Ghana University Partners on Nature-Based Climate Solutions

Ghana's top university just made nature-based climate solutions a cornerstone of its future, and the timing couldn't be better for a continent facing intensifying climate impacts.

The University of Ghana and the Africa Centre for Nature-Based Climate Action (AC4NCA) agreed last week to collaborate on climate research, policy advocacy and public engagement. Their goal is ambitious: position nature-based solutions as essential development tools, not optional environmental add-ons.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Nana Aba Appiah Amfo welcomed the partnership as perfectly aligned with the university's commitment to research that shapes national priorities. "Climate change, sustainability and resilience are areas where universities must work closely with civil society and policy actors to generate impact," she said.

The collaboration builds on existing work at the university, including the Collaborative on Climate Resilience and Sustainability, which focuses on helping vulnerable populations, especially young women and persons with disabilities. Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Gordon Awandare confirmed the institution's readiness to launch concrete research and policy initiatives immediately.

AC4NCA Board Chairperson Rev. Dr. Joyce Rosaline Aryee explained that nature-based solutions can restore degraded ecosystems, protect biodiversity and create sustainable livelihoods for communities who need them most. The center's work spans ecosystem restoration, wetlands protection, sustainable forestry and landscape-level climate interventions across Africa.

The partnership will kick off with a high-level public lecture bringing together global and African leaders in climate policy, conservation and development. The event aims to show how nature-based solutions can integrate into national planning, infrastructure investment and climate finance frameworks.

THE RIPPLE EFFECT

This partnership represents a shift in how African institutions approach development challenges. By placing nature-based solutions at the center rather than the margins, Ghana's leading university signals that protecting ecosystems and building economies aren't competing goals—they're complementary ones. The collaboration could influence policy across the continent, showing other nations how academic research and civil society activism can team up to deliver practical climate solutions rooted in local realities.

When Africa's universities and climate advocates work hand in hand, the whole continent wins.

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