HFM Stream Interview: The K2C Youth Network

Being Youth Month, K2C MAB Youth Network members Keneilwe Mmushi and Herrel Mohlala joined Llewell at HFM to talk about the growing role young people are playing across the K2C landscape, from conservation and environmental awareness to skills development, job readiness, entrepreneurship and creating stronger livelihood opportunities.

One of the strongest messages from their conversation was that youth programmes shouldn’t simply be designed for young people.

“𝘞𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘩. 𝘞𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘧,” Keneilwe explained.

Herrel’s own story shows what that can mean on the ground. After returning home and starting to farm while looking for work, he began connecting with other young people in his community. Today, he says, they have helped establish seven farms in his village alone.

The conversation explores what the K2C MAB Youth Network has learned since its establishment in 2024, the opportunities it is building around skills, livelihoods and conservation, and how it hopes to create more space for young people to lead within their own communities.

Thank you to HFM Stream for giving K2C this platform to share our story!