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by Richard Munang (Author)
The task of saving the planet requires an extraordinary reckoning with ourselves- with our all-too-human reluctance to sacrifice immediate comfort for the sake of the future. We have turned our world into a space of doing just what pleases us, and the effects and impacts are already upon us. Despite alarming signals from every scientific report, we seem not to listen to the urgent call to action. Just in 2023 alone, global losses from climate disasters far exceed $100bn in eye-watering financial losses. Behind the dollar, figures lie millions of stories of human loss and suffering and the death and displacement of people around the world. Be it storms, floods, droughts, or heat waves, to name a few. Most of these impacts affect some of the world's poorest countries and, more so, Africa. Despite all these, the urgency for climate action has not taken centre stage. We are divided.
Though this was short-lived, it took a pandemic to unite us as a global community, but climate change and environmental crisis have not stopped for COVID-19. Instead, COVID exposed some hidden aspects that need to be understood to accelerate global solutions to global challenges, especially for Africa and the global south.
Externalizing solutions is a non-starter. For the past 60 years, Africa has not fully weaned from externalizing solutions to its challenges. The COVID-19 emergency has offered us the latest shock therapy that "we cannot live on borrowed salt". That "we cannot set sail on someone else's star". A stark reminder that this model of dependency is a failure. For example, we read multiple rounds of stimulus packages running into the trillions of US dollars extended by developed economies to bail out their countries. It is a blunt demonstration of the urgent need to change tact and embrace the approach of local solutions to contextual challenges because externalizing solutions has repeatedly proven to be a non-starter.
In this book, I want to show you how transformation is possible using what we already have now, not what we may hope to get. This is the transformation we urgently need in Africa. As you read on, may you be inspired to develop an eagle's vision, the discipline of an ox, and understand your territory like a lion. And unlock wisdom to become a climate action solutions provider who leverages on ClimatePreneurship and make this inoculation against the perennial climate crisis a reality for all in Africa and the world. Because climate change connects to the things we all care about- the health of our families, the economic strength of our communities and the stability of Africa and our world. Fixing it isn't only good for the planet; it is also good for all of us. The bottom line is this. To do something about climate action, you need to play your part with what you have, regardless of where you come from, how you look or your background. As someone who came from a very humble background devoid of opportunity or affluence like most Africans but who is penning this book today, I can tell you this is possible because I was once like you.
Believe it! Have Faith and Act Now!
