Anyieth Philip Ayuen is very aware that devastated climate disasters and food insecurity can bring to vulnerable communities. Ayuen grew up in South Sudan and lived as a refugee in Uganda for ten years after the outbreak of the Civil War. In Uganda, on a scholarship from the UN Refugee Agency, he studied agriculture and crop science at Bugema University and began working as a farmer. However, after seeing changes in weather patterns and flooding, destroying all the crops during one season, Ayuan knew he should learn more.
Now Ayuen is complete Climate and society From Columbia Climate School, where he was selected as a student speaker of 2025 Class day. In the Q&A below, he discusses his goal of promoting the community from poverty and tackling world hunger, what he learned from his research, and the message he hopes his classmates will bring to the world with them.
Finally, you were just starting out with MA with Climate and Social Programs. Looking back, what was your experience this year?
I think my expectations were met. I never imagined this kind of journey, but it was challenging at times. There is a huge difference between the education system here and in Africa. I remember thinking, am I really meeting the Colombian standards? Initially he had fraud syndrome.
But I came here and aimed to place myself in a space of climate adaptation and resilience. I was also passionate about the food system to see the experiences I had with hunger and the impact of climate change on several sectors such as food, energy and water systems, as many people suffered and displaced. I was forced to learn how to deal with these issues. I think I have gained the knowledge I need to be able to position myself as an architect of adaptation and resilience solutions.
It’s important for me to play a leadership role at Columbia Climate School this year and representing students. By attending the conference, talking to the dean and adding my voice to the planning of the next cohort of classes, I feel that I have contributed to the growth and development of Columbia Climate School.
“We are a cohort with a global reach, and if we stick together, we can change the world even if we communicate and encourage each other.”
Which course do you remember the most?
Climate adaptation taught by Lisa Dale and Climate Change Act and Policy helped us understand losses and damages, policies set by intergovernmental organizations, the roles of the various institutions, and who we need to talk to to change things. The dynamics of climate change and climate change have helped us understand the science behind climate change, especially in extreme events. One of the best courses I took last semester was disaster and development with John Matter. We have learned that some disasters can increase economic growth and development during post-disaster recovery. But we have also seen so many developing countries struggle to recover after being hit by disaster.
Universal food security with Glendening taught us how countries and regions can achieve food security. This is an important development, and without food security, your country will never be stable. Jessica Fanzo and Ruth resolved class, food systems, and climate interactions, highlighting the fact that they have not achieved food security based on a dual burden of malnutrition and undernourishment in developing and developed countries as well as a universally accepted definition. And Lisa Sachs’ climate mitigation taught me about decarbonisation and net-zero targets. I can say I was overall educated here at Climate School.
I also want to congratulate you on being selected as a student speaker for class day. How did you feel about that?
I think this is the greatest honor of my life. I think I am one of the few privileged people at this point. I rarely could say it because I grew up in an environment where success rarely you see. I am honored to represent my class for determination, hard work, resilience, the core values ​​that I believe have permeated me from a young age.
What messages do you plan to share with your classmates?
James HansenColombia’s pioneering climate scientist and professor, said in one of his speeches that the issue of climate change cannot be simply passed on to the next generation. We must take responsibility and stand up to the challenges. And I decided to write a speech about this idea. I recently reached out to him and he told me, “The young people have more power than they notice, and they will need to use that power.” He has a huge amount of faith in us, especially this cohort from the Climate School.
Some questions you might ask your classmates: Whose voice do you want to amplify and lift? What do you fight for? What are you going to do to build a fair and equitable future, not only sustainable?
We must be agents of global change in terms of how we imagine the story of climate action and efforts to change the status quo. We are a cohort of global reach and I think if we stick together, we can change the world even if we communicate and encourage each other.
Do you know what you’re going to do next?
This semester, I work with my incredible supervisor Josh Devinkenzo as a research assistant at the National Center for Disaster Response. Next, I plan to do an internship.
After graduation, my goal is to work with intergovernmental organizations such as the United Nations, which are positioned to advocate for climate adaptation and resilience in our communities. I would like to serve in organizations related to the food system and poverty alleviation. I want to advocate for sustainable development in marginalized and disaster-risk communities. I am excited about the opportunity to serve people in developing countries who are not yet in conversations about climate mitigation, adaptation strategies and resilience policies. I believe my career will be directed towards solving hunger and helping people out of poverty by building a better, more resilient source of livelihood for them.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
While I’m studying at climate school, one of the things I do in the evening is changing the champions of the refugee community. I have an organization called “. Don Liin Foundationco-founded in Uganda. I use some of my evening hours to talk to people returning home, mentor students online, and to people who are losing hope in refugee settlements. I work to encourage them to use education as a way to transform society and change lives, to adapt climate-smart farming methods and technologies, to enable them to practice agriculture.
As global citizens, we need to support refugees and displaced people. Many of them suffer from declining funding for other institutions, such as UN agencies and refugee-led and community-based organizations. No one chooses to become a refugee, no one chooses to evacuate. I was a refugee a year ago, so support organizations like the World Food Programme, Food and Agriculture Organization, and other people providing relief services can prove what the world has to do at this point.
