Rotimi Olawale recently caught up (online) with Esther Agbarakwe who shared about her work in the youth and climate change networks with Youthhubafrica. Find excerpts of the interview below:
Esther Agbarakwe is currently serving as an Atlas Corps Fellow with Populational Action International in Washington DC. She has over eight years of experience working on sexuality and environmental issues. She is a climate change policy expert and trainer with extensive experience in creating, facilitating and managing youth-led projects. Esther has served as the African coordinator of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development (UNCSD) Youth and Children Major Group. In 2009, she co-founded the Nigerian Youth Climate Coalition, the biggest youth climate movement in Nigeria and serves as a technical Advisor to the African Youth Initiative on Climate Change (AYICC).
Esther Agbarakwe
She was selected as ‘Women Deliver 100 Young Leaders’ for her strong interest in women’s issues and was invited to attend the “Women Deliver” Global Conference in DC in June 2010. She was also invited by HH Sheika Moza and the Qatar foundation to represent Student wolrd wide at the World Innovation Summit on Education in Doha.
Esther is the recipient of the 2010 LEAP Africa Annual Nigerian Youth Leadership Award, Nominated for the Best Use of Advoacay at the 2010 Future Awards and she is also is a Dekeyser & Friends Foundation and Commonwealth Youth Climate Fellow.
Q: Why is the rio+20 important and why should young people be involved in the discussions?
The Rio+20 Conference is a 20-year follow-up to the historic 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) that was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Rio+20 is seen as is a key milestone in a series of major United Nations conferences, in which the 1992 Earth Summit / United Nations Conference on Environment and Development was the centerpiece, putting sustainable development as a top priority on the agenda of the United Nations and the international community.
Today, nearly half the world’s population is under the age of 25, faced with a bleak future. Throughout history, young people have played a leading role in shaping society with their vision, passion, and commitment. From youth movements, to local action, to expansive thinking, young people are key to designing a more sustainable world. In 1992, world leaders recognized the vital role that young people play in contributing to the process of sustainable development
Rio+20 is the most important meeting for young people because they have the opportunity help shape the outcome to reflect the future they want; a future where the society, the environment and the economy meet. It is vital that today’s youth have a voice in the decisions that will affect them for decades to come
Q: Very recently, you were a part of the Youngers who met with the Elders to discuss about global issues in the build-up to Rio+20, can you shed more light on this?
E+Y1 Photo credit - Jeff Moore The Elders
The Elders are independent leaders using their collective experience and influence for peace, justice and human rights worldwide. The group was founded by Nelson Mandela in 2007.
The Elders are Martti Ahtisaari, Ela Bhatt, Lakhdar Brahimi, Gro Brundtland, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Jimmy Carter, Graça Machel, Mary Robinson, and Desmond Tutu (Chair). Nelson Mandela is an honorary Elder.
In June, world leaders will come together for Rio+20, the UN Conference on Sustainable Development. Twenty years after the first historic Rio Earth Summit, urgent action is now needed to address human and environmental crises on a global scale. It is time for a real, inclusive conversation about the world we are leaving to future generations – and it is vital that today’s youth have a voice in the decisions that will affect their future.
The Elders have joined forces with TckTckTck to launch Elders+Youngers, a series of online debates between four Elders and four Youngers. The Youngers are leading climate change activists from Brazil, China, Nigeria and Sweden who are committed to putting sustainable development into practice.
Elders+Youngers explores what we want our shared future to look like and ideas for how we get there. The online series is open to everyone around the world, young and old. The series will culminate in a face-to-face dialogue between the Elders and Youngers at the Rio+20 conference itself.
Q: Why do your friends call you Esther Climate?
Well, this is a good question. I read a passage in a book that says “ if you know what your authentic passion is you make that thing your middle name.” At the same time, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan was declaring his intention to run for president on Facebook and I saw many young people were reacting and getting engaged so I decided to change my name on Facebook and other social media platforms to Estherclimate. The idea is that when people see and read that, they can reflect on it, ask a question, and I get the chance to explain to them why climate change matters. I have reached over 5000 youth via this medium and I am passionate about our climate. As young people, we will inherit the earth whichever way the government decides to leave it.
Esther with the Elders
Q: Many people are confused about climate change issues and wondering how it affects developing countries since our emission rates are low compared to developed countries, can you provide insight into this?
Climate change is a major threat to sustainable growth and development in Africa, and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. Africa is particularly vulnerable to climate change because of its over dependence on rain-fed agriculture, compounded by factors such as widespread poverty and weak capacity. The main longer-term impacts include: changing rainfall patterns affecting agriculture and reducing food security; worsening water security; decreasing fish resources in large lakes due to rising temperature; shifting vector-borne diseases; rising sea levels affecting low-lying coastal areas with large populations like Lagos; and rising water stress. Drought, floods, severe weather and other effects of climate change have begun to threaten communities in many parts of the world, including Nigeria. These impacts will worsen in the future, contributing to growing human migration as vulnerable people seek safer, more stable living conditions. This expected migration of hundreds of millions of people can negatively affect human well-being and political stability.
In Nigeria, many years ago, climate change was not as issue that people were concerned with. It was a conversation only among the elite and the government. Ordinary people faced other development issue like poverty, lack of electricity and unemployment — climate change wasn’t a priority. But with the advent of new media and the visible impact of changing weather from the north to the south, we are beginning to have a wider conversation on climate change among many ordinary Nigerians and the government. The role of young people here is enormous and Nigerian youth have acted to inform, inspire and involve their peers in finding solutions.
Q: You are considered a role model for many young people in Africa because you’re seen at the fore-front of climate change issues, how did you attain these heights? what should other young people learn from your story?
I think my story is no different from theirs. I was born in Calabar, a suburban city in the Niger Delta, in a community called “Spring Road” because we had a natural spring a few kilometers from our house. It was there that I learned how to swim. I loved it because it was also the only source of water for domestic use for the community. We no longer have that spring, and many miles away was the oil pollution that has come to characterize the Niger Delta. So I started the Nigerian Youth Climate Coalition after an event on “intergenerational partnerships for sustainability” that my friends and I organized because young people were not engaged in environmental governance throughout the nation. We believe that when young people know the urgency of the climate crisis they will act.
We are the single largest youth-led moment since the 60s and 70s. There has not been such a movement of young people, inspiring, leading and stepping up to the challenge beyond their borders and beyond things that matter to them right in front of them.
We are the most excited and potentially extraordinary phenomenon and opportunity that the world has. I really believe that this compels us to write a new narrative about young people. We are creative, courageous, determined, growing, and fresh. We make getting involved really fun.
Q: You are currently a fellow with Population Action International, how did you clinch this position?
Esther Agbarakwe Speaking at Opening Forum of ADF in Addis Ababa
I was awarded an Atlas Corps Fellowship, a year-long training program with Population Action International were I serve as an International Advocacy Fellow. Atlas Corps facilitates overseas fellowships for the best of the world’s rising leaders. The fellows work and volunteer at outstanding organizations addressing social issues and are enrolled in an ongoing training program. After 12 or 18 months, they return to their countries to work for at least one year (and usually their entire career) back in the nonprofit sector, sharing new skills, best practices, valuable experiences and a global network of change-makers.
Q: Where do you see yourself in the next 10 years, Academician, civil-society expert or politician?
I will be one of each at one point in time. God willing.
