Youth activists advocating for climate change mitigation have called for the inclusiveness of all stakeholders towards the shift from high-carbon activities into the green economy.

The shift, which is commonly termed as a Just Transition by climate change experts, is aimed at reducing dangers among workers, communities, countries, and regions while maximising the benefits of climate action.

Speaking during a two-day Just Transition Summit organised by Tard Foundation over the weekend, Reagan Elija, the leader of Diplomatic relations, said Just Transition is one of the booming discussions in climate spaces globally focusing on how to move away from fossil fuel economy to renewable energy yet most African people don’t understand it.

Some of youth and children participants attending the summit at Silver Springs.

“Climate scientists confirm that fossil fuels are the main causes of the global climate crisis. As Tard Foundation, we decided to explain to the young people who are majorly affected by the global climate crisis this topic through discussion and what alternatives we need for fossil fuels like fuel, oil, coal, and others that have been a major cause of environmental destruction,” he said.

He said, the Just Transition is an ongoing campaign and that people like the bodaboda riders are ignorant about the Just Transition yet some of the programmes the Government is launching such as electric vehicles are new to them.

“We have seen the president commissioning electric vehicles, but the country has not prepared bodabodas and their minds about what these electric vehicles are and their importance and why they should abandon fuel-powered and invest in electric-powered vehicles," he said.

John Mark Muwanika from the Amalgamated Transport and General Workers Union said the science of climate change says that 20% of the carbon emissions that are bringing dangerous greenhouse gasses are through transport.

“We have bodabodas and taxis which are old because their owners cannot maintain them to a level that is not polluting to the environment. The key element is how best to work with them to shift from using fuel-powered boda-bodas to electric ones," Muwanika said.

He added that once awareness is done, the bodaboda riders will be ready to embrace electric motorcycles.

Vanessa Nakate, a climate change activist, said the inclusion of youth and children should be emphasised in the Just Transition because they are worried about the future since the current is catastrophic.

She  added that there is need for the Government to put up affordable safe transport systems, such as trains and electric buses which can be afforded by everybody to ease the JUST Transition.

Dr Charles Batte, an environmentalist, while giving a keynote address, said one of the pertinent issues in the Just Transition is community engagement.

Vanessa Nakate a climate change activist also UNICEF good will ambassador interacting with Dr. Charles Batte

Climate change is dispassionately affecting people in low- and middle-income countries with evident effects in our communities yet we also contribute to it in our choices of energy. 

“Uganda is currently losing over 100 hectares of forest every year due to dependence on bio-mass fuel for cooking. We need to understand our energy need in order to seek local solutions,” he said.

While presenting the youth declaration, Joan Namagwa, a climate change activist, called for revising carbon pricing mechanisms that can push a shift towards renewable energy and energy efficiency.

Other issues in the declaration include putting up Informative programs in place with the aim to disseminate information to communities about a Just Transition, practice clean energy through the use of smart agriculture technologies to reduce emissions.

“As youth, we believe alternatives should be provided to local people at favourable prices and costs. We ask the government to come up with a Just Transition paradigm at the various education levels in addition to involving women who are the most affected in the climate crisis,” she said.