Context

Lesotho faces serious climate risks. Erratic rainfall, soil erosion, and degraded wetlands threaten water security and food production for communities that are already vulnerable. Young people are living with these impacts now, but they are rarely included in the decisions, tools, or skills that shape local responses. At the same time, green and digital skills are increasingly important for employment, entrepreneurship, and civic participation. Adolescents who develop these skills early are better positioned to contribute to their communities and to build sustainable livelihoods. When young people are supported to act on climate challenges using real tools and real data, they become more than beneficiaries; they become part of the solution.

Our Approach

HOT and UNICEF Lesotho are taking a school-based, community-centered approach that links learning with action across two districts.

1. Building green and digital skills in schools

900 adolescents, 500 girls and 400 boys, 5 from each district (Quthing and Mohale’s Hoek will take part in a structured training program on climate resilience and green skills. Sessions are practical and hands-on. Adolescents will lead tree planting, community clean-ups, wetlands restoration, and catchment monitoring. They will also learn to use smartphones to collect geospatial data and contribute to open maps of their local environment.

Learning is reinforced through UNICEF's Yoma platform, where at least 450 adolescents will register, complete learning modules, and take on impact challenges. Adolescents who complete activities earn digital badges, certificates, and vouchers that can be redeemed for goods and services.

2. Climate Champions

In each participating school, a group of selected young people will go further. At least 45 Climate Champions (25 girls and 20 boys) will receive targeted training in advocacy, leadership, and peer mobilization. They will lead climate action within their schools and communities and drive awareness of climate change, unsustainable energy use, and environmental degradation.

3. Drone training pathway

Two cohorts of 32 adolescents will follow a specialist drone training pathway, gaining applied skills in aerial data collection and environmental monitoring. Two outstanding participants will go on to complete a certified drone program at the Africa Drone and Data Academy in Malawi, an internationally recognized training center. This pathway creates direct linkages between youth climate engagement and market-relevant technical skills.

4. Career guidance and inter-school events

To connect learning to livelihoods, the project will hold career guidance sessions on green jobs alongside inter-school climate education events, including debates, quizzes, and competitions across both districts. These events will be documented and shared through media channels to amplify youth voices and increase visibility of the work.

Outcome

By the end of the project, 900 adolescents will have developed practical green and digital skills through direct climate action. At least 450 will be active on the Yoma platform, completing challenges and earning recognition for their work. 45 Climate Champions will be advocating for climate action in their schools and communities. 32 adolescents will be trained in drone technology, with two completing advanced certification.

The project will generate evidence on how digital platforms and geospatial tools can deepen youth engagement in climate action, evidence that can inform scale-up in Lesotho and elsewhere.

Deliverables

• 900 adolescents (500 girls and 400 boys) trained on climate resilience and green skills in selected schools of
• At least 450 adolescents registered on Yoma and actively participating in learning and/or completing impact challenges
• At least 45 adolescents (25 girls, 20 boys) engaged in advocacy to address climate change, unsustainable energy use, and/or environmental degradation
• Inter-school climate education activities and career guidance on green jobs held for the two districts (Mohales Hoek and Quthing) and documented for wider media dissemination and youth engagement visibility
• A drone training pathway: A localized drone training curriculum co-designed with UNICEF's Regional Office, delivered across two cohorts of 16 adolescents each.