Youth Leadership in Climate Adaptation: Bridging Policy Commitments and Local Action. Lessons from the Dialogue Between Kenyan and European Youth

How are young people responding to climate adaptation? Do they have the resources, opportunities and voice to shape the decisions being made in response to climate change?  

These are the key questions that led to the creation of this publication in collaboration with Patrick Irungu, researcher at the University of Nairobi and WeWorld Kenya. The purpose of the study was to examine the role of young people aged 15–35 years and agroecological practices in strengthening climate adaptation and community resilience in Kenya, with particular at­tention to Nairobi and Isiolo counties. 

Young people across the world are increasingly ex­posed to the effects of climate change through live­lihood insecurity, food and water scarcity, disrupted education, migration and displacement, and changing employment opportunities. At the same time, they are increasingly recognized as important actors in climate adaptation, agroecology, climate activism and resilient food systems. Kenya provides an important setting in which to examine this dual reality because climate risks are already reshaping livelihoods and living conditions, while young people are increasingly involved in efforts to respond to them. 

Although separated by less than 300 kilometers, the two counties subjects of this study pres­ent strikingly different climate realities and adapta­tion challenges. Nairobi, home to about 4–5 million people, frequently experiences flooding that disrupts homes, infrastructure and livelihoods. Isiolo, by con­trast, is a vast, sparsely populated dryland county where recurrent drought places water, pasture and livestock-based livelihoods under sustained pressure. Put simply, Nairobi illustrates the danger of too much water, too quickly, while Isiolo demonstrates the con­sequences of too little water, for too long. Against these contrasting realities, the study exam­ines how young people experience and respond to climate change; what they need to adapt; and whether they have a meaningful role in shaping, implementing and monitoring climate responses. It also explores the contribution of agroecology—an approach that brings ecological and social prin­ciples into the way food and agricultural systems are designed and managed—to climate resilience and livelihoods. Attention is given to the experienc­es of young women and men, young people affected by migration and displacement, and others whose circumstances can restrict their access to resources, opportunities and decision-making. 

The questions raised in this study reach far beyond Kenya. Rapidly growing cities across the developing world are confronting floods, heat and pressure on infrastructure, while dryland communities face recur­rent drought, water scarcity and increasingly uncer­tain livelihoods. The experiences of young people in Nairobi and Isiolo counties therefore offer two con­trasting windows onto a much wider challenge: how can communities adapt to a changing climate while giving young people a meaningful role in shaping that response? does the growing recognition of young people as climate actors translate into the resources, opportunities and influence they need to shape climate action? As the world debates the future of climate adaptation, their experiences offer lessons about what young people are already doing, what stands in their way, and what needs to change if climate resilience is also to create viable livelihoods, stronger communities, rights and a meaningful voice and agency for the generation that will live longest with the consequences of climate change. Perspec­tives from European Union (EU) youth provided a comparative lens on youth climate engagement. 

The findings of this publication led to 5 advocacy asks from WeWorld to COP31 in Antalya, depicted in the publication: Youth leadership for climate justice: Placing Young People at the Centre of COP31 Outcomes. 

This publication was realised in the framework of the Rebooting the Food System project, co-funded by the European Commission under the DEAR Programme. The dialogue between young people from Kenya and Europe incorporated in the analysis, to examine common and contrasting experiences related to meaningful participation, agro­ecology, employment and livelihoods, activism, inclu­sion, mobility and accountability, was realised during the Youth Exchange Trip in Kenya in June 2026.  

This publication was produced with the financial support of the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of WeWorld and its authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.