Over the past six months, the Planeteer Alliance — a program of the Captain Planet Foundation (CPF) — has partnered with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Tide Turners to train and empower young changemakers in Ghana and The Gambia. Through this collaboration, youth leaders gained the tools and policy skills needed to drive systems-level change and combat plastic pollution in their communities.
This UNEP Plastic Policy Champion Cohort is made up of young people who attended the in-person policy trainings hosted by CPF in Accra, Ghana and Banjul, The Gambia in December 2024. Since then, their training turned virtual as they attended monthly sessions and frequent workshops, led by the Captain Planet Foundation team. Throughout their training, these young people got to hear from subject matter experts including Jacob Abaare (Former Planeteer and a current PhD candidate in Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln) and Dr. Stephen Tindi (Communications Scientist at the University of Media, Arts, and Communication in Accra, Ghana) who helped give insight on subjects like the policy life cycle, power mapping and stakeholder engagement.
Planeteer Leaders Dejea Lyons (Vice President of Protect Our Future from the Cayman Islands) and Diego Arreola Fernandez (Founder of Green Speaking from Mexico City) also led sessions centered around the UN Global Plastic Treaties negotiations, and the importance of youth power in policy. As prominent young environmental activists, Lyons (22 years old) and Fernandez (23 years old) were especially inspirational to the cohort as they gave valuable insights not only on policy as a whole, but specifically on how to be a youth changemaker within global policy spaces.
“Being part of this cohort has built my confidence as a youth leader and changemaker. It taught me how to turn a local problem into a structured campaign, how to engage the community, and how to connect with decision-makers,” shares Fatoumata Sowe, cohort member from The Gambia, “I now see myself not just as a student or volunteer, but as someone who can influence policy, mobilize people, and lead meaningful change.”
Cohort members also did their own research on current local and international plastic policy, explored strategies and tactics for policy implementation and identified stakeholders – all culminating in a policy plan created by each individual that detailed how they plan to address failing or inadequate plastic policies within their own communities.
“One thing I learned over the course of this training is the power of clear, strategic planning when driving policy change. I realized that having passion alone isn’t enough. You need a well-structured plan, backed by research and stakeholder engagement, to make a meaningful and lasting impact,” shares Sait Jallow, Planeteer and Cohort member from The Gambia, “This training taught me how to translate ideas into actionable steps that can influence real policy decisions.”
This cohort of Tide Turners grew to understand that solutions for environmental policy are multi-faceted, and must be approached with a structured plan and an understanding of previous policy initiatives. The cohort received direct mentorship from Captain Planet Foundation Regional Coordinators, Ipato Kenta (Kenya), Toluwalase Abiona (Nigeria), and Sanna Jambang (The Gambia) in order to apply this structured approach to their policy plans.
To celebrate the cohort’s work, CPF hosted a Final Pitch Symposium on Saturday, July 19. Each participant presented their policy plan to a panel of leaders and stakeholders, including Leesa Carter-Jones (CEO, Captain Planet Foundation), Latoya Henry (COO, Captain Planet Foundation), Dr. Timothy Karikari (Director of Broadcast, Global Media Alliance & CPF Board Member), Dawda Cham (Deputy Executive Director, HELP-Gambia), and Kemo Fatty (Founder, Green-Up Gambia).
Nineteen young policy leaders took the stage, pitching their policy plan in under two minutes, then hearing valuable feedback from esteemed panelists. This experience was not only an opportunity for these young people to hone their skills in speaking and presenting, it was also a rare opportunity for young people to be in the room, speaking directly to stakeholders on what they believe needs to be done to improve the plastic crisis in their community.
“I love the fact that [the pitches] were methodical,” shared Timothy Karikari during the Final Pitch Symposium, “there was a step-by-step approach of how to address the thing they wanted to deal with… They were able to research, identify the problem, understand the problem, and know the stakeholders that might impact the solution. The future is certainly bright.”
This UNEP Tide Turners Plastic Policy Training is one of many opportunities within the Planeteer Alliance program for young people to get involved in environmental work in their local communities. Through their involvement, youth not only better understand environmental issues, they gain the tools and resources to become the next generation of leaders.
For more information or to join Planeteer Alliance, go to www.planeteeralliance.com/get-involved/