1
Solomon Islands Red
Cross youth for change
A young population
In the Solomon Islands people under the age of
29 make up a staggering 70 per cent of the
population
1
, making them the largest but often
the most unheard group in the nation. A 2003
study reported the issues identified by young
men and women and their communities as
learning opportunities, participation, livelihoods,
youth activities and reproductive health
2
.
Population drift towards the capital Honiara, the
lack of infrastructure, difficulty accessing
education
and
consequently
high
unemployment can make life very tough for
young people growing up in the Solomon
Islands. The lack of employment and education
and the difficulty in making connections mean
that many youth “stap nomoa” – they stay at
home and don’t do a lot. Young people are
often financially dependent on their family,
especially in Honiara where money is key to
everything.
Red Cross and Youth
The Solomon Islands Red Cross has taken the
view that this growing population of young,
urban people with time on their hands can be
an opportunity; by engaging them in its
programmes and activities they can address
some of these issues and improve the lives of
Solomon Islanders. Secretary General Nancy
Jolo says that engaging young people to lead
programmes is one way to promote youth
development and an opportunity for them to
take leading roles involving responsibility and
challenge. It is a chance for young people to
gain work experience.
1
Department of Finance and Treasury, Solomon
Islands Statistics Office, Household income and
Expenditure Survey 2005/6: National Report,
Honiara, September 2006
2
Hassall and Associates International, 2003, Youth
in Solomon Islands: A participatory study of issues,
needs and priorities, Final Report.
George Baragamu is a key example of just that.
Starting as a youth volunteer, George was hired
as the National Society’s Climate Change and
Disaster Risk Reduction Officer and is
committed to working on what he sees as a
cross cutting issue that will affect all other
sectors of society in a country already
vulnerable to climate extremes. Repercussions
such as rising sea levels, increased intensity of
cyclones, coastal erosion and salt water
intrusion in to fields and crops will mean that all
900 islands, whether they are atolls, or artificial
or mountainous islands will feel the impacts of
climate change.
In the remote Malaita provence of the
Solomon Islands, Red Cross facilitators
actively engaged young people in the
community so that their voices could be
heard.
Climate Change Programme
The Solomon Islands Red Cross embarked on
the climate change programme in 2007 in
recognition of “the importance of the impacts of
climate change on human life and well being”,
according to Jolo. The programme has been
effective in showing what an asset the
enthusiasm and energy of young people is, with
the forming of a young team that undertake
some of its programme activities and double as
a youth group. George Baragamu points out
that because young people are already active in
the workplace, families, sport, churches and
their schools, engaging them is a great way to
expand the reach of the programme.
2
Working With Schools
Young people are trained in the concepts of
climate change, who then become peer
educators in schools and communities. There is
a new generation to train each year and the
current target group is 16 and 17 year olds. The
Solomon Islands Red Cross are also working
with schools to include climate change and
disaster risk reduction in school assessments.
Honiara students were also invited to submit
poster representations of the impacts of climate
change in the Pacific for World Environment
Day. The winning entries were printed and
distributed to communities and schools. Judges
from the local arts community judged their
accuracy, originality and creativity and then
coached the winning young artists.
The winners of the climate change poster
competition received coaching from local
artists
Village Assessment to National Policy
Further afield, an assessment was undertaken
in the isolated and vulnerable North Malaita
artificial islands using a combined approach
based on the Red Cross Red Crescent’s
“Vulnerability and Capacity Assessment” and
WWF’s
“Climate
Witness
Toolkit”.
In
consultations one of the Red Cross facilitators
was a young person and actively engaged
young people in the community so that their
voices could be heard.
Peer education on climate change and
disaster risk reduction in schools
The main issue faced by the community is
access to water. At present they rely either on
catching rainwater in tanks or canoeing to the
mainland – both weather dependent activities.
With changing rainfall and wind patterns, they
are becoming more vulnerable to water
shortages.
Installing
more
water-storage
capacity was identified as the number one
priority. Action on issues such as these, which
greatly affect young people, has been
advocated for by the Solomon Islands Red
Cross through the development of the National
Adaptation Programme of Action and national
youth policy.
Awareness Raising
In further efforts to increase awareness of
climate change and actions that can be taken to
address the impacts, the Solomon Islands Red
Cross worked with the national disaster-
management office to design an FM radio quiz
for schools for World Disaster Reduction Day
on how to reduce disaster risk and impact. It
was broadcast in the afternoon, when students
are home, in the capital Honiara as well as
further afield. Messages about climate change
were integrated into the programme. Solomon
Islands Youth for Change and the Red Cross
also teamed up for Clean Up the World Day.
They worked with young people to clean up
garbage and weeds around town and along
main roads.
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National Youth Forum
The Solomon Islands Youth and Climate
Change Forum was held in November 2008
and involved over 70 youth participants. Some
of the “young at heart” were also permitted
observer status. Field trips to villages engaged
the participants in interviews with villagers to
find out more about the challenges they face
and the changes that they are noticing. It also
provided the opportunity to put into practice the
skills they had been taught on risk reduction
measures during the forum. Aid agencies, civil
society and government came together to pool
resources and skills across sectors such as
environment,
disaster
management
and
development.
During a National Youth Forum on climate
change, participants learnt how to create
seasonal calendars and interviewed elders
to understand changes in seasons
Ara is the term used in the Solomon Islands
associated with dry conditions and usually
people undertake planting in the period from
April to November. Komburu is the wet and
signals time to harvest. However interviews of
village elders undertaken by young people
during the field trips discovered that these days
ara and comburu are all mixed up – the
seasons don’t come like they used to. People
are finding it difficult to predict when to plant
and harvest their crops – ultimately impacting
upon food security and increasing dependence
on imported goods that are much more
expensive.
Youth participants commented afterwards that it
is incredibly important that people know about
and act on climate change and the forum was a
good way of achieving that amongst Solomon
Islands youth. As Baragamu passionately
states, “climate change is a global issue and it
requires a global effort. Youth can play a very
important role in their communities, their
country and their region. They will be the ones
facing the impacts of climate change now and
into the future so its important that they know
the issue now”.
Tingting lo climate change – tingting lo
action – tingting lo youth!
Think climate change – think action –
think youth!
Compiled by Julie Webb & Bec McNaught
Revised version published June 2009 on
www.climatecentre.org