YARDOSL Engage EPA-SL on Youth Involvement in Environmental Protection.

On the 3^rd August 2020, The Executive Director of YARDOSL, Mr. Ahmid C Jalloh alongside a Climate Action Ambassador from YARDOSL, Mrs. Isatu Sunkarie Mansaray paid a courtesy call to the newly appointed head of the Environmental Protection Agency of Sierra Leone, Dr. Bondi Gevao at his office.

According to the Executive Director of YARDOSL, the visit was a timely one as he noted that there are need why young people must be included in the environmental management process considering that young people make up majority of Sierra Leone’s population. He explained the work of YARDOSL as a youth-led and youth empowerment agency working towards a just and inclusive society free of poverty, hunger, inequality and environmental degradation. In explaining their work at YARDOSL, Mr. Jalloh highlighted their role in providing capacity building trainings to young CSO leaders across the country in an effort to promote youth-led environmental stewardship at grassroot level. To make his point, Mr. Jalloh asked Mrs. Sunkarie to explain her work and aspirations as a trained climate action ambassador of YARDOSL. Mrs Sunkarie was quick to pay appreciation to the YARDOSL Executive Director for giving young people like her a platform to contribute to societal development through environmental conservation. She stressed on the importance of training young environmental CSO leaders as she noted that upon completion of her training program, she have got the knowledge and requisite skills in advocating for her environment. She also lamented on the extra confidence and motivation she gained from the training which have seen her champion climate action in her Hill Station community through climate education and awareness raising. She reaffirmed that climate education is very critical if indeed we are to take positive action to mitigation or adapt to the consequences of climate change that have already started disrupting lives and economies in the world, even in Sierra Leone as unpredictable weather conditions are failing rural farmers which is threating our food security.

On the part of EPASL, the Executive Chairman, Dr. Gevao expressed a great satisfaction in what he described as essential collaboration for effective environmental protection is what Sierra Leone needs most at the moment. He analyzed the mandate of the agency, and highlighting the challenges they face in executing environmental compliance at community level across the country. He was impressed that a youth-led organization like YARDOSL can indeed mobilize, engage and empower them with training and resources to take action to protection their environment at community level. He furthered that YARDOSL should continue to empower and inspire young people to lead in protecting their environment as he said, only with a sustainable environment comes prosperity. He encouraged YARDOSL to continue their work and ensure that the climate action ambassadors are motivated enough to protect their environmental at community level. He affirmed that this partnership will indeed assist the EPA in executing its mandate at grassroot if the climate action ambassadors continue to raise environmental awareness, report environmental hazards and even creating innovation and solutions to solve their community’s environmental problems.