Global Youth Take Action on Water and Climate Change – 2nd Edition

Youth for Water and Climate calls for project application to support the implementation of youth-led initiatives related to sustainable water resources management and climate change adaptation and to enhance the young leaders’ capacities as actors of change in the water and climate sector.

Over the last year, the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted inequalities worldwide regarding access to water, sanitation, and hygiene services and the capacity of vulnerable populations to respond to a global health emergency (2019 JMP Report, OMS/UNICEF). However, the increasing need for water to comply with hygiene recommendations coincides with the increasing unreliability of water supply partially caused by the impacts of climate change (World Meteorological Organization (WMO), 2020; UN News, 2020). Now, 2.3 billion people or about 30 % of the world population live in a water-stressed country (UN WATER, 2021). The need for water is increasing by 1% yearly. At this rate, the proportion of the population suffering from water insecurity should reach 52 % by 2050, particularly affecting the most vulnerable and marginalized populations particularly. (EIU, 2021)

Water-related challenges are mainly caused by water shortage, water excess and poor water quality which are exuberating by climate change impact, population growth and rising living standards (EIU, 2021). Although ensuring reliable access to safe drinking water is necessary, these efforts go hand in hand with water conservation measures and climate actions (UN News, 2020).

This unprecedented global challenge has emphasized the vital importance of integrated and sustainable water resources management.

All over the world, youth are stepping up and mobilizing to lend a helping hand to those most in need by proposing inspiring, creative, and innovative ideas. More than ever, it is vital to support young people who are engaged and empowered for achieving water security. Through their actions, young people have shown that they are unified across disciplines and scales to understand, innovate, and adapt to the complex and dynamic nature of water security and governance.

This call for projects has been designed to identify, encourage, and support youth engagement related to water resources management and climate change adaptation. More specifically this call for projects aims to support initiatives regarding water & health, water & agriculture, water-related risks, and water sharing working towards Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 6 and 13.

THEMES

The call for projects is structured around 4 main interlinked themes all related to water resources management and climate change.

Admissible projects must cover one or several of these themes:

1. Water and health: Water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) emergency response, good sanitation and hygiene habits to protect their health, (e.g., health and water campaigns), water-borne diseases solutions, water availability, quality, and quantity for domestic uses, low-cost technology to ensure safe water quality, implementation and monitoring of sustainable sanitation systems, etc.
2. Water and agriculture: can be related to food safety, irrigation, drought issues, rainwater harvesting, stormwater management for irrigation, adaptation, and management of variation in precipitation, low-cost technologies regarding agriculture and irrigation, sustainable agriculture practices, etc.
3. Water-related risks: can be related to climate change risk management, climate change adaptation plan, recovery, and response to natural disasters such as storms, floods, and drought, etc.
4. Sharing water: can be related to transboundary cooperation, watershed management, water & peace, sharing water between different needs (domestic, agricultural, industrial), sharing a source of water between villages and industries, integrated water resources management, etc.

ELIGIBILITY

To be eligible, participants and their project must correspond to the following criteria:

• The project or project leaders cannot have received financial and technical support through a previous YWC call for projects.
• The project must be conceived, led and implemented by youth aged between 18 and 35;
• Project implementation must respect local public health rules and regulations regarding the current pandemic and must not increase the level of risks for project leaders and communities;
• Project leaders must have project management experience;
• Project leaders from every part of the world are eligible;
• Projects from low- and middle-income countries, projects targeting indigenous communities, projects led by young women and projects targeting women will be prioritized;
• The project must be sustainable; projects tackling socio-economic as well as environmental challenges will be prioritized;
• The project must address at least one of the four themes;
• Youth participation must be included across all aspects of the project;
• Projects must have a direct local impact on vulnerable communities;
• Can be a new or ongoing project;
• The project can be submitted in French, English, Russian or Spanish;
• The project leaders must be fluent in French, English, Russian or Spanish.

The application deadline is June 30, 2021.

Click here for more information and application