ALBATROSS, led by partners from the University of Geneva, has joined forces with the Goodwall initiative to run a youth climate citizen science campaign called “WeatherWatchers” in English and #ObservateursMétéo in French in the five focus countries ALBATROSS operates: Tanzania, Kenya, Ghana, Madagascar and South Africa. Young people engaged through a video challenge and a climate-knowledge survey, sharing how weather is read, interpreted and understood in their own communities.

Overall, 5,000 young people were reached through this initiative, among which 1,660 responded the survey, sharing indigenous and local practices in their region regarding weather forecast and their subsequent adaptation response, for example, in terms of agricultural activities, such as planting. Reading clouds, interpreting changes in animal behaviour, etc., are many of the local insights communities rely on to make decisions on their daily life activities, including farming.

Sorted by country, Kenya was the one with the biggest success rate, with 2,965 people reached and 972 answering the survey, followed by South Africa (1,276 young people were reached, and 438 completed the survey) and Ghana (702 reached, 223 answered). Madagascar and Tanzania contributed a further 57 engaged and 27 youth that answered the campaign, seeding the programme’s reach beyond its three largest markets.

Among the data gathered through the survey, 93% of respondents reported their communities have seen the weather shift, in terms of pattern changes perceived from what elder in the communities describe. Regarding the importance of traditional knowledge, 65% affirm that they trust natural signs at least as much as official forecasts, and only a third rely on forecasts alone. Furthermore, 67% of the respondents cited the same rain sign as a weather forecast: tower-shaped black clouds ahead of fast afternoon storm clouds and whistling wind.

These survey results were complemented by a video challenge, which invited young people to film how their communities read the weather. 72 video posts were received, and the best 20 received a prize of 50$ each. 46 out of the 72 videos came from Kenyan participants, 12 came from Ghana, and 12 more from South Africa. Tanzania and Madagascar were the countries with less response, with only 1 video received.

Find below some examples of the best videos winning the prize.