Rakai Youths for Action and Development, Uganda

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Challenger Profile at a Glance

Meet the challenger team, Rakai Youths for Action & Development, from Uganda. They focus on raising and distributing tree seedlings, while raising awareness about climate change. Find out how they are making a difference as part of the 2020 International Climate Action Challenge!

Team

#85 – Rakai Youths for Action & Development (RYAD)
90-Day Challenge Goal: Raise and distribute tree seedlings and raise climate change awareness geared toward action
Location: Rakai, Uganda
Registered Challengers: Samuel Yawe aka Bigger Al-Islam
90-Day Challenge Period: September 1 – November 30, 2020

Impact

Here are some impact highlights from the RYAD team during the 90-day challenge period:

Grew team from 10 to 20 members
Meet with local leaders and train them as ambassadors of change
Distributed 3,000 trees for planting
Held climate change sensitization meetings with communities
Trained youth on how to establish tree nurseries, providing financial capabilities

Challenge Experience

What part of the challenge was most helpful to you? Here’s what Bigger said:

“Of course, the Climate Action Challenge book and the workbook. It gives streamlined guidance in terms of steps. That was so helpful.”

“The weekly trainings were super cool for me and my team because we had interactions with different people,” said Bigger, referring to weekly Zoom meetings with challengers from around the world

Bigger said that by sharing experiences and knowing that more people were taking action, it motivated them to carry on.

Next Steps

Moving forward, RYAD plans to build on their momentum.

Reach out to more communities to do more climate sensitization trainings
Raise 5,000 tree seedlings
Develop more partnerships

Advice

We asked Bigger, what is your advice for someone who wants to make an impact? Here’s what he said:

“Time is running out, so they need to start now. And most importantly, they should not be restrained by anything. If one has passion for action, they should just start there right away. Start with the little you have, and once you get started, it will even motivate others to take action because they’ll be like, He has done it, so I can. And the only way to know that you can do something is to get started.”