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…holds walk, soccer, literary activities
Oluchi Eze
UrbanBetter Cityzens, a social venture concerned about accelerating the demand for healthy climate, sustainable development into cities and the way cities are built, has called on Nigerians to adopt sustainable lifestyle tailored towards promoting quality air.
The advocacy group whose Lagos Hub is hosted by Lagos Urban Development Initiative (LUDI), said several activities such as emission from power generating sets, vehicles, industries and driving instead of walking over a short distance are injurious to lives.
Also, cooking with firewood instead of gas, electric cooker and other clean cooking energy, replacing green spaces with structures, indiscriminate refuse disposal are part of activities that release harmful chemicals into the air, and in turn endanger human lives.
The Africa-led global movement, with hubs in Lagos and Accra, made the call during the Urban October Fest, an edutainment festival held at the University of Lagos(UNILAG). to commemorate the ‘Urban October’, particularly ‘World Cities Day’ in line with the theme , ‘Youth Leading Climate and Local Action for Cities’.
The festival which brought youths together started in the early hours with an 8km Air Pollution and Climate Change Awareness Walk, from UNILAG gate through Iwaya, Onike and Oyediran Estate.
The walk followed with a football match played by a five-aside football team comprising two female members, literary activities like drama, live paintings, poetry/spoken words to portray what a breathable, liveable and sustainable city should look and be like.
Speaking more about the clean air initiative drive of UrbanBetter Cityzens, founded by a Nigerian, Prof. Tolullah Oni, who lectures at the University of Cambridge; Coordinator of Lagos, UrbanBetter Lagos Cityzens Hub,
Mr. Waziri Mainasara alongside the UrbanBetter Cityzens Run leaders, Afeez Odunoye and Rukayat Salau in a media chat,urged more youths to be at the fore of the advocacy for lifestyle changes for clean air and safer environment.
The group also called on government and relevant authorities to make it easy for individuals to be able to access/afford safer alternatives like clean cooking gas, stable electricity so as to reduce the emission that goes into the air.
Mainasara stated: “From our advocacy over the years, I got to realise that it is not as if people don’t want to use the alternative, but it’s not easily accessible and affordable for them.
“That’s just the truth. If these things can be provided for these people, they are open to using it. It is just that they can’t readily afford them.
So, yes, alternatives such as maybe using gas cylinders, oven and electric cookers instead of firewood.
“These are alternatives, but you have to buy the gas. You have to pay for the electricity. A lot of people really want to use clean energy, but then it is not readily accessible and affordable.”
