NWP supported Wavemakers United to present its UN2023 Gamechanger Challenge in the Government of the Netherlands booth at the Stockholm World Water Week exhibition floor. Now that the Challenge has liftoff, what are the next steps to create local impact? We asked Tilly Stroo, founder and Managing Director of Wavemakers United.
- This competition does not shy away from one of the biggest challenges we face today: the Paris Climate Goals to ensure a climate resilient future for all. What is the plan?
Our aim is to create awareness of the Paris Climate Goals together with the next generation through water and positive energy. We work with many youth networks worldwide and inspire them to come up with solutions to make our future climate resilient. Our plan is to bring together as many people as we can in this Challenge who work with rather than against each other. This approach enables us to reach communities that are normally hard to reach with sustainability initiatives. The UN2023 Water Conference in New York must be the catalyst for a global community of changemakers!
- The challenge is primarily focused on creating partnerships and awareness, supporting SDG 17, and creating local youth participation. How do you make young people heard and their ideas viable?
During our Challenge, the youth bring their water-related knowledge to local communities to increase their impact and gather new ideas for innovations. We connect them to experts that organise masterclasses, companies that become their case-owners, and knowledge institutions that offer interesting fields of future studies. Our network of public institutions, the private sector and NGOs support them in their mission.
Along the way, our community serves as a platform for changemakers. We engage in local and global events where we connect sports to science, and make their voice heard on the global stage. Apart from this, our community is present at global climate events such as COP and the UN2023 Water Conference to encourage policymakers and other stakeholders to create a climate resilient future.