Lake Victoria Youth Climate Action Platform: Advancing Citizen Science, Ecosystem Restoration, and Youth-Led Blue Economy Solutions in East Africa

Lake Victoria, East Africa’s largest freshwater ecosystem, is increasingly threatened by eutrophication, biodiversity loss, pollution, and climate variability, with significant implications for food security, livelihoods, and regional resilience. Fishing communities that depend on the lake are among the most vulnerable to declining water quality, ecosystem degradation, and climate-induced environmental stress. Despite these challenges, young people remain underrepresented in environmental governance and climate adaptation initiatives. This paper presents the Lake Victoria Youth Climate Action Platform, a youth-led and community-centered initiative designed to strengthen blue economy resilience through citizen science, ecosystem restoration, and climate advocacy. The initiative integrates schools in fishing communities as environmental knowledge hubs where students and youth are trained in water quality monitoring, environmental data collection, and ecosystem stewardship. Through low-cost citizen science tools, communities generate localized environmental data that supports evidence-based decision-making and strengthens participation in water governance. The project further promotes wetland restoration, shoreline stabilization, community clean-up campaigns, and environmental awareness activities aimed at reducing nutrient pollution and restoring aquatic ecosystem health. In addition, the Save Lake Victoria Marathon serves as an innovative advocacy and resource mobilization platform that amplifies youth voices, strengthens partnerships, and increases public engagement in climate and blue economy action.

The initiative is expected to strengthen climate literacy among youth, improve community participation in ecosystem management, and enhance environmental monitoring capacity through citizen science approaches. The initiative demonstrates the potential of combining citizen science, youth leadership, schools, and sport-based advocacy to advance inclusive blue economy governance and climate resilience in freshwater ecosystems. The paper contributes to discussions on sustainable aquatic resource management, youth engagement, community-driven innovation, and the role of localized data systems in supporting resilient blue economy transitions across Africa.