{"id":45231,"date":"2026-06-09T17:19:33","date_gmt":"2026-06-09T15:19:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/?p=45231"},"modified":"2026-06-09T17:19:33","modified_gmt":"2026-06-09T15:19:33","slug":"climate-youth-ecumenical-summit-launched-in-juba-to-advocate-for-climate-justice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/09\/climate-youth-ecumenical-summit-launched-in-juba-to-advocate-for-climate-justice\/","title":{"rendered":"Climate Youth Ecumenical Summit launched in Juba to advocate for climate justice"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Sabri Dibaco <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

South Sudanese Christian youth on Saturday launched the Climate Youth Ecumenical Summit (Climate YES), a national faith-based movement aimed at mobilising young people to respond to the growing impacts of climate change across the country.<\/p>\n

The initiative is part of an international Christian youth climate advocacy network that was formed by young participants at the United Nations Climate Change Conferences (COP).<\/p>\n

It is designed to strengthen climate justice advocacy, environmental stewardship, and community-led resilience in vulnerable countries.<\/p>\n

In South Sudan, the Climate YES movement will be focused on uniting young people across states and counties to advocate for stronger environmental policies, raise awareness, and promote practical action against climate-related challenges, including flooding, drought, heatwaves, and displacement.<\/p>\n

Speaking at the launch, the National Chairperson of Climate YES South Sudan, Kenyi Emmanuel, described the movement as a long-term platform intended to amplify youth voices in environmental decision-making.<\/p>\n

He said South Sudan is already experiencing severe climate shocks, including rising temperatures, widespread deforestation, and recurrent flooding that continues to displace communities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have seen a lot of climate shocks in our country…and this movement is about advocacy and movement building,\u201d Kenyi said.<\/p>\n

He stated that Climate YES aims to organise young people not only in Juba but also across the country to advocate for environmental protection and accountability jointly.<\/p>\n

Kenyi raised concerns over unchecked deforestation and charcoal production, citing cross-border trade routes where timber and charcoal are transported in large quantities to neighboring countries.<\/p>\n

He argued that weak environmental enforcement in the country has contributed to widespread tree cutting, warning that continued forest loss would worsen heatwaves and flooding.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we continue destroying forests, the future of our children will be at stake,\u201d he said, adding that policymakers must urgently introduce and enforce environmental protection laws.<\/p>\n

He also highlighted growing public health risks linked to rising temperatures and poor waste management, noting that many communities lack basic systems for garbage disposal.<\/p>\n

Kenyi further pointed to plastic pollution as a major threat, warning that plastics, which take hundreds of years to decompose, are increasingly breaking down into microplastics that enter the food chain.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople are getting sick every time because waste is everywhere,\u201d he said. He added that poor waste management practices are visible not only in Juba but also in towns such as Wau and Malakal.<\/p>\n

He called for stronger environmental education, particularly among children and young people, to promote sustainable consumption habits and responsible use of resources.<\/p>\n

The National Coordinator of Climate YES, Paul Yokoju, said the launch marks the beginning of a nationwide mobilisation effort that will recruit young people from schools, communities, and all counties.<\/p>\n

He said the movement has already engaged young participants from primary and secondary schools and is focused on both climate adaptation and mitigation strategies.<\/p>\n

Yokoju explained that Climate YES will promote awareness campaigns, youth empowerment initiatives, and climate-friendly livelihood opportunities, including waste recycling and tree nurseries.<\/p>\n

He also encouraged innovative approaches such as sustainable energy use and tree planting as potential income-generating activities for young people.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur mission is to educate, empower, and advocate so that communities can better respond to climate change,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Adding a faith perspective, Reverend Francis Philip Ladu urged young people to use faith, creativity, and technology to protect the environment.<\/p>\n

He said environmental protection is a divine mandate, referencing the biblical call in Genesis for humanity to be stewards of creation.<\/p>\n

He encouraged youth to mobilise communities for tree planting campaigns and environmental awareness, stressing that climate action should be rooted in moral and spiritual responsibility.<\/p>\n

Climate YES has already registered about 100 members in South Sudan, with expectations to expand rapidly across all states and counties.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Sabri Dibaco South Sudanese Christian youth on Saturday launched the Climate Youth Ecumenical Summit (Climate YES), a national faith-based movement aimed at mobilising young people to respond to the growing impacts of climate change across the country. The initiative is part of an international Christian youth climate advocacy network[Read More…]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":45232,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[157,80,79],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-45231","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-climate","category-national","category-news"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Members-of-the-Climate-YES-pose-for-a-group-photo-after-the-launch.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45231","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45231"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45231\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45233,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45231\/revisions\/45233"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45232"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45231"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45231"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45231"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}