The winner of the 2017 Climate Justice Award has been announced by One Young World as Joseph Sarvary of Paraguay. He is a founding member and Deputy Director of Fundacion Para La Tierra, an NGO dedicated to the creation of a more educated, more driven and more innovative generation of Paraguayan ‘eco-leaders’.
By creating a network of ‘Eco-Clubs’, the foundation uses environmental education as a “conduit towards community leadership”. The programme has been built on a belief that there is no age-restriction on taking action. In the final stage of their program, the students aged, 7-12 years old, organise, advertise and execute their own event with the aim of creating an environment in which they tackle the solutions their communities need.
Selected out of three finalists, Joseph will receive £5,000 to support his project and will attend the One Young World Summit later this year in Bogotá. The funding will allow Joseph to expand the network of clubs by training new volunteers in their curriculum and supporting the growth of the programme. Over 40 new Eco-Clubs will be established, reaching more than 600 children in communities across Paraguay, catalyzing youth-run community action projects that will positively impact the country’s future.
This year’s edition of the award sought to support a project that focuses on creating inter-generational equity.
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