In the past few days, I've also become really excited about a new project Negash has assigned me, basically writing a proposal to increase their work involving youth leaders and advocates in these issues. Since this is my main area of interest and expertise, and because I've already met amazing youth through the Sex and Environment presentation I gave at Addis Ababa University, I'm so happy to have the opportunity to push this forward! Over half of the world's global population is under the age of 25, and the economic, reproductive health and environmental choices they have available to them will impact our world for years to come. Moreover, considering how pressing challenges like climate change, water scarcity, unmet need for family planning and population growth will affect our lives, it's up to youth leaders around the world to stand up and have decision-making power on these issues that affect our health and our livelihoods. At the same time, youth are such an amazing target audience for taking forward integrated development concepts on population, health and environment, often because they tend to see the globalizing world in a more holistic fashion and aren't bogged down by pre-Cairo ideas of "population control" which really stagnate efforts to advance our movement for global reproductive health and sustainable development solutions. So far I haven't seen too much youth leadership here, so this is a fantastic opportunity for me to help PHE-Ethiopia be a leader in integrating and involving youth in their programs and policies! :)Meanwhile, I've been chatting with my good friend and fellow activist Kimberley Schroeder over the past few days, to find out what's being done about a concept we were really excited about in the months preceding the Copenhagen Climate Change Negotiations last December: "building an international youth movement for sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) as just, equitable climate change solutions." We worked together and with other organizations to draft a youth policy statement about these issues, and it was really exciting to create a finished product that people could endorse, because these issues are so complex and controversial. There's tons of evidence that SRHR will help not only with climate change adaptation, since smaller and healthier families and households will be more resilient to climate change impacts that affect food, water and health care availability, but that it will also help with mitigation. In fact new research by demographer Brian O'Neil in CO shows that slowing population growth to 8 billion as opposed to 12 billion by the year 2050 may account for 1 billion tons of CO2 emissions, or "1 wedge" of Socolow and Pacala's stabilization wedges model, which is huge. And keep in mind, when I say "slowing population growth" this is through advancing SRHR, gender equality and sustainable development solutions that we should be doing anyways.
After the disappointing outcome around Copenhagen and I left my position with Sierra Club, I felt like we kind of dropped the ball on all of this, but now I'm excited to work with Kimberley again on all of it. After emailing a ton of people to find out what's being done, I finally decided to just DO SOMETHING, and am now going to create a "youth advocacy video" to raise the voices of youth leaders in the Global South about their opionions on these issues. I'm really excited!
So the past few days, I've been meeting with a few youth leaders here in Addis, and while it's been so incredibly encouraging and motivating, I've also continued to be stunned by how wonderful Ethiopians are. Sunday April 11th I met up with my new friend Alex at the Addis Ababa University campus, a youth environmental club leader I met when I gave my Sex and Environment presentation there. He was so sweet-- took me to the Ethnographic Museum for an hour to look at beautiful baskets, clothes, coffee pots, jewelry, musical instruments and paintings. I loved the moon-shaped Ethiopian faces and olive-shaped eyes in religious pictures-- so different from the pasty skin and tired eyes in European paintings. Ethiopians are so beautiful, it's like there's no need to idealize them! ;) Alex and I talked and ate burgers for an hour, about his approaching graduation and possible ways that he could integrate PHE into his future environmental career. I gave him a printed version of Sierra Club's activist guide, so hopefully it will help him if he chooses to do more organizing or advocacy on these issues before graduation.
Then, my friend Helen and four of her friends with the Gender Club on campus came to meet up with us. I really love Helen-- what an amazing woman! She's almost completely blind, yet is a huge leader on her campus and in the community, partnering with tons of groups to do charity work and raise awareness about violence against women, despite the campus police's refusal to do anything about it. We had a great conversation about the outcomes of Copenhagen, the environmental movement and how it intersects with women's issues-- I was so impressed with how engaged they all are. Then the best part was when the Gender Club pressured Alex on what his club is doing for the environment-- "You need to work hard to keep students engaged! Have at least one panel discussion every two weeks! We're working with the Sports Club, Disability Club, Peace and Charity Clubs... what are you doing?" Then they really wowed me-- Helen said to Alex, "if you are willing, we are eager to work with you on gender, sexual and reproductive health and the environment." AWESOME! Alex later told me that it was too good to be true for him to hear that, because his club lacked adequate volunteers to do many environmental actions. Yay for coalition-building. :) Finally, I couldn't believe that before we left, Helen and her Gender Club friends actually gave me a birthday present of a traditional purse and scarf. Are you kidding me? So sweet! And Alex ended up accompanying me back to my house, paying for my taxi bus of course. Did I mention that I love Ethiopians?
All of this culminated today, when I interviewed two amazing youth climate activists who attended the Copenhagen Climate Negotiations representing all Ethiopian youth, Tinbeb and her sister Liyunesh Yohannes. They are seriously the most inspring young women I've ever met. They told me all about how over the past year, they worked as volunteers to build awareness among youth audiences and farmers in Ethiopia about climate change. Last October 24th, for 350.org's International Day of Action for Climate Change, they mobilized 15,000 youth to march in Addis Ababa! It was the largest action to take place around the world, and they did it with virtually no funding-- just $200 for a government permit to have a marching band on the road. Since then, they attended the Copenhagen Climate Change Negotiations to pressure their decision-makers for a fair agreement, and came back to start their own organization, the Ethiopian National Youth Coalition on Climate Change (EYNCCC). They are organized with student networks throughout the country, and received a grant from the Ethiopian Embassy in Washington DC to plant 1 million trees over the next year. It was exhausting just to hear about all that they're doing, but so encouraging to see how this is their life, their campaign, their movement, and how excited they are to work with youth throughout the whole world-- many of whom they met in Copenhagen-- to advance these critical solutions. I'm also really excited that they're partnering with PHE-Ethiopia to also integrate livelihoods, poverty reduction, gender equity and health care into their efforts... and hopefully if PHE-Ethiopia gets funding, they can receive more training and have the opportunity to visit PHE field projects to further strengthen youth leadership on these issues!Hopefully I'll see them next week for a big Earth Day Celebration that EYNCCC and PHE-Ethiopia are co-sponsoring in addition to other organizations, and they're also going to introduce me to youth climate activists in Kenya. Yay for inspiring youth leaders!
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