Lungi salesmen start Climate Club to promote environmental education for youth
(MissionNewswire) Salesian Father Philip Gboa has launched a new Climate Club in Lungi, a small coastal town in the Port Loko District of the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. The club will be open for the more than 6,000 youth from the local Salesian schools and youth centre. It will have a focus environmental education and activities. The club will be started with at least 60 youth. The program will be facilitated by ten volunteers from St. Augustine Agricultural Secondary School and Junior Secondary Schools.
Fr. said, “When the world talks about climate change or environmental impact it’s not being discussed here.” Gboa. Gboa. They cut down trees without a reason. All over the place, there are plastic bags. There are beaches, but no one uses them. We have cholera, typhoid and other diseases as a result. Something needs to be done. It’s not just parents who are affected; it’s also the children.
Fr. Gboa states that the environment doesn’t last long. Gboa wants to teach children how they can take care of the environment and to instill the knowledge that it is so important for long-term success.
Fr. Fr. This is the right time to teach our children. They will be able to teach others if they are taught in schools. They will be able tell others about the Climate Club, the lessons they have learned, and the importance to preserve the environment. “The ambassadors for the environment are the young people.”
The Climate Club will be open three days per week. It will offer youth educational sessions, activities, and activities that teach them about the environment. Fr. Gboa explained that youth who are appointed ambassadors will be eligible financially for 50 percent of the university fees.
Fr. Gboa. “If they are chosen to become Climate Club Ambassadors, we will support them financially to continue with their education. They will never forget the lessons learned in the club and will always remember that the club was what allowed them to continue school. They will pass on their knowledge to others.
Since 2001, Salesian missionaries in Sierra Leone have been working with Don Bosco Fambul to help former child soldiers. Don Bosco Fambul, located in the capital city of Freetown, has become one of the country’s leading child welfare organizations—offering food, clothing, crisis intervention services, shelter, educational opportunities, long-term counseling and family reunification.
Accessing education is a major challenge for young people. Resources are limited because there are not enough teachers and schools have been destroyed by the war. A staggering 70% of Sierra Leone’s youth are either unemployed, or underemployed because of persistently high illiteracy rates.
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Sources:
Photo courtesy Salesians of Lungi in Sierra Leone
Salesian Missions Sierra Leone
UNICEF Sierra Leone