• Loss of livelihood: The people in the region whose livelihood is contingent upon a thriving ecosystem and environment are likely to experience shocks and stresses from environmental degradation and resource depletion.
• Surge in health problems: The escalation of climate change-induced extreme weather events will result in health-related issues. Droughts which occasion water scarcity can fuel malnutrition, dehydration, and other health hazards related to poor sanitation. Floods in areas with poor waste management can spread waterborne diseases such as typhoid, diarrhoea, dysentery, and cholera. Warming temperatures can also increase the exposure of the population to vector-borne diseases (UN DESA 2010).
• Food insecurity and water scarcity: Climate change could cause agriculture productivity in developing countries to decrease by between 9 and 21 per cent (FAO 2009). Crop yields are hampered by soil degradation and erosion, crop damage, and declining harvests stemming from extreme weather events, such as droughts, heatwaves, severe storms, and floods—all of which are expected to occur with greater frequency and intensity. This predicament may worsen in the long term because of increased temperatures and systemic water scarcity linked to climate change (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [IPCC] 2008; World Bank 2010).
It is important to note that while the above impacts are felt across all demographic groups, youth, especially those living in indigenous communities, are most vulnerable to environmental degradation and climate change (UN DESA 2010). Young people will also be harder hit by the effects of environmental degradation and climate change since they will live longer and are expected to face these challenges for a significant portion of their lifetime (UN DESA 2010).
Thus, and in order to mitigate both unemployment and environmental degradation, there is a need for new development models that can drive youth job creation while drastically reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities. Youth engagement in the ‘green economy’, for example, can potentially sustain and enhance the natural capital that constitutes a vital means of livelihood for the vast majority of Africans. This publication will explore the green economy’s potential to create more, decent jobs for young people. It will discuss opportunities in skills development for green jobs; green investments, and entrepreneurship, as well as green economic initiatives that exist or could be strengthened. Particular emphasis is placed on case studies of young people who have gone against the grain to create green initiatives and innovations. Their experiences and insights are captured through contributions from nearly one hundred youth writers who contributed to this publication.
1.4 The green economy
The green economy is defined as one that results in improved human well-being, societal equity and that significantly reduces environmental risks and ecological scarcities (UNEP 2011). Green jobs can be described as jobs that reduce the consumption of energy and raw materials, limit greenhouse gas emissions, minimize waste and pollution, protect and restore ecosystems and that enable enterprises and communities to adapt to climate change (UNEP 2008).
Figure 1: The main sectors of the green economy Green Transport
Renewable Energies
7 Main Sectors of Green Economy
Water Services Clean Technologies Waste Management Source: UNEP (2016b, p. 7) Green Buildings
Sustainable Agriculture & Forests
The green economy (Figure 1) presents an opportunity to advance both sustainability and social equity within the contours of a finite and fragile planet. An inclusive green economy is therefore a pathway towards eradicating poverty, achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and safeguarding the ecological thresholds which underpin human health, well-being, and development (UNEP 2016a).
1.4.1 The green economy and job creation
In addition to increasing productivity while reducing resource use, an inclusive green economy has significant potential to create new jobs in many sectors and sub-sectors of the economy, including in renewable energy and energy efficiency, agriculture and the agro-food industry, tourism, and recycling and waste management.
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Youth-led Green Solutions
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