SEO Riders:
- – Youth-led initiatives drive Kenya’s forest conservation efforts
- – fricanYouth4Forests workshop empowers young eco-entrepreneurs
- — Kenyan youth advocate for sustainable forestry and climate action
At the AfricanYouth4Forests (AY4F) National Youth Workshop in Kitui County, young environmental leaders from across Kenya issued a declaration affirming their central role in the country’s green transition and forest conservation agenda. The three-day workshop, themed “From Science to Youth Action for Sustainable Forestry,” was organized by the African Forest Forum in collaboration with the Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI) and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU).
The youth declaration highlighted challenges facing Kenya’s forest ecosystems, including climate change, limited youth inclusion in policymaking, deforestation, and lack of access to funding and technical training. Despite these obstacles, participants reaffirmed their readiness to lead through green innovation, community-based conservation, and forest-based entrepreneurship.
Proposed solutions from the youth included establishing tree nursery enterprises, utilizing digital storytelling for forest advocacy, initiating carbon credit projects, implementing climate-smart agroforestry, and developing timber and non-timber forest product enterprises and ecotourism ventures
The AY4F initiative aims to empower youth aged 18–30 by integrating traditional knowledge with scientific and digital tools, enabling them to transform environmental aspirations into practical actions that protect biodiversity, mitigate climate impacts, and generate green livelihoods. The workshop served as a platform to equip youth with tools for sustainable forest management, foster innovation and entrepreneurship within the green economy, and strengthen youth advocacy for policy influence and decision-making.
