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Showing posts from April, 2015

Community Based Adaptation Youth Conference - YouthCBA

  “Youth as a Catalyst to Enhance Effective Adaptation” By Belinda Makadia As from 27 th -29 th April, 2015, Kenya will host the 9 th CBA conference in Nairobi. One of the most important inclusions in this conference will be the youth conference, which will run parallel to the CBA 9. Youths from different organizations that work with issues of climate change including Africa Youth Initiative on Climate Change (AYICC-K), Young Volunteers in Environment Kenya (YVE-K), OAY and Catholic Youth NESA have come together under the supervision of ACTS to organize this conference. This means that the youth will be having their own conference besides the main CBA conference and they will deliberate on their own issues. This is important for the youth as it provides them with a platform to run their event accommodating their needs, creativity and free expressions while creating a sense of responsibility in them. During the conference, the youth will have a reflection on their past, pr

YOUTH POSITION ON THE ROAD TO PARIS.

The Youth Negotiations on Climate Change Conventions (YNCC) Position on The Road to Paris (COP21) We, the participants of the “Road to Paris” conference held at the HoAREC headquarters welcome the opportunity for engagement and appreciate the space to have our voices heard; Recognizing that youth are one of the most vulnerable groups to disasters, climate change, fragility and conflict; and aware of the large cohort of youth impacted by unemployment, underemployment, poverty, sporadic crises, recurrent displacement, poor infrastructure and inadequate basic social services and public utilities; Convinced that the demographic bonus Africa enjoys is as an inalienable asset to Africa’s sustainable development and concerned at the under-representation of youth in policy design and implementation frameworks, yet, we are also powerful agents for change due to our creativity and innovation; Welcoming the engagement of the youth within regional and global frameworks on climat

ROAD TO PARIS –WHAT KIND OF NEGOTIATIONS DO WE NEED?

By Namboka Belinda. Climate change is one of the greatest challenges the world is facing currently. Although it has been argued to be a natural phenomenon that man has no power over, there is enough evidence which shows how human influence exacerbates the problem. We are at that point where we can no longer afford the luxury to keep debating on whether it is happening or not. We have to act quickly and decisively to ensure that we come up with adaptation and mitigation strategies. Most importantly, we have the scientific knowledge that answers the why and how the phenomenon is taking place. With determination and persistence, we might not be able to reverse the process but we have the power to minimize its effects. We still have hope that with the current and future technologies coupled with favourable policies, we shall be able to blunten the sharp edges of climate change effects slicing through our lives.  The youth, under the umbrella of Youth Negotiators for Climate Change-

UNRAVELING THE TRUTH ABOUT FOREST FIRES IN KENYA

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Written by Joe Kamau, twitter@Tsar_Joe The Aberdares is one of the few remaining rain forests and the largest in East Africa. It is home to among others; leopards, the endangered African elephant, black rhino, and the majestic yet rare African golden cat. The forest boasts of a myriad of biodiversity with vegetation species approximating 778 plant species including exotic hardwoods such as camphor, cedar, podo and hagenia can be found. Even more importantly, from the aberdares originates Kenya’s largest rivers namely Athi and Tana acting as a catchment area.. Unfortunately, over the recent past a surge in forest fires has posed a significant threat to this great water tower. In addition, rise in global temperatures and the prolonged dry seasons can well be attributed to our forests’ dwindling status. Even more disturbing is that each time there is a forest fire we are caught unawares. Take 2012 and 2014 for instance, where despite persistent warnings by the Kenya Forest Servic