By Steve El Sabai

Governance, justice, and community participation took center stage during Day Two of the 2025 Climate Action Summit in Nairobi, where leaders from the judiciary, legislature, and civil society underscored the need for coordinated and inclusive climate governance to strengthen Kenya’s resilience.

Principal Judge of the Environment and Land Court, Hon. Justice Oscar Angote, reaffirmed the judiciary’s commitment to protecting environmental rights and promoting accountability in the country’s climate response. He emphasized that the courts have a constitutional duty to safeguard the right to a clean and healthy environment while ensuring that the transition to a low-carbon and climate-resilient future protects vulnerable communities.

“The courts have a duty not only to protect the right to a clean and habitable environment, but also to uphold the dignity and livelihoods of communities affected by climate change,” Justice Angote said. “Judicial oversight must ensure that development never comes at the cost of ecological balance or the rights of marginalized groups.”

Justice Angote also called for greater civic education to empower citizens to claim and defend their environmental rights, noting that the preservation of green spaces and riparian lands is not merely aesthetic but a vital lifeline for biodiversity, livelihoods, and human well-being.

From the legislative front, Senator Faki Mohamed Mwinyihaji, Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Lands, Environment and Natural Resources, emphasized that devolution must form the backbone of Kenya’s climate action framework. He said counties should not only implement national policies but also take leadership in designing local climate solutions tailored to their unique environmental challenges.

“Counties must not be passive recipients of national policy. They must be leaders and innovators in local climate solutions,” he stated.

The senator outlined the Senate’s priorities for devolved climate action, including predictable and transparent climate financing, accountability measures to ensure resources reach communities, and the establishment of community-driven green energy and resilience zones that create employment and support livelihoods.

“Devolution is Kenya’s greatest strategic advantage in the climate era,” Senator Faki said. “It allows us to respond locally, coordinate nationally, and lead globally.”

Meanwhile, Bishop Margaret Wanjiru, Chairperson of the Nairobi Rivers Commission, highlighted the central role of community participation in achieving long-term sustainability. She said successful ecosystem restoration depends on empowering local residents and making them partners in development.

“At the heart of river regeneration lies community ownership. No project can endure without local participation,” Bishop Wanjiru remarked.

She explained that the Nairobi Rivers Commission has adopted an inclusive regeneration model that integrates local livelihoods into the broader river restoration plan. The initiative is transforming informal economic activities along Grogan, Gikomba, and Kamukunji into structured, sustainable markets that preserve dignity and promote social order.

“We are not displacing communities; we are formalizing them,” she said. “True sustainability comes when the same people who champion regeneration efforts become beneficiaries of the development outcomes.”

The day’s discussions set a strong tone for Kenya’s preparations ahead of COP30 in Belém, Brazil, where the country is expected to champion people-centered, devolution-driven, and justice-oriented climate action.

The Climate Action Summit, jointly organized by the Nairobi Rivers Commission and the Kenya School of Government, continues with sessions focusing on climate financing, innovation, and private sector partnerships aimed at deepening Kenya’s leadership in sustainable development.