Building resilient Actions for environmental emergencies

The continuous climatic changes noticed in resent times, ranging from high heat waves, increase incommunicable diseases, and flood, leading to the destruction of urban infrastructures, houses and many properties here in Limbe, and other parts of my country has made us understand that issues related to the environment must be treated as a matter of urgency and requires a participary method towards finding solutions and mitigating the impacts of climate change in our communities

After our last training sessions in the month of August done on social medias, Tv stations, news papers and Whatsapp groups

My team and i have so far engaged divers online trainings and sensitization programs on four different organization platforms and on Eternity Gospel radio, which we educated the population on regenerative gardening techniques, impacting over 2000persons directly and over 5000persons indirectly on air(population of Limbe). After these few weeks of online trainings, it so gladens my heart to have received pictures from youths engaging regenerative urban gardening from different parts of my country.

It is important to understand that the only way we can save our environment is through creating participatary opportunities and campaigns for women and youths to engage in clean environments and citizen's participation towards saving the environment. A single body, organization or individual cannot succeed if individual efforts are not made by all.

So instate of littering the environment with plastics that ends up being deposited in the seas and oceans that will subsequently kill aquatic animals like fish, after ingesting the plastics, it i better to gather the plastic bottles, and sell to waste companies thus making money for livelihood support as well as use the plastics to begin regenerative urban gardens on small surface areas.

To this regard, my team and i successfully organized a clean up campaign at the Limbe Sea shore(down Beach) in the month of September 2023.

After the clean up campaign, i led my team to engage a short online training on how to make compost at home., So that instead of throwing away the biodegradable waste, it will rather be bether to dig small holes around the compound where biodegradable waste can be thrown and covered with soil, so that the rotten biodegradable waste can became useful compost that can be thrown on farm lands or in plastic buckets, old tyres or tins and used as manure to grow organic food, that are free from being cultivated with fertilizers , thus increasing crop yields.

Its is imperative to know that, climate change is caused by the little things we do daily ( leaving lights one, burning bushes for farming, cutting down trees as wood or for construction) that has lead to where we are today.

So Everybody is responsible for what is happening and its effects are also felt by all. Therefore, we must all take climate friendly actions. 

We have realized that, the plastic waste we throw around do not decompose but rather can stay in the soil for over 100years and more .

Way forward: how do we fix this ? or how do we build resilient environmental communities that response to the present environmental emergencies?

1. By engaging reforestation. So far we have engage in reforestation campaigns with other organizations in Cameroon like FOREP Cameroon, AFRICA VOICES FOR AFRICANS to plant trees on some streets in Limbe.

2. Turn off lights and electrical equipments regularly. AN OPERATION 5MINS BLACK OUT DAY FOR CLIMATE CHANGE was lunched and many persons are engaging with feedback pictures. We had to educate the population that leaving lights on is not energy efficient, because one will have to waste alot of money on light bills. Again living lights on regularly, increases the temperature in buildings.

3. An operation" ONE HOUSE ONE GREEN SPACE( VEGETATION). This was done using several media platforms and groups to get the population to start creating green spaces in their homes.

4. Engag clean up campaigns to remove waste plastics dumped on streets and responsible for blocking gutters leading to flood and distruction of roads. I led a Volunteer team to clean the Limbe down beach and pick out all the plastics deposited at the shore.

We are therefore encouraging everyone to use thier individual plastics buckets, bottles, tyres and tins to create regenerative gardens.

For better understanding of what regenerative urban gardening is;

It is an environmentally conscientious approach to managing and planting gardens. Simply put, it means growing plants with the environment in mind, not just your consumption needs. This way, you nourish the soil naturally instead of depleting it and attempting to fix it with fertilizers. 

with all the waste bags, tyres, bottles, leaves, buckets etc, littered, it will be best to turn them into organic gardens. 

Space is not a problem. Through regenerative urban gardens, every one is capable of growing his/her own vegetables, flowers, fruits, and green space, without using fertilizers except for organic manure, or the compost earlier mentioned.

 This method is ecological friendly, environmentally friendly, improves urban beauty, enables clean breath and improves health conditions of citizens.

Regenerative urban gardening, can be done in urban areas. This is a way of trying to fix or mitigate the environmental hazards already faced on the urban area(eg high heat waves). this gardens will help reduce heat waves in cities, if many citizens get involve. Every one can practice it,even if your living on a story building or in a bungalow. Regeneraive gardens can be carried out even inside the House. It helps purify the air because the Carbon dioxide released in the house during respiration will be absorbed by the plants while oxygen released by plants, will be used by man for respiration.

#Environment

* EVERY LITTLE ACTION TOWARDS SAVING THE ENVIRONMENT COUNTS. Our campaign and training program continues till great impacts of our trainings have been felt and implement.

#let's engage environmental actions and build resilience together

@Environment