A section of youth in Juba, South Sudan, during the activism campaign against plastic bags
Delicate Sive February 21, 2024
In 2023, InfoNile flagged its first Youth Activists Training Program with funding from JRS Biodiversity Foundation and IHE Delft’s Water and Development Partnership Programme. The training involved water and biodiversity youth activists in the Nile Basin countries of Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Egypt, Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The activists program aimed to enhance science communication among environmental activists by equipping them with skills to effectively communicate and amplify science stories around water, biodiversity, environmental conservation and climate issues to the general audience. It was designed to enhance the capacity of the activists to work together with journalists, scientists, and other stakeholders, to find solutions for environmental challenges in the Nile Basin countries.
Activists from Community Against Plastic Waste in South Sudan (CAPws) conducting a cleanup campaign at Bor Dockyard
Key aspects of this webinar training series included the importance of science communication, storytelling and messaging, various methods of communicating scientific information as well as how to develop an activist communications strategy. Participants were also taken through practical sessions that included role plays and case studies to reinforce learning and build skills.
At the end of the training, participants were required to pitch their campaign plan on how they intend to collaborate with an InfoNile journalist to amplify their stories. Outstanding campaigns were supported with small grants and mentorship to produce activism campaigns around the journalists’ stories, collaborating with the journalists. The communication outputs included podcasts, videos, blogs, online videos and website stories promoted through social media and/or community exhibitions.
The second round of the youth activism training program will be rolled out later this year.