This year, International Youth Day on August 12th gave us the opportunity to celebrate youth reporters addressing issues in their community through their unique perspectives, critical thinking, and informed broadcasts.
Watch our video of Beatrice Phiri, a Zambian youth reporter with Agents of Change Foundation, as she investigates how the use of charcoal for energy directly impacts daily life for communities in Lusaka.
Through radio, young people like Beatrice have become community leaders, sharing information about climate change the environment, and other local issues, gathering with peers to solve problems, and promoting dialogue that shifts mindsets. In our Unite4Climate Youth Radio project, over 100 active trained youth reporters create radio shows to elevate public dialogue about the multiple dimensions of climate change, its effects and challenges, and the ways it can be mitigated at the community level.
Our partners Makhulu produced the video and Sydelle Willow Smith took the photos of this powerful young woman and her dedication to creating nuanced and impactful community radio programming. “When I pick up a recorder it’s always a challenge & it’s always inspiring & motivating” says Beatrice.
If you want to find out more about the unsustainable cycle of production & consumption of charcoal burning in Zambia and the impact on the environment, listen to this interview with Benjamin Mibenge during the Greenpop Festival in Livingstone.
The passionate 18-year-old young reporter, Beatrice Phiri
Beatrice planting trees with young Zambian children
An informal charcoal market in Zambia highlights the unsustainable cycle of production & consumption of charcoal burning