100 000 children – a whole generation – in and around the national parks Gonarezhou in Zimbabwe and Limpopo in Mozambique are being educated and empowered through the Peace & Changemaker Generation project. They will become ‘changemakers’ who can take a stand against wildlife crime, and for children’s and girls’ rights in their communities.
The project is a partnership between the World’s Children’s Prize Foundation, local NGOs SYS and SANTAC, and Peace Parks Foundation, with implementation support from the Gonarezhou and Limpopo park management and teams. Carried out in communities living in or adjacent to the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area, 2 000 children will be trained as Peace & Changemaker Generation Ambassadors. Most of the children involved live in poor and fragile states with some discovering for the first time that they can make their voices heard.
Through this programme, teachers, parents and local leaders are also trained. In turn, these Peace & Changemaker Generation Ambassadors and teachers will be empowered to educate approximately 100 000 children at 350 schools about child rights, the Global Goals for Sustainable Development, as well as the importance of conservation, consequences of wildlife crime and climate change.
Limpopo and Gonarezhou national parks are rich in animal life and biodiversity that are continuously threatened by organised crime, poaching and trafficking of products such as rhino horn and elephant tusks, loss of natural habitat, drought and climate change.
Many children here live in deep poverty and face violations of their rights. Girls are especially vulnerable. Through the Peace & Changemaker Generation project, they will learn to stand up for their rights and make a change for a better future. The World’s Children’s Prize Programme educates and empowers children to become changemakers who can stand up for the equal value of all people, the rights of the child, democracy and sustainable development.
The project is funded by the Swedish Postcode Lottery.
