A documentary on the environment and climate change produced by Ghanaian youth videographers would be showcased at the upcoming climate discussions in Dubai (COP 28).
The films also capture climate change mitigation measures executed by individuals and organisations, including the adoption of climatesmart agriculture systems to improve food security and production.
The documentary consists of 11 separate films that highlighted the impact of climate change on the environment and livelihoods, particularly among coastal communities.
The films were produced as part of the Ghana Youth Videography Programme and facilitated by the UN Youth Climate Report.
The programme gives opportunity to the youth to showcase videos that give detailed accounts of climate change and its effects.
At the film presentation at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) in Accra, Mr Mark Terry, Executive Director of Youth Climate Report, said the youth played an important role in the fight against climate change therefore the need to involve them.
According to him, the documentary was one of the ways to ensure that the views of the youth were considered in the climate discussions.
“So what we are hoping to do is get all the young people, as many as we can here in Ghana, to tell the stories on video, and then we put them together and then present them at the UN Climate Summit Cop 28, which takes place in Dubai this year.
“So we are going to make presentations of the films so that policymakers can find out what is happening in Africa in general and the solution needed. We are seeing flood and droughts as the main climate issue here,” he said.
Mr Terry said The Youth Climate report documentary short films would help educate especially underrepresented communities that do not have a lot of scientific research, “So people in remote and indigenous communities around the world do not know what the climate impacts are and so it is very important to have these stories told”.
He was optimistic that the film would create awareness of climate change and elevate Ghana to the world in terms of climate action.
The Rector of GIMPA, Professor Samuel Bonsu, said the purpose of the project was to encourage the youth to appreciate the kind of role that they could play in addressing the climate change challenge.
He advised the public to be concerned about issues affecting the environment, “Take climate change seriously, be part of the solution. Let us apply the relevant resources that we have to ensure that we address the climate change challenge that we face because it affects all of us and not just an individual,” he said.
BY AGNES OPOKU SARPONG
