The European Union in Kenya Monday marked World Environment Day with the launch of the #GenerationGreen campaign demonstrating the EU’s commitment to fight climate change, advance the green transition globally and engage young Kenyans in finding innovative solutions.
In line with the Kenyan government’s bottom-up framework, the EU hosted children from various Kenyan schools who watched a puppet show titled Leo’s search for a new home during the event.
During the launch which was held at the Alliance Francaise in Nairobi, the EU Ambassador to Kenya, Henriette Geiger, said that supporting the green transition was one of the major areas of cooperation between the EU and Kenya;
“This is not just about saving the planet, but also very much about doing it in such a way that Kenyans, especially young ones, can create and benefit from new jobs that are sustainable. Our focus is on green jobs that help Kenya mitigate and adapt to climate change in partnership with the EU.”
150 children from various schools in Nairobi were taken through a puppet making workshop and made public presentations about the environment.
The theme for this year’s World Environment Day is #BeatPlasticPollution.
The week-long campaign, which coincides with EU Green Week, will see children from five Nairobi primary schools take part in workshops making puppets from recycled plastic and creating short skits on plastic pollution.
The EU also reiterated its commitment to invest in mitigation, climate resilience, clean energy and clean mobility projects in Kenya to help reinforce energy security and provide economic and employment opportunities.
In Kenya, the EU is active under the EU Green Deal through its Go Blue Programme which includes waste management and marine management units to undertake waste management and protection of marine ecosystems as well as supporting farmers to adopt sustainable consumption and production.
More than 400 million tonnes of plastic are produced every year, half of which is used only once and of that less than 11pc is recycled.
The EU Plastics Strategy, part of the circular economy action plan, aims to protect the environment and human health by reducing marine litter, greenhouse gas emissions and dependence on imported fossil fuels.
