Thread by @FerdyOmondi

Climate change isn't a "get out of the block" scheme; it's a real and pressing crisis impacting us right now, as recent events in Kenya demonstrate.

On carbon trading being a money maker, I agree - because it is a SCAM aimed at benefitting individuals. NOT the country. Dig in 👇

In December 2023, floods in Kenya resulted in over 170 deaths and displaced more than half a million people (UN OCHA).

Four consecutive failed rainy seasons led to severe drought in Kenya, leaving 4.4 million people facing food insecurity and causing the loss of 2.5 million livestock.

The Horn of Africa is experiencing its worst drought in 40 years, affecting over 36 million people, killing livestock en masse, and causing widespread crop failures.

The destruction of the Mau Forest has resulted in reduced rainfall, drying rivers, agricultural losses, and community conflicts, with measurable and devastating impacts.

So what's the relationship between extreme weather events, human activity, and climate change? They are deeply interconnected. Here's a synthesis :

1. Human activity drives climate change.
Burning fossil fuels (coal, oil, and gas), deforestation, and industrial processes, release greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane into the atmosphere.

These gases trap heat, leading to global warming and disrupting natural climate systems.

2. Climate Change amplifies extreme weather.
As the planet warms, weather patterns become more erratic and extreme, like the droughts in East Africa, Floods in West and Central Africa, Storms in South Africa and Wildfires in LA.

3. Human activity worsens vulnerability
Activities like deforestation (e.g., Mau Forest destruction in Kenya and the targeted Karura and Suam Forest annexations) reduce natural buffers against extreme weather.

Poor urban planning and encroachment on floodplains increase the impact of floods.

Overgrazing and unsustainable farming practices worsen drought conditions.

Is carbon trading a solution? HELL NO!
Carbon markets are becoming exactly what we feared - a playground for speculators and land grabbers.

We're seeing it already:
- Land grabs in Kitengela
- "Investors" eyeing Galana Kulalu
- Speculation about EU funding

This is colonialism in green clothing. The people who will "get out of the block" are the private entities behind these schemes. Not the communities bearing the brunt of the climate crisis, who in fact risk being evicted to make space for carbon credit mafia.

Carbon markets are a dangerous distraction to climate action because they let polluters keep polluting, they commodify our natural resources, they ignore community rights and they delay real climate action.

So what's the solution to the climate crisis? Simples:

Stop polluting at source - shut down coal plants, end new oil exploration, and transition to renewables now. No offsets, no delays, no excuses.

Put communities in charge of their forests, wetlands, and grasslands. Their knowledge, their leadership, their decisions.

Keep indigenous lands in indigenous hands. No carbon pirates, no land grabs, no false promises of "green development."

Fund climate action directly. Communities need real money for real solutions - not carbon credits, not market schemes, not middlemen.

You want to "get out of the block"?

Join the fight for climate justice. Demand polluters pay for loss and damage. Push for community-controlled renewable energy. Stand with indigenous defenders. Support local food systems.

Real wealth isn't in carbon credits. It's in clean air, healthy soil, flowing rivers, and thriving communities. That's the future worth fighting for.

End of TED Talk.

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