The Middle East/ North African Region is severely impacted by climate change.
There were no ocean-centered organizations that elevated the youth voices of the region…
until now.
At the United Nations Ocean Conference Youth and Innovation Forum in Lisbon, Portugal, 180+ youth delegates from around the globe had the honor of representing their countries. Of the 180 delegates, only 5 represented the Middle East and North African regions. Our team knew this had to change, so in a whirlwind of action, we created MENAeco.
After the conference, we were offered a seat to present at the COP27 Climate Action Hub, presenting our surveyed MENA youth voices at the highest climate conference. Through organizing the only on-the-ground beach clean-up at COP27 and maintaining strategic partnerships, MENAeco has become a prominent organization within its short lifetime.
We have been making waves in less than a year since our inception.
500+ youth members
18 Countries
125.3 kg trash removed
7 political backings
We focus on elevating the concerns and actions of youth in the MENA region within our 8 key impact areas. Our impact areas include:
Water Scarcity
Rising Sea Levels
Water Pollution
Refugee Crisis
Fossil Fuel Operations
Droughts/ Desertification
Biodiversity Loss
Impacts on Fisheries
Our Mission? Elevating Youth Voices.
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"Now if you’ve ever eaten or touched a clam- they don’t break. You can’t even step on it in most cases. The fact that they were breaking upon touch was a sign that something was very wrong- what was happening was severe ocean acidification"
Poyraz Mersin, Age 12
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"Ever since 2016, we have been experiencing increasing rates of torrential rains during winters which flooded our streets. And through empowering other youth with knowledge about the climate crisis, I felt empowered myself"
Nour Mohamed, Egypt
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"At first, it never occurred to me that this might be driven by anthropogenic actions, upon learning more about the climate crisis, this has made me aspire to offset its impacts in order to spare my community the damages incurred on it by the climate crisis, damages that almost no one realized were driven by our own unsustainable actions."
Farah Abo Saeda, Egypt
Some statistics from our COP27 Survey
98% of MENA youth have noticed their local water sources impacted by climate change
64% of MENA youth state that their school does not teach about climate change
75% of MENA youth have thought of a potential solution for their regional climate issues BUT…
… only 25% of MENA youth are part of a climate organization that will support their ideas.
How we impact:
1) Assist MENA youth in converting their experiences into action through our strategic partnerships and survey data
2) Bringing youth voices to governments and executives, such as UNFCCC Conferences, government roundtables, and NGO partnerships
3) Developing the first MENA Youth Climate Action Plan to be the prominent organization connecting governments with MENA youth
Our Partners
