Engaging Youth For eCooking
We are delighted to invite you to the 3rd session of the Talk Series – Phase III on Transitioning to Modern Energy for Cooking: Engaging Youth for eCooking. The session will be conducted in virtual mode and is being organized by the Modern Energy Cooking Services (MECS) Programme, through its In-country partner – India, Finovista with the aim to identify, discuss and explore avenues to address the specific challenges in the global clean cooking sector.
The United Nations has long recognized that the imagination, ideals and energy of young people are vital for the continuing development of the societies in which they live. Today, there are 1.2 billion young people aged 15 to 24 years, accounting for 16 per cent of the global population. By 2030—the target date for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) the number of youth is projected to have grown by 7 per cent, to nearly 1.3 billion.
Thus, the critical role of youth in achieving universal access to clean cooking, and contributing to a cleaner, healthier, and more sustainable future cannot be overemphasized. In general, youth are increasingly recognizing clean cooking as a cross-cutting solution to today’s global climate and development concerns, and they are taking action now more than ever to enhance the present and secure their future. In order to drive the youth-led change it is important to work on strategies relevant to the cooking sector which involves raising awareness about clean cooking among young people, empowering them to take leadership roles in advancing clean cooking initiatives, and fostering inclusive platforms that facilitate youth-driven action for clean cooking in their countries.
The session will focus on developing the understanding that can provide meaningful youth engagement which could aid in creating opportunities for youth to participate in decision-making, building their capacity to engage in advocacy and employment, and investing in youth-led initiatives and organizations in the clean cooking sector.
MECS Programme is a UK Aid (FCDO) funded global research programme led by Loughborough University and the World Bank’s Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP). By integrating modern energy cooking services into the planning for electricity access, quality, reliability, and sustainability, MECS hopes to leverage investment in renewable energies (both grid and off-grid) to address the clean cooking challenge. MECS is implementing a strategy focused on including the cooking needs of households in the investment and action on ‘access to affordable, reliable, sustainable modern energy for all’. The programme is also supporting India to emerge as a Global Hub for manufacturing clean cooking devices for domestic and international markets, aligned to the Atmanirbhar Bharat and Make in India mission while focusing on the shift to modern energy cooking within India which is also one of the objectives of the GoElectric and LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) campaign launched by the Government of India.
The Talk Series has evolved into a crucial platform for promoting the adoption of modern energy for cooking. It has been successful in uniting several stakeholders from the clean cooking domain and related sectors to engage in discussions on the challenges, emerging opportunities, and policy support needed for developing the ecosystem of the Modern Energy-based Clean Cooking Sector. The Talk series is thoughtfully structured in phases, with each phase consisting of 12 sessions. After the successful completion of Phase I & II Talk Series which comprised 24 sessions altogether, the Phase III of the Talk Series has been launched.