Senior Manager

As we celebrate International Youth Day, African Wildlife Foundation takes stock of the AWF Youth Strategy. This strategy encapsulates different levels of engagement like the ALU-AWF Internship Program, which was made possible by our partnership with the African Leadership University School of Wildlife Conservation.

The recent launch of the U.S. Global Climate Ambition Initiative is fueling speculation about more proactive U.S. climate policies abroad, what they mean for African countries, and how much influence they can wield. President Biden’s climate commitments domestically are inspiring and commendable, but achieving similar policy goals in African countries, and more broadly in the Global South, will require the U.S. to recognize many imbalances confronting climate action in these regions.

The 2021 Earth Day theme ‘Restore Our Earth’ looks at natural processes, emerging technology, and innovative thinking that helps restore the world’s ecosystems. African Wildlife Foundation utilizes all of the above every day to protect wildlife and wild lands, and enhance natural ecosystems.

International Youth Day is celebrated annually on August 12, commemorating youth action to address global issues. On this historic day in 2020, African Wildlife Foundation, the Africa Alliance of YMCAs, the World Organization of the Scout Movement, and WWF launched the Top 100 Young African Conservation Leaders Award.

Although indigenous groups comprise less than five percent of the global population, they are responsible for many of the world’s intact landscapes. However, many of these communities are often not included in land-use planning and management decisions, particularly on the global scale, with limited representation in negotiating global conservation agreements and solutions.