Empowering Women, Youth, And Refugees | Mitigating Climate Change & Building Peace

The United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report warned of impending climate disaster in September 2019, as sea levels are rising faster than scientists previously thought. Not only should this precipitate a complex energy response, it should change the global peace and security response. By understanding climate change’s impact on women, youth, and refugees, a necessary dimension of climate change response is revealed.

Take Kenya as a case study. As the largest economy in East Africa, Kenya is particularly vulnerable to climate variability due to its industries of tourism and agriculture being a dominant economic force in the country and region, employing more than 3 million people in tourism and tea farming alone.

Kenya is already at risk for flooding, with more than 5,000 people displaced in the Rift Valley floods that affected more than 22,000 acres just last year. At the end of last year, the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre reported more than 394,000 internally displaced people in Kenya. Kenya already hosts over 500,000 refugees, predominantly people who fled violent extremism in Somalia, and faces other issues, such as limited resources and high rates of violence against women. Kenya also has a young population, with 75% of the population falling between the age of 18 and 35.

Furthermore, Kenya is a fragile state. Although Fund For Peace’s Fragile States Index notes that Kenya’s fragility score has decreased, it still ranks as the 32nd most fragile state, due largely to lacking ethnic conflict and demographic pressures. As climate change worsens, these problems will only increase. Additionally, these issues disproportionately impact women. Studies have shown that women and children “are 14 times more likely than men to die during a disaster.” 

The impending crisis in Kenya is only one case study for the dire situations that threaten the global community due to climate change. However, there are several steps that we can take to alleviate the situation, and Kenya happens to be the perfect demonstration of this.

While a youthful population is traditionally seen as a dangerous sign of instability, Kenya’s youth population should be viewed as an asset. In many of the countries worldwide that face armed conflict or violence, youth are at the forefront of building sustainable peace.

A formal youth, peace, and security strategy to support youth peacebuilding would teach young leaders around the world to prioritize principles of nonviolence, inclusivity, and democracy as they decide what their communities will look like in the future. The Kenyan government partnering with the African Union and Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) has already taken steps to promote this strategy in the region via a conference on Youth Peace and Security hosted earlier this month.

Moreover, an integrated youth and peacebuilding strategy reduces the impact of ethnic and political conflict. According to Mercy Corps, peacebuilding and education programs in Somalia funded by USAID contributed to a 48% decrease in support for political violence among youth in the program. Scaling these programs up is necessary to meet the needs of youth globally in the context of climate change.

As mentioned, the gender disparities in Kenya are exacerbated by climate change. However, Kenya has also made significant strides in gender equality, even as it relates to climate change. Climate change is upending traditional gender roles and helping usher a cultural shift that has empowered some women to participate in the workforce. It is vital that Kenyan programs continue allocating funding specifically for women to contribute to climate change response efforts, especially due to their unique relationship to land and agriculture. 

For example, the Kenya National Domestic Biogas Program, which aims to reduce “the burden of collecting firewood on women mitigating against unpaid care work,” and “offer an opportunity for employment creation in the biogas construction sector for women in rural areas,” and estimates that there are significant time savings from the for “7,700 households (over 15,000 women)” by reductions in domestic labor. This program could further integrate locally-led training for women, youth leaders, and renewable energy to further mitigate the effects of climate change while harnessing youth energy and ameliorating gender disparities in work. 

This isn’t the only project that could be altered to improve climate change while promoting women’s social inclusion efforts. The Kenya National Action Plan for Women, Peace, and Security thus far has been limited in its focus on conflict resolution, human rights, gender-based violence, and gender representation. Going forward, it should integrate sustainability as a means of prevention by helping women implement tools for climate disaster prevention.

Finally, the impact of violent conflict in Kenya has been immense, with the existing refugee crisis likely to worsen due to climate change. However, increased refugee acceptance can also be seen as an opportunity for economic development, innovation, and a brighter future. 

The Center for Global Development reports that high entrepreneurship and labor force participation amongst refugees make them unique contributors to economic markets. An influx of refugees fosters innovation, competition, and leads to economic growth. However, Kenya is currently struggling with low labor force participation for refugees, who often languish in refugee camps, rather than being fully resettled and integrated into Kenyan society.

By investing in resettlement and jobs programs, resettled refugees could be incentivized to help create alternatives to fossil-fuels, build green infrastructure, and put their entrepreneurial spirit to work on climate-related issues. Further, these innovations can be accelerated by utilizing digital skills-building to empower youth around the world to collaborate on climate solutions - part of what The Youth Café is already doing.

Kenya is on the precipice of leading international peace and security efforts through climate change prevention and response, and should do so by flipping the script to harness the unique opportunities that women, youth, and refugees present and empower marginalized groups to take center stage in helping create a more peaceful and sustainable world. It’s no longer enough to listen to conventional wisdom that excludes women, youth, and refugees from the narrative of peace and prosperity; we must create our own destiny.

Written by Jordan Stevenson, a Communication and Partnership Associate at The Youth Cafe.

The Youth Café works with young men and women around Africa as a trailblazer in advancing youth-led approaches toward achieving sustainable development, social equity, innovative solutions, community resilience and transformative change.

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