Education
Experts urge youths to embrace climate action, shun harmful practices – EnviroNews
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Experts in disaster risk management and environmental sustainability have urged youths to embrace climate-friendly practices and become active agents of climate change mitigation.
The experts made the call on Friday, October 23, 2026, at a climate change awareness programme organised for students of Word of Faith School, Benin City, Edo State.
The programme was organised by Nigeria News Source, an online newspaper focused on environmental issues, with support from the Benin Youth Leaders Forum (BYLF), to commemorate the 2026 International Day of Climate Action.
The event with the theme: “Every Action Matters: Taking Individual Responsibility for Mitigating Climate Change Impact,” sought to encourage young people to adopt environmentally responsible habits at school and at home.
Speaking at the event, Chuks Oluigbo, Founder and Publisher of Nigeria News Source, said tackling climate change required collective action by governments, businesses and individuals.
“Businesses, governments, individuals – everyone is involved but for us, it begins with individuals.
“That is why we are moving beyond the generic and drilling down to the role every individual can play in protecting the environment and mitigating climate change impact,” he said.
Oluigbo, a member of the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF), said young people needed to understand that their actions today would shape the environment they and future generations would inherit.
“It is important for them to understand that the action they take or fail to take today will determine the kind of world they, their children and their grandchildren will inherit,” he said.
He urged the students to embrace sustainable practices and understand their responsibility as caretakers of the environment.
“We want them to understand that we, as human beings, are created to be stewards or caretakers of creation.
“It is, therefore, our duty to do whatever it takes to protect creation and use everything that nature has bestowed on us in a sustainable manner,” he said.
The event featured the donation of two waste baskets to the school by Nigeria News Source to encourage proper waste separation.
Oluigbo said one basket was designated for biodegradable waste and the other for non-biodegradable waste, urging the students to practise responsible waste disposal.
The guest speaker, Dr Festus Atewe, a lecturer in the Department of Geography and Disaster Risk Management, University of Benin (UNIBEN), educated the students on the causes and effects of climate change and practical ways to mitigate its impact.
Atewe encouraged tree planting, explaining that trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and helped mitigate climate change.
“Whatever you do, the environment will definitely get back to you, if not now, then in the future,” he said.
He advised the students to shun bush burning, deforestation and other activities that contributed to greenhouse gas emissions.
The lecturer also advocated for the use of renewable energy sources, particularly solar power, as alternatives to petrol- and diesel-powered generators.
Other measures he recommended included planting trees around homes, adopting electric and hybrid vehicles, and reducing reliance on private cars through walking, cycling, car-pooling and public transportation.
Atewe urged the youths to become environmental protectors rather than destroyers by making climate-conscious choices in their daily activities.
In her remarks, the school administrator, Mrs. Peace Akan Sebastian, commended the organisers for the initiative and pledged the school’s support for activities promoting environmental sustainability.
By Usman Aliyu