24 candidates from the Colombo district were selected and trained to be leaders in climate action under the auspices of the Youth Leadership for Climate Action (YLCA) Project, funded by the British Council and implemented by Biodiversity Sri Lanka with technical support from Curve Up. The training program was conducted over a period of nine days, in all three languages. Split into 3 segments, the 1st two segments were residential training programs whilst the 3rd segment was a non-residential training program. Both the first and second training segments were conducted successfully, along with activities for skills development, climate awareness, and entertainment for the participants. The sessions were focused on the YLCA Learning Journey (YLCA River Journey), which is conducted in 5 phases: Me, Me, and You, We Together, Social Action, and Locally engaged-globally connected.
Here is a cross-section of participant feedback:
- “Compared to previous workshops we’ve attended, YLCA made each one of us gets involved in all the activities, keeping us away from boredom.” – Shaheer Ahamed
- “YLCA has made me look at the environment around me with a different perception, for example, I see a tree as something which helps reduce pollution in the air.” – Fathima Nawreen
- “Thank you so much for the excellent training. We were quite pleased with how much fun you made it for us! We gained a lot of knowledge. We were strongly urged to participate by the excellent facilitators.” -Kithiyon Yoganathan
- “The YLCA training program helped me a lot to think differently in terms of biodiversity and climate change.” – Junali Shaini
- “The program has instilled good values in me, to see the unseen side of climate change”. – Jathujan Mahendran
After a comprehensive training session on project development, along with expanded virtual discussions on the project proposals, followed by ideation and prototyping workshops, candidates were inspired to raise 8 project ideas (Individual & group), focused on climate change and biodiversity.
Here are some of the Community Intervention Projects:
- Spread awareness on Biodegradable diapers and the long-term goal to introduce an appropriate biodegradable diaper product to the market.
- Upcycling the fabric waste to reduce the open burning of fabric waste and produce a new product.
- Tree planting program with the involvement of the children living under probation to enhance the air quality in the area while reducing air pollution and fostering a positive mindset in the children who are a part of the program.
- Make a video documentary to spreading awareness of environmental harm from lunch sheets.
- Eco-friendly play items for kids are designed and produced using wood waste materials. By utilizing eco-friendly toys instead of plastic ones, this encourages improving children’s attitudes while reducing plastic usage and waste.
- Spread awareness on the value of the wetlands, based on Bellanwila- Aththidiya Sanctuary. The long-term objective is to organize youth-focused wetland activist groups in the Aththidiya Sanctuary area.
- Innovative ways to manage garbage in schools through awareness, introducing waste management system, 3R, school gardening, etc
- Introduce a proper solution for food waste management by converting food waste into compost using a machine called a food waste accelerator.
Candidates will begin their three-month community intervention initiatives after the third segment of the training. While the intervention projects are in progress, a networking program for the candidates will be held on the first week of February 2023, with the involvement of stakeholders from the public and private sectors. At this event, the project teams will present their concepts, and the best project concept, best presenter, etc. will be chosen. Candidates from Kandy and Gampaha will also take part.
Keep in touch with us for more updates on this fascinating program.
