CIFOR-ICRAF Hosts Hamburg Sustainability Conference Youth Roundtable on Landscape Innovation in Nairobi

22 January 2026, Kenya: CIFOR-ICRAF welcomed the 2025/26 cohort of the Hamburg Sustainability Conference (HSC) Youth Ambassadors for a landmark roundtable titled “The Future Is Now: Youth Leadership and Landscape Innovation in Emerging Economies.” Hosted at CIFOR-ICRAF’s Nairobi campus, the event convened 15 young leaders from Emerging Markets and Developing Economies (EMDEs), alongside Kenyan government officials, private sector leaders, civil society representatives, and global sustainability experts. 

Together, participants engaged in solution-oriented dialogue on how youth leadership can drive resilient landscapes that advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

The roundtable forms a core part of a four-day HSC series in Nairobi, running from 17–22 January 2026. The programme features interactive World Café discussions, hands-on field visits, and strategic networking sessions. Key focus areas include youth-led nature-based climate solutions, regenerative food systems that generate viable livelihoods, inclusive governance structures that move beyond tokenism, and policy incentives capable of driving systems-level change. Participants are co-creating session concepts, panel contributions, and partnership proposals that will elevate EMDE perspectives at HSC 2026 in Hamburg, Germany, while identifying local expertise that can enrich global sustainability debates. 

Land degradation affects more than one-third of Earth’s surface and 3.2 billion people worldwide, underscoring the urgency of landscape innovation. In emerging economies, healthy landscapes serve as infrastructure storing water, engines driving jobs and enterprises, and foundations for national stability and growth. CIFOR-ICRAF research demonstrates that agroforestry systems can restore degraded lands, enhance soil fertility, conserve water, reduce erosion, and build climate resilience while generating economic opportunities. 

“Landscapes represent the real economy in emerging economies. They power jobs, secure food systems, and anchor community stability,” said Dr Éliane Ubalijoro, Chief Executive Officer of CIFOR-ICRAF. “Youth leadership makes environmental restoration inseparable from human prosperity and economic opportunity. CIFOR-ICRAF is proud to partner with the Hamburg Sustainability Conference to amplify authentic voices from EMDEs and scale science-based solutions for agroforestry, forest restoration, and sustainable land management. This roundtable demonstrates that when youth lead with bold questions and practical innovations, sustainability moves from aspiration to action.” 

The opening session featured distinguished Kenyan guests who emphasized multi-stakeholder collaboration.  

Their participation highlights Kenya’s growing role in advancing sustainability innovation and strengthening East African leadership within global environmental and development dialogues. 

This partnership reinforces Kenya’s position as a priority partner country for HSC and supports broader engagement of government and private sector leaders ahead of HSC 2026. 

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