CUE urges universities to amplify conversation on climate action

Higher learning institutions in the country have been urged to actively participate in the fight against climate change and also train their focus on green innovations.

The Commission for University Education (CUE) CEO Prof Mike Kuria noted with concern that in an era where climate change and environmental sustainability are defining the global agenda, Universities must be at the forefront in championing and amplifying the conversation for its fruition.

The CEO averred that the recent climatic changes, including floods and severe droughts in the country, are an awakening call to responsible institutions, including institutions of higher learning, to come up with credible actions, policies and plans so as to win the war against climate change and deter the rising effects of global warming.

He noted that by doing so, the institutions will play a pivotal role not only in combating climate change but also creation of green jobs for the youths, thereby reducing unemployment rates in the country and globally.

Speaking during a tree planting drive at Zetech University’s Mang’u campus in Witeithie, Juja sub-county, Prof Kuria divulged that CUE has entered into a partnership with the Kenya Forest Service (KFS), which will see a distribution of over 20,000 seedlings to universities across the country for planting.

The CEO quipped that the move is in tandem with the Government’s plans to plant 15 billion trees by 2032 to realise forest restoration and tackle the effects of climate change.

He asserted that rapid changes in land use, as well as the increase of industries that emit carbon, have contributed largely to the deterioration of the environment, thereby exposing the country to the severe effects of global warming.

“Deliberate and concerted efforts must be adopted so as to salvage the environment from further squalor as well as restore it. We have engaged KFS to secure seedlings for universities so that we can collaboratively engage in restoration and conservation of our environment,” Prof Kuria said.

He, at the same time, challenged higher learning institutions to plant trees that contribute to their core business, which is teaching and research.

“It’s a good idea to think about the utility of the trees, in fact, in many places they say that if you can convince the community that there is a value to the tree that they are planting, they are more likely to take care of those trees,” he said.

The CEO, at the same time, challenged Universities and other institutions of higher learning in the country to focus and embark on green innovations that will offer solutions to environmental and social matters.

He cited some of the green innovations at Zetech University, including the AirSafi - air-purification project and the Smart Pest Deterrent System.

“These inventions demonstrate the institution's capacity to find solutions that address pressing environmental and social issues,” he said.

Zetech University Vice Chancellor Prof Njenga Munene said that the University has invested a lot in environmental conservation, citing seedling orchards within the institution.

“Climate change is real and it’s here with us. We have witnessed floods and severe droughts in our country, and it's high time that we collaboratively engage to tackle this menace, and we’ll achieve this through planting trees and embarking on green innovations and solutions,” he said.

He noted that the University has been engaging the community in tree planting drives as a way of sensitising them to actively participate in the war against climate change.