Green Growth Africa Sustainability Network (#GreenGrowthAfrica); formerly – International Support Network for African Development, is a UNEP-accredited non-governmental organisation that is committed to innovation, development, and implementation of ‘greened’ socio-economic development solutions to address Africa’s development challenges.
Green Growth Africa operates an interdisciplinary network of experienced professionals, researchers and students across the globe who are committed to the realisation of a socially-inclusive economic growth and development path that is low-carbon, climate-resilient, and resource-efficient; maintains and enhances biodiversity and ecosystems.
In a bid to empower African youths with action competences through the acquisition and application of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) skills in addressing environmental and social challenges within their local communities and raising a new generation of 21st century green workforce who are skilled at developing solutions to 21st century challenges, #GreenGrowthAfrica is implementing the ‘EcoHeroes Initiative’.
Formerly known as the Environmental Education Programme (EEP), EcoHeroes Initiative adopts a co-creation and learners’-centered approach that utilizes, maximises, and leverages the high enthusiasm, technology savvy, resilience, and exploratory spirit of the youth in conceptualising and implementing innovative local environmental solutions that also address socioeconomic needs in Africa, particularly in their local communities.The initiative fosters practical, experiential, and hands-on acquisition of problem-solving skills by addressing real-world environmental problems in connection to themes of socioeconomic development (health, energy access, education, among others).
The initiative empowers young people with action competences that will enable them to develop capacity and long-term commitment to sustainability for everyday life, career engagement or voluntary service as environmentalists or influencers for the environment, both at local and international levels.
The 2022/2023 edition of the EcoHeroes Initiative will be focused on Sustainable Development and anchored on three thematic pillars, namely; Sustainable Energy; Sustainable Aviation; and Climate Change.Given #GreenGrowthAfrica’s commitment to developing environmental solutions that also address socioeconomic challenges in Africa, the ability of the prospective student teams to link the projects ideas on sustainable energy, sustainable aviation, and/or climate change to any themes of socioeconomic development (such as health, education, among others) provides an added advantage.