SRI LANKA ACTING HIGH COMMISSIONER CALLS FOR STRONGER AFRICA –GLOBAL PARTNERSHIPS TO TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE.

BY NJOKI KARANJA 

NAIROBI, Kenya .

Africa must strengthen partnerships between universities, communities, governments and international institutions to develop practical solutions to the growing challenges posed by climate change, H. E. Ruvini S. De Silva, Acting High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to Kenya and Permanent Representative to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and UN-Habitat in Nairobi, has said.

By H. E. Ruvini S. De Silva, Acting High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to Kenya and Permanent Representative to UNEP and UN-Habitat, Nairobi.

Speaking at Kenyatta University during the opening of the Second Annual Health and Environment in Africa: Research, Translation and Solutions for Climate – Hearts for Climate Conference, De Silva said climate change was no longer a distant threat but a reality affecting communities across the continent.

The conference is the flagship scientific convening of the African Universities and Communities Climate Week 2026, bringing together scientists, policymakers, academics, community leaders, indigenous knowledge holders, students, young leaders and innovators.

De Silva commended Kenyatta University, the Africa Community of Planetary Partners for Health and Environment, and other partners for bringing together diverse stakeholders to address the interconnected challenges of health, environment and climate change.

She said the gathering demonstrated the importance of partnerships in addressing challenges that cannot be solved by individual institutions, sectors or countries acting alone.

«“The future we seek cannot be built in isolation. It must be forged through partnerships grounded in knowledge and animated by a shared commitment to the common good,” De Silva said.»

She observed that Africa was facing increasingly visible climate-related challenges, including prolonged droughts, drying rivers, floods, threats to food security, declining biodiversity and rising health risks.

According to De Silva, these challenges demonstrate that climate change should no longer be viewed solely as an environmental issue.

“It is also a development, public health, and economic challenge, and ultimately, a question of justice and human dignity,” she said.

Despite the challenges, De Silva expressed optimism about Africa's capacity to develop and implement solutions, noting that researchers, communities, entrepreneurs and young people were already contributing to climate action in innovative ways.

She pointed out that innovation was taking place beyond laboratories and universities, with practical solutions emerging from villages, farms, indigenous territories and urban neighbourhoods.

The conference theme, “One Heart for One Planet: Leveraging Local and Indigenous Innovations to Unite Urban and Rural Communities for Sustainable Development and Climate Action,” reflects the need to connect these different sources of knowledge and innovation.

De Silva stressed that human health and planetary health are inseparable, arguing that food security depends on biodiversity, economic prosperity depends on sustainable natural resources, and community resilience depends on a stable climate.

She highlighted the importance of One Health and Planetary Health approaches in addressing these interconnected challenges.

“These frameworks call us to replace fragmented responses with integrated solutions and to collaborate across disciplines, institutions, and generations,” she said.

Universities urged to turn research into action

A major focus of De Silva's address was the role of universities in translating scientific research into solutions that benefit society.

She said universities must move beyond being centres of academic discovery and become stronger centres of partnership, working closely with governments, civil society, the private sector and communities.

“What distinguishes Hearts for Climate is its commitment to ensuring that research does not remain confined to journals, but is translated into policies, technologies, and practices that improve lives,” she said.

She described universities as important bridges between knowledge and action, urging academic institutions to create stronger mechanisms for ensuring that research findings reach policymakers and communities.

De Silva also emphasised that the flow of knowledge must not be one-directional.

She said communities should not be regarded merely as recipients of scientific knowledge because they possess valuable knowledge and experience accumulated over generations.

“Communities are not merely recipients of knowledge. They are creators of knowledge,” she said.

She specifically recognised the contribution of indigenous peoples, farmers, pastoralists and traditional practitioners, who she said possess generations of ecological knowledge that has helped sustain landscapes and communities.

She called for greater respect and collaboration between scientific and indigenous knowledge systems.

“Our task is not to choose between scientific and indigenous knowledge, but to create spaces where they enrich one another; where evidence and experience meet with mutual respect; and where innovation grows from dialogue,” she said.

Indigenous people and youth at the centre

De Silva said the African Universities and Communities Climate Week provided an important platform for rethinking the relationship between universities and the communities they serve.

She noted that the Climate Week's alignment with the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples and International Youth Day reinforced the importance of inclusive and intergenerational approaches to sustainable development.

She said indigenous communities bring valuable stewardship knowledge, while young people bring creativity, energy and determination.

“Both must stand at the centre of decision-making,” she emphasised.

De Silva challenged participants to use the conference not simply as an opportunity to present research but as a platform for creating lasting partnerships and turning ideas into practical action.

She said the success of the conference should ultimately be judged by the collaborations it creates, the policies it influences and the improvements it delivers to communities.

“The true legacy of this conference will be measured not by the number of papers presented, but by the collaborations it inspires, the policies it influences, and the communities whose lives are positively impacted,” she said.

A call for collective climate action

De Silva said every generation has responsibilities that define its place in history and argued that the current generation has a responsibility to restore the relationship between people and the planet.

She noted that humanity already possesses substantial scientific knowledge, technology and practical experience to address many of the challenges associated with climate change.

“The question is not whether solutions exist, but whether we have the courage to implement them together,” she said.

She expressed hope that Hearts for Climate 2026 would be remembered as more than another international conference, but as a milestone in strengthening partnerships between universities and communities, science and society, and local innovation and global action.

She urged participants to leave the gathering with renewed determination to transform research into solutions, knowledge into action and partnerships into lasting impact.

“The future is not something that awaits us. It is something we create together,” De Silva said.

She wished participants fruitful deliberations and success during the Hearts for Climate Conference and the African Universities and Communities Climate Week 2026.

She subsequently declared the African Universities and Communities Climate Week 2026 officially open.

The conference continues to provide a platform for stakeholders from Africa and beyond to exchange knowledge, showcase innovations and explore practical approaches to climate action, environmental sustainability and the protection of human and planetary health.