Youth X International Climate Action
One of our generation’s earliest memories of an international climate disaster is the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, which killed more than 200,000 people and shook people across the globe. Nearly 16 years later, the world has seen its fair share of natural calamities such as droughts, forest fires, and floods, many of which have been attributed to climate change.
These catastrophic climate-related events have not only devastated communities, but as staff writer Hussein El Khechen once put it:
“[climate damage] disproportionately affects less developed nations, less fortunate populations in richer countries, and more countries with a history of political and civil unrest…Natural disasters cause pain, suffering, and destruction wherever they go, but the price paid is not always equal. While richer countries suffer economic losses, poorer countries pay with their lives.”
As unfortunate as this reality is, young people from disadvantaged groups have refused to stay put and simply accept the malingering effects of climate change. In lower and middle income countries (LMIC), youth have come together to devise solutions to climate change in their communities. Canadian youth are also lending a hand to fellow youth and LMIC communities by bringing awareness to the climate-related issues they face and by providing help on the ground.
Meet Rootworks
Rootworks is a Canadian, youth-led nonprofit organization that aims to build sustainable water-harvesting technologies in rural Ethiopia and Somalia.
After witnessing the devastation that the 2017 drought in East Africa caused for local communities, the founding members of Rootworks decided to pool together resources to visit the region and document its condition.
This became the groundwork for Rootworks’ first documentary, ‘The Water Project’, which has been screened in cities and school campuses across North America.
The documentary has been met with positive reception, and what first started as a few young people’s way of connecting back to their roots, has evolved into an organization that is dealing with one of the largest climate issues of our time.
Following the success of “The Water Project” screenings, the Rootworks team is now working towards ending the water crisis’ in East African regions by building Sand dams. Sand dams are simple, low-cost dams that collect rainwater and increase the availability of clean water for farming.
As of September 2019 , Rootworks has entered the first stage of sand dam construction, and the team is documenting the process by sharing vlogs on the Rootworks International Youtube channel.
To learn more about Rootworks and how you can get involved, please visit their website (www.rootworks.org), and Instagram page (@rootworks__) to connect. Also, don’t forget to check out the trailer for the “Water Project” below.
Photos by Rootworks Media
