Leah Namugerwa
Leah Namugerwa is a 14-year-old Ugandan climate activist and student striker. Following the footsteps of Greta Thunberg, Namugerwa started protesting every Friday against climate action. She has been protesting every Friday for more progress on climate change, plastic waste, and more. Skipping school and facing a lot of resistance, Leah Namugerwa was eager to get her message out. Soon, the teen was able to inspire several other Ugandans for the cause. Her primary aim, aside from the implementation of new climate laws, is to draw attention to climate change.
She is leading a campaign to compel the country’s President, Yoweri Museveni, to make the ban on plastic bags a law. Namugerwa continues to sound the alarm on deforestation, drought, and floods. Uganda is going through shifts in weather conditions, its rainy seasons are no longer stable. Prolonged drought, desertification, and habitat loss are both signs that Uganda’s climate is shifting. Bigelow and Swinehart, focus a lot on how climate change directly affects the lives of individuals and communities, and for Namugerwa her community is very much affected and threatened by it– increase in famine, people are more prone to diseases and many people are dying as a result of this change in climate. Even though many African countries produce the least carbon emissions, they are the ones that suffer the most.
It is truly inspiring seeing young people such as Leah Namugerwa taking action in such an important environmental issue and demanding change. As Namugerwa said “ injustice for the environment is injustice for me” and she could be more correct!
