Worried by increasing plastic pollution, overfishing and other climate threats, stakeholders yesterday, charged young Nigerians to champion sustainable ocean protection and conservation in the country.
The experts also emphasised that government policy alone cannot save Nigeria’s 850km coastline from environmental threats, noting that achieving sustainable oceans is in the hands of the youths who have the energy and strength to preserve them.

The environmentalists spoke at the opening of the Young Leaders for Sustainable Environment Programme (YLSEP) entitled: “Ocean Heroes, Guardians of the Blue” organised by Eko Environtalk Initiative in partnership with the International Ocean Institute, Nigeria Centre, Gracefield Island and other partners in Lagos.
Leading the charge, the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, Omobolaji Gaji, who delivered the keynote address, said the lagoons, creeks, Atlantic shorelines and wetlands are not just the backdrop to the economy but infrastructure for food system, and climate resilience.

Yet, he said, the systems are under the greatest pressure especially from plastic waste clogging the waterways, mangroves being cleared for unplanned development, coastal erosion encroaching on shores, and a changing climate putting new stress on a lagoon system upon which thousands of fishing and coastal communities still rely for their livelihoods.
He said the state government has actively responded to these pressures from expanding urban and restoring parks, to strengthening drainage and waste management, to building the evidence-base needed to protect the most vulnerable coastal communities as well as made clear cut commitments to climate action plan, climate adaptation and resilience plan.

However, he stressed that government policies alone will not save the ocean and the nation’s coast despite the reality that policy determines direction.
The government, he said, shouldn’t do the work of protecting the oceans alone but in partnership with civil society organisations, and technical institutions to meet the scale of environmental issues. As you begin this journey, keep in mind the message of this year’s promotional materials.

According to him, it is informed, motivated and organised people that determine whether that direction is actually followed, adding programmes like YLSEP that involve active participants like the youths would help in protecting the oceans.
“We’ve seen the impact of giving young people knowledge and a platform everywhere in Lagos from school clubs that lead to cleaner neighbourhoods, youth volunteers who participate in tree planting and student voices that influence how their community thinks about waste,” he said.

Programme Manager at ÈKÓ EnviroTalk, Yewande Seriki, said the initiative is an immersive environmental education and leadership programme designed to equip young people with the knowledge, tools and drive to become champions of environmental sustainability.
She disclosed that there are 28 members of the cohort consisting of male and female, who are students in secondary schools and tertiary institutions determined to create awareness from confidence to action on ocean protection.

She said the scheme was designed to give young people the opportunity to learn, explore, connect and develop the confidence to engage with environmental issues.
In his address, the convener of Eko EnviroTalk, Adedoyin Lasisi, said the ocean should not be a dumping ground as it represents life and future, hence the need to begin the work of protecting it together.

He explained that the programme exists because of the belief that young people can drive real change.
Lasisi explained that they will also learn how plastic pollution, climate change and unsustainable practices threaten the waters that sustain us, and most importantly discover the practical, community-rooted actions that turn concern into action.

He added the youths are joining a growing community of sustainability champions who will lead projects, shape conversations on protecting the oceans in schools, campuses and communities.
Representative of Gracefield Island/project sponsor, Ms Oreluwa Babajide, lauded the Eko-Envirotalk for this laudable initiative to educate, inspire, and empower young Nigerians to become champions of environmental sustainability.

She said for a coastal nation like Nigeria, the health of the ocean and coastal ecosystem is inseparable from the environmental, social, marine, and coastal biodiversity as the ecosystem provides natural ground for fisheries, protects our coastline, stores carbon, and sustains the livelihood of millions of people.
Protecting the oceans, she said, requires more than policies and institutions but requires knowledge, responsible behaviour, innovation, and a new generation of ocean stewards.

On his part, a facilitator from the International Ocean Institute, Nigeria Centre, Akanbi Williams, highlighted that the future of sustainable ocean governance will depend greatly on the choices and actions of today’s young people.
He encouraged the participants to take what they would learn from the programme beyond the camp, share knowledge with families, schools, and communities as well as reduce waste, respect marine life, protect coastal habitat, and encourage others to make sustainable choices.