Zambia Honors GCA CEO for Championing Youth-Led Climate Adaptation
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ddis Ababa, Ethiopia, 8 September 2025 – The Government of the Republic of Zambia today presented a national award to Professor Patrick V. Verkooijen, President and CEO of the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA), recognizing his leadership in putting young people at the center of Africa’s climate adaptation agenda. The presentation took place during the Leaders’ Event at the Second Africa Climate Summit (ACS II) in Addis Ababa, attended by Heads of State and senior officials.
Hon. Mike Mposha, Minister of Green Economy and Environment of Zambia, said: “On behalf of the President of Zambia, Hakainde Hichilema, I am proud to recognize the leadership of Professor Verkooijen and the Global Center on Adaptation. Together with our President, we are united in championing youth leadership across Africa, ensuring that young people are not only included but are at the very heart of Africa’s adaptation solutions.”
Accepting the award, Professor Patrick V. Verkooijen, President & CEO of GCA, said: “This honor belongs to Africa’s young leaders. I stand with Africa’s youth—and together we will unleash the youth’s full potential. That means green skills, resilient jobs, entrepreneurship, and access to finance that turns talent into tangible impact. With Africa’s leadership and the support of our partners, the next phase of the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP 2.0) will hard-wire youth empowerment, predictable finance and regional collaboration into delivery—moving from pledges to pipelines to projects—so resilience rises fastest where climate impacts hit hardest.”
Zambia is among the countries most exposed to climate shocks, with prolonged droughts driving energy shortages, crop loss and food insecurity. In response, the country has stepped up continental leadership—hosting the Pan-African Youth Adaptation Forum in August and the NAP Expo, both in Lusaka—to amplify youth voices and accelerate practical solutions. At ACS II, Minister Mposha urged partners to double adaptation finance and to support AAAP 2.0, grounding the program in sub-regional collaboration, predictable funding and meaningful youth engagement.
Over the past five years, GCA’s youth program has surged in scale and impact. The Youth Adaptation Network (YAN) has grown by 133%, from 15,000 to 35,000 members, becoming the world’s largest youth movement focused on climate adaptation. Building durable, bottom-up leadership and economic transformation has been central: thousands of youth-led organisations from 47 African countries are being empowered by GCA to act as ambassadors of transformative change to drive youth-led adaptation action across the continent. To build the leadership capital required for delivery at scale, GCA established the Youth Academy on Climate Adaptation & Leadership—a training-of-trainers with universities across the continent.
Zambia also recognised GCA’s work in:
- Continental architecture & legitimacy: 47 African countries now host youth-led adaptation organisations.
- Global convening power: 35 Youth Adaptation Forums have been convened with participants from 148 countries, including ten in-person editions in Bonn, Baku, Dubai, Sharm El-Sheikh, Kampala, Accra, Addis Ababa, Lusaka, and Nairobi—translating organizing capacity into action.
- Programmatic depth: 15,300 young people engaged across thematic forums spanning young women’s leadership, water, climate-resilient agriculture, infrastructure & nature-based solutions, youth entrepreneurship, and locally led adaptation—building skills aligned to priority adaptation outcomes.
- Mass mobilization & reach: Youth Climate Adaptation Action Day 2024 launched 365 lighthouse events across 73 countries reaching 4 million people.
