Explore the challenges and opportunities facing youth-led climate justice activism in Benin, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Uganda.
Climate change is an undeniable crisis that is reshaping our world with an unforgiving hand. But its impacts are anything but equal. While no one is untouched by climate change, the world’s most vulnerable populations bear its fiercest blows. For them, climate change isn’t just an environmental threat—it is a force that magnifies existing inequalities and deepens the vulnerabilities they already face. As coastlines erode, ecosystems collapse, and extreme weather events grow more frequent and severe, the world’s poorest nations find themselves least equipped to adapt or respond to these mounting threats.
The consequences are dire: millions of people find themselves facing an uncertain future, struggling to secure basic human rights. To compound this crisis, climate migration is on the rise, as homes become uninhabitable and affected people move in search of safety and livelihoods.
In Africa, the effects of climate change are particularly devastating. Vulnerable communities find themselves on the front lines, bearing the heaviest burden of an environmental crisis for which they are the least responsible. Unfortunately, government responses to these local and regional impacts often fall short of the just, effective solutions needed.
In response to the gaps left by governments, young people have taken matters into their own hands, organizing at the grassroots level to address the urgent challenges posed by climate change. From leading adaptation projects to providing aid and mobilizing communities, African youth are stepping up as climate justice advocates, bridging the gap where institutional support is lacking. Their efforts are not just reactive but visionary, focusing on building resilient, sustainable communities that can withstand the growing environmental pressures.
[READ: Announcing the LEF-CYP Climate Justice Fund]
Recognizing the importance of these grassroots efforts, the Legal Empowerment Fund (LEF) and the Children’s and Youth Rights Program (CYP) at the Fund for Global Human Rights commissioned scoping studies across six African countries—Benin, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Uganda—to explore youth-led climate justice activism. These studies aimed to understand the funding needs of young climate activists on the ground and identify opportunities for collaboration and support that would help amplify their work and advance shared goals.
About the Report
In this report, we:
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- Provide an overview of the youth-led climate justice ecosystem across the six countries, examining the structures, initiatives, strategies and networks that young activists have built to address climate challenges.
- Provide qualitative insights into the needs of, and challenges faced by, young activists on the ground.
- Evaluate the funding landscape for youth-led climate initiatives, identifying funding gaps and barriers faced by young people and civil society organizations.
- Explore how the Legal Empowerment Fund and the Children’s and Youth Rights Program can leverage their networks to become impactful funders of youth-led climate justice initiatives in Africa.
- Identify the barriers and enablers hindering and facilitating the participation of youth in climate action both locally and internationally.
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This report has been specifically written for:
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- Grantmakers and funders in the youth sector: As a primary focus of this report, we aim to explore how collective support can empower young people to lead transformative climate justice efforts.
- Grantmakers and funders in the climate, land, and environmental justice space who are interested in exploring the significance of bringing young people on board and providing targeted support to young people in this space.
- The young people who participated in the scoping, for their invaluable contributions and as a way of closing the feedback loop, and to all young people dedicating their time and talents to this very important work.
- Governmental, international, and development actors who are committed to youth leadership and sustainability, and who believe in the importance of empowering young people as key drivers of a resilient, sustainable future.
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Dorah Muhanuuzi is a lawyer and a children’s and youth rights specialist, working as a consultant with the Fund for Global Human Rights.
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