2,000 young stars gather for climate action at Young and Loud Festival

More than 2,000 teenagers from across the Ho Municipality and other parts of the Volta Region converged at the Ho Jubilee Park on Saturday, 22 November 2025, for the third edition of the Young and Loud Festival, a creative, youth-driven platform dedicated to creating a safe space for young people.

Held under the theme “Our City, Our Future – Teen Creativity for Environmental Action,” the festival transformed the park into a vibrant showcase of music, dance, visual art, poetry, and environmental education.

Organised under the Young and Safe Project by Node Eight, in collaboration with the Ho Municipal Assembly, LoveAid Foundation, and the Ghana Education Service, and supported by Fondation Botnar through the Healthy Cities for Adolescents (HCA-II) programme, the event sought to mobilise young people to take ownership of the city’s environmental future.

Project Coordinator of Young and Safe, Joshua Tetteh Ayayi, explained in an interview that the 2025 edition was designed to turn creativity into a tool for change. “This year’s festival experience is intentionally crafted to inspire young people to reimagine Ho through art, fashion, performance, and expression. Our goal is to guide them to see environmental issues not as distant problems, but as personal challenges they can influence,” he stated.

A major highlight was the Street Art Festival, described by Mr Ayayi as “the heartbeat of Young and Loud 2025.” The entrance to the venue was transformed into open-air galleries where teenagers used live painting, waste materials and other forms of art to tell stories about waste, flooding, tree loss, and pollution. The segment was divided into four experiential zones—See It, Feel It, Fix It, and Own It—taking participants through awareness, reflection, and action.

The event also featured live painting, card games, skateboarding, Virtual reality and a Green Pledge Wall, where young people committed to advocating for a cleaner city.

As part of efforts to instil cleanliness in participants, the MC continuously encouraged them to pick up litter after themselves and drop it into the bins provided by Wasteman Ghana.

The festival also held its annual talent competitions which drew impressive performances. In the dance category, 11:59 Creators from the Volta Region emerged as winners, followed by Beat Breakers and DOF Academy. The music category saw Zigi Dube taking the top spot, with Jacky and Kato Gh placing second and third respectively. In art, TED Creations claimed first place, while Kingsley Apedo and Arts Show followed. For poetry, Eloquent Poets led the category, with Battah Verrity and Akogo Bless taking the next positions.

Speaking after their victory, members of 11:59 Creators explained that they were inspired by the theme and conducted research into pollution and plastic waste, which they identified as major concerns in their community. They created raincoats from discarded pure water sachets to highlight the potential for recycling and the need for proper disposal of plastic. “Plastic waste is everywhere. We wanted to show, through our creativity, that instead of littering, plastics can be recycled into useful things. This platform has given us the chance to speak to the world through dance,” they said. The group expressed interest in future collaborations with NGOs and government agencies to promote recycling and sanitation efforts.

Mr Ayayi said the festival's environmental focus was informed by recent events in Ho, including flash floods and blocked drainage systems, especially along the Aflao–Ho road and other low-lying areas. He noted that although Ho is widely praised as one of Ghana’s cleanest cities, the situation has deteriorated compared to 10 or 20 years ago. Rising population, pressure on waste management services, and poor disposal habits have contributed to increasing environmental challenges.

He described the festival as a reminder that Ho must confront its issues rather than compare itself with other cities. “People say Ho is clean, but the truth is that we are losing our cleanliness. The oxygen city concept depends on trees, vegetation, and sustainable urban living. When we begin to experience flash floods after minor rains, it shows that we must act now,” he said.

Mr Ayayi noted that the creative performances at the festival brought these issues to life. He recalled a dance presentation that depicted a person contracting cholera from food sold near a dirty gutter, and a poetry recital in which a deity expressed disappointment with residents for neglecting the environment. “The acts were powerful. They captured our reality and the future we hope to avoid,” he added. One of the judges also praised the festival as one of the most well-organised and educational youth events in the Volta Region.

Looking beyond the event, Mr Ayayi said the festival was only the beginning of a wider advocacy effort. Organisers plan to work with the winners and participants to turn their stories into sustained campaigns throughout the coming year. Artists will also be connected to school-based advocacy groups and platforms such as the Y Radio Show to amplify their voices.

He emphasised that long-term systemic change is the ultimate goal. Through collaboration with the Ho Municipal Assembly, especially the Municipal Health and Environment Unit (MEHU), the project aims to build frameworks that can be replicated across other districts in the Volta Region and eventually nationwide. This includes promoting green technology, reviewing harmful local manufacturing practices, strengthening bylaws, and encouraging behavioural change around waste disposal and tree planting.

Mr Ayayi said meaningful impact will require collaboration, consistency, and commitment from both authorities and citizens. “There is nowhere to go but up. Behavioural change is hard to measure, but not impossible. If we walk together, we can build the Ho we want—and ultimately the Ghana we want,” he said.