Cece Nyawira is a climate communicator and youth advocate with a background in urban planning, based in Kenya. As a climate fellow with Aspire Climate Vanguard and a former ambassador with the African Climate Alliance, she has led storytelling projects that blend design, digital outreach, and environmental awareness.

The just energy transition isn’t only about moving away from fossil fuels. It’s also about ensuring that this shift creates a more equitable, accessible, and climate-resilient future —especially for communities who have long been excluded from energy systems. We recently had the opportunity to put this commitment into practice.

It has been six years since the original youth climate council voted on the name African Climate Alliance with the vision to create youth networks for climate justice across Africa. As we embark on this new phase of expanding our solidarity and deepening our work, we're excited to share some important updates about our leadership. 

The second quarter of the year was all about strengthening our changemaking networks – meeting people where they are at, exchanging stories and ideas, and committing to shared visions.

The 2024/2025  African Climate Alliance Ambassador cohort recently successfully completed their programme with the implementation of their own ambassador projects. Many of these projects function in the categories of climate literacy, storytelling for climate change, and climate-resilient skills-building.

At the end of 2024, the youth won a major legal battle against the South African government. The case known as the #CancelCoal case was the first of its kind. Never before in South Africa had a climate-related case been led by youth activists who demanded that the government abandon its plans to build new coal-powered power plants for the generation of electricity.

Simeon Kalua is a climate justice activist and permaculturist from Malawi. Simeon has experienced firsthand the effects of climate change on his community. This includes prolonged dry spells leading to low harvests and floods caused by Cyclone Ana and Cyclone Freddy. These experiences fueled his ambition to become a climate justice activist.

2024 was a year of grassroots movement building. Being half a decade into our work prompts much reflection. But, one thing will always remain steadfast: our commitment to being a movement-based organisation that strives to stay connected to the grassroots and serve African youth. To learn more about our key focusses, impacts, programmatic work, a financial overview, and the way forward, read our latest Annual Report.

Hannah Omokhaye is a Nigerian climate educator and project manager specialising in gender, disability, youth inclusion, and capacity building within the environmental sustainability sector. She is passionate about fostering meaningful youth engagement and empowering communities to drive a just and sustainable future.

Living through a time where the climate justice movement feels more polarised than ever before, we wanted to make sure that we weren’t just continuing with business-as-usual in work, but rather only committing ourselves to work, projects, and campaigns that felt truly impactful. We even questioned what true impact means to us. Here’s a closer look at what we have been up to in January, February, and March.

Wilson Nkhoma is a passionate Zambian advocate, public speaker, and aspiring economist dedicated to creating meaningful change. With a strong background in climate activism, they have trained over 1000 young people in advocacy, environmental sustainability, and children’s rights, working with organizations such as UNICEF and the African Climate Alliance as an Ambassador.

Stilfontein will and must be remembered as one of the worst tragedies we have witnessed in the thirty years we have had democracy in South Africa. It seems that who we consider human, how we understand criminality, and who gets the right to a fair trial – and who does not – is deeply tied to the systems that allow for the government’s complicity in extractive violence and disregard for human rights of those it deems disposable.

Florence Kasumbalesa is a Zambian medical student with a profound interest in the intersections of climate change, and women's and children's health.

This year has been a monumental one in the five-year history of the African Climate Alliance. If we could sum up the year in one word it would be: movement-building. As we wind down toward our annual organisational break before diving into 2025, here’s a brief look at what we have been up to in October, November, and December.

In a landmark ruling, the High Court of South Africa has overturned the government’s plans to add 1,500 MW of new coal-fired power to the national grid, saying they are “unlawful and invalid.”

 In a powerful call to action, children and youth across South Africa are urging the government to advocate for their climate rights at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). As the ICJ prepares to issue an advisory opinion on states’ obligations in respect of climate change under international law, young South Africans are demanding that their voices be heard and their rights protected.

The journey of an ACA Ambassador is not over after our one-year Ambassador Programme. After graduating from the programme, we aim to continue our support for each Ambassador’s change-making initiatives with our Opportunity Fund. This Fund is intended to support the sustainability and ongoing efforts of ACA Ambassadors.

The third quarter of 2024 kept us on our feet with many movement-building moments, workshops, and our annual Cape Town Climate Week. As we prepare for the final quarter of 2024, here’s a brief look at what we have been up to in July, August, and September.

Aksanti Bienfait is a Congolese refugee artivist, based in Uganda, and the founder of Just Paint, a community driven initiative that operates within a refugee camp. His work revolves around using art as a tool for personal development, emotional healing, and social unity.

After three years of litigation, youth activists got their day in the Pretoria High Court on 9 and 10 October in a landmark case against the government to stop building any new coal plants.