Climate change: NGO advocates use of skating to create environmental awareness

The patron African Climate reporter, a non-governmental organisation, Dr Yusuf Nadabo, has stated that sports has the power to address climate change and tackle sustainable development.

Nadabo who stated this at the second edition of the Skating for Climate Change held in Kaduna with the theme “sport 4 climate change-catch them young” particularly said skating could be used to inspire, unify and engage millions of youth and Teenager on various ways to protect their environment against all forms of threat.

Nadabo who is also the Chairman, governing board of Kaduna state school of Nursing and Midwifery, Tudun Wada, called on government to embark on programmes that would help low-income Nigerians manage weather-related risks with loans, hygiene education and water waste control.

It was gathered that over 500 youths including little kids were sensitised at the event.

According to him, Sport play a significant role in raising awareness to youth that are residing in both rural and urban cities on the dangers of continuous cutting down forest trees, increasing health challenges and new environmental problems due to lack of more campaign on climate change in the northern part of Nigeria.

“We believe that children and teenagers love skating sport that is why we are here to educate them through their own game on the importance of protecting their environment and how they can support government and NGOs and other stake holders on ways to fight global warming and other environmental degradation.

“We are hoping to use other games in communities like football, table tennis, Volley ball, Basketball, etc to sensitise our kids on the importance of planting trees around the schools and homes,with the aims of protecting the environment,” he said.

Nadabo further stated that climate change impacts negatively on nutrition, migration and infectious diseases adding; “of the 20 top hottest years ever recorded, 16 have occurred in the last 20 years.”

He said government must exploit new ways or measures to help Nigerians stay healthy despite floods, droughts and heat waves.

According to him; “We have to embark on programmes of helping low-income residents manage weather-related risks with loans, hygiene education and water waste control.

“Occupational hazards such as risk of heat stroke, especially among farmers and construction workers, leading to labour being shifted to dusk to dawn times when more disease-carrying insects are out.

“Hotter days, more rain and higher humidity will breed more mosquitoes which spread malaria, and more flies which spread infectious diseases. Heat waves can lead to mental health issues like anxiety, depression and suicide.”

In a paper titled: “African Wildlife Faces Extinction Due To Climate Change”, the National President, Tranquility Movement of Nigeria, Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gashash, said wild animals like Camel, Gazelle in the desert region as well as others in the forest are constantly facing extinction due to increase in scarcity of water as a result of climate change.

He said the African continent is facing increased hot temperature, sandy dust and other environmental challenges, saying that certain types of lizards and insects have been vanishing from areas where they once thrived, while mountain sides have grown hotter and drier, birds are moving to higher elevations.

“Many wild life animals are struggling to survive in the forest as a result of climate change, while large number of forest Lizards and Tortoise and big birds have gone extinct and many are on the way due to the increasing threat posed by climate change and human activities in the entire region of Africa

“Many animals are silently dying without the relevant forestry authorities noticing due to scarcity of water,” he said.

Alhaji Gashash called on African Union, (AU), Environmental NGOs and other stakeholders to rise to the challenge on the daily fight against climate change, deforestation and desertification in order to save wildlife from going extinct.

Four skating clubs that participated at the event this year included Kaduna Sky Skaters Club, United Kaduna Skaters Club, Golden Skaters Club Kaduna and Zazzau Skaters Club.

Highlights of the event included presentation of plaques to the four clubs in recognition of their selfless services to humanity through skating sport in Nigeria, music and artistic display by best of the best from all the skating clubs.

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