Earth Today | EFJ, JPS Foundation partner to empower youth climate innovation

A NEW partnership between the Environmental Foundation of Jamaica (EFJ) and the JPS Foundation is set to ignite youth-driven innovation and strengthen climate resilience across the island.

The two entities have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to implement the EcoSpark Innovation Challenge. The agreement formalises their collaboration to deliver a national competition aimed at engaging secondary-school students in designing practical, nature-based solutions (NbS) to address climate challenges, such as urban flooding and extreme heat.

The initiative forms a part of the Jamaica Urban Solutions for the Environment (J-USE) project, a multi-year effort, funded by Global Affairs Canada and focused on building climate resilience in vulnerable communities.

The JPS Foundation has committed approximately J$1.85 million to support the initiative, including funding for competition prizes.

EFJ chief executive officer, Nicole Adamson welcomed the partnership, describing it as a strategic investment in Jamaica’s future.

EMPOWERING YOUTH

“This collaboration represents more than just a competition, it’s about empowering young Jamaicans to become problem-solvers in the face of climate change. Through the EcoSpark Challenge, we’re encouraging students to conduct research and design solutions that can transform their schools and communities, and tackle problems caused by climate change using nature-based approaches,” she said.

EcoSpark builds on the JPS Foundation’s longstanding Power Up Energy Club programme, which engages students in climate awareness, STEM education and innovation. By integrating EFJ’s expertise in NbS with the Foundation’s youth engagement platform, the initiative aims to foster a new generation of environmentally conscious leaders.

“Climate resilience and STEM education are two areas of focus for the JPS Foundation. We’re passionate about environmental stewardship and energy innovation, which are essential to Jamaica’s development and to the long-term health of our environment and communities,” said JPS Foundation head, Sophia Lewis.

“We’re delighted to once again be facilitating an Innovation Challenge among our high school students. This competition allows us to go a step further from highlighting the challenges within our environment, to creating solutions that hopefully can be implemented. Recent weather events prove that we can no longer merely talk about these issues. It is time for action,” she added.

The competition will target schools across multiple parishes, challenging student teams to design and implement solutions that mitigate climate risks within their school environments or surrounding communities. The solutions are expected to demonstrate how nature-based approaches, such as green infrastructure and urban greening, can enhance resilience while delivering social and environmental benefits.

The students are also being challenged to develop innovative ideas that will make the JPS grid more resilient against the impacts of climate change.

“Youth are not just beneficiaries of climate action, they are central to it. Through the EcoSpark Innovation Challenge, we are creating opportunities for students to lead, innovate and contribute meaningfully to Jamaica’s resilience agenda,” noted J-USE project manager, Joni Jackson.

“By grounding solutions in real community challenges, we are ensuring that these ideas are not only creative, but also impactful and scalable,” she added.