Vanessa Nakate, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, Wants to Center Climate Frontline Communities
Vanessa Nakate, the founder of the Rise Up movement, emphasizes the importance of recognizing the ways that frontline communities are uniquely affected by the climate crisis. Her work in Kenya gave her first hand exposure to the impacts of the crisis on vulnerable communities. Many countries in the Horn of Africa, as well as developing nations around the world, bear the brunt of the damage from the crisis while contributing the least. In Fact, Africa accounts for less than 4% of historic carbon emissions, and yet Africans are among the worst affected by their consequences. Nakate focuses specifically on the impacts of malnutrition from drought, flood, and other climate disasters leading to food and water shortages. UNICEF’s Children Climate Risk Index found that nearly half of the world’s children live in 33 countries that face extreme existential threats from climate change, the top 10 all being African countries. Nakate stresses the importance of sharing stories and data even when it is difficult to hear, and the significance of ensuring that people of color, young people, and people in the developing world are included and heard in conversations around the crisis. Photo credit: Daylin Paul/UNICEF
