Kaior Alu James, Student, University of Agriculture Makurdi, Nigeria

They have been an unprecedented increase in the devastating impact of climate change in the recent decades, such as floods, rising sea levels, heatwaves, drought and extinction of some biodiversity species.

Human activities in the environment such as, bush burning, fuel-wood extraction, deforestation, application of chemical fertilizer, pollution, industrialization and logging activities all pave way for climate change.

Climate change is a global problem with grave implications: environmental, social, economic, political and for the distribution of goods. It represents one of the principal challenges facing humanity in our days, and is affecting every country globally. There is every need for urgent action to allievate the causes and devastating impacts of climate change.

Climate Action is the stepped-up efforts gearing towards mitigation of climate change and its devastating impacts. Climate action is everyone's responsibility especially the youths. According to Sanginga, youths are critical to global efforts to combat deforestation and natural resource degradation. In Nigeria youths includes citizens between the age of 18-29 years while the African Youth Charter recognise youths as people between 18-35 years. Youths constitute Nigeria's only hope for a real future and its applicable to other countries of the world. The Nigerian government characterizes youth as ambitious, enthusiastic, energetic and promising.

Getting the youths involved in conservation could help preserve the African forests, sustain efforts on reforestation and slow down the alarming rate of deforestation, says Dr. Nteranya Sanginga, Director General of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA).

Youths makes significant impacts on climate actions when they are organized and recruited in commitment to the cuase of environmental protection and raise awareness on the negative effects of deforestation, as a response in curbing forest loss and climate change.

About the Author: Kaior Alu James is an Undergraduate Student at Department of Wildlife and Range Management, University of Agriculture Makurdi, Nigeria