CLIMATE CHANGE, SOCIAL MEDIA AND THE AFRICAN YOUTH: A MALAWIAN CASE STUDY

Abstract: Climate change is one of the greatest threats to humanity with millions of people already suffering from its consequences in the last two decades. Social media, as a communication channel, has an important role to play in provoking a response to climate change. Social networking sites are known to be more interactive and potentially provide a great platform for the masses to make their voices heard, shape policy objectives, and even influence intransigent negotiations. This research explored how African youth are using the social media in climate change discussions and advocacy. The literature for this study is drawn from various studies focusing on climate change key issues, climate change communication and application of strategic communication to social media climate change initiatives and campaigns. A mixed method research approach was used to collect data for the study. Findings revealed that Facebook is the common social media platform for climate change discussions among Malawian youth as 62.50% of the participants use it to talk about the issue.