Youth discuss climate change adaptation
Transformative and innovative approaches to climate change adaptation, ranging from the deployment of big data to better flood management and sustainable food and agricultural systems, is a key area that young people can be involved in.
This message was echoed by the youth in a singular voice at the Botswana Institute for Development Policy Analysis ( BIDPA) symposium for youth and climate change held in Gaborone this week.
During a panel discussion with young minds active in climate change and environment, they advised Government and other stakeholders to bolster investment in climate science, major economic and social systems, and also encouraged young people to share innovations.
Kealeboga Mokgalagadi, a graduate of BUAN currently pursuing Masters in Agriculture MSc in Animal Management Systems said that being faced with climate change forced people to learn new ways to transform food systems to de- risk livelihoods and value chains, and also reduce emissions through diets and in value chains.
Mokgalagadi completed his BSc in Animal Science in 2018 and has over the years been active in the BUAN Environmental Conservation Society, which he said plays a key role in education and skills capacitation among young people who lend time to addressing conservation issues in their communities.
In August this year, Mokgalagadi was nominated to participate in the International Leadership Workshop for Rural Youth in Herrsching, Germany hosted by Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture ( Germany).
He believes the youth should take every opportunity to drive the nation’s food security. He called for more urgent action towards adaptation and mitigation to climate change more so that Botswana is considered highly vulnerable to climate variability and change due to its high dependence on rain- fed agriculture and natural resources.
The National Adaptation Plans are the primary way to lead all in the same direction. Through them, the youth can scale up actions and enhance investments in building the resilience of all of society, reiterated Thapelo Joseph, who has a background in Information Data and Economics.
She recently established a forum for adolescents and youth in Selebi Phikwe with the hope to create a platform for young people in the area to access information on issues that affect them and she had noticed that there is a lot of education needed to teach young people how climate change affects them on at a national, community and individual level.
“Networking and meeting to discuss issues and exchange ideas will help us find ways to curb challenges that affect us such as the negative impacts of climate change.”
She also noted that given their education, skills and expertise, young people can play a role by using frontier technologies to access and apply climate and socioeconomic data and information, such as the use and application of big data and artificial intelligence for both vulnerability and risk assessment.