Jo-Jikum’s Origin Story

A message from our Co-Founder and Director Kathy Jetnil-Kjiner:

Iakwe,

My name is Kathy and I am the co-founder of our organization. I co-founded Jo-Jikum in 2012 along with my cousins Tamera Heine, Hetine Heine, and Desmond Doulatram.

We were fresh out of college in the US when we returned home to an island we no longer recognized – one that was ravaged by frequent tidal floodings, droughts and overwhelming amounts of trash. The Marshall Islands has limited resources, and yet are on the front lines of climate change – at only 2 meters above sea level, our atoll nation will be one of the first countries to disappear under a rising sea. 

However, our youth make up as much as 50% of our population, and we see youth as an untapped resource. They will inherit our islands that are under threat, though many feel helpless and hopeless against the face of this monumental crisis. And yet, there remains limited resources for environmental curriculum that is based in our unique atoll land/oceanscape, as well as no other organizations targeting both youth and environmentalism. Which is why we decided to begin an organization dedicated to providing programs that raise awareness of climate change impacts and environmental issues, as well mobilize and empower youth to contribute to solutions.

The organization began in earnest with community clean-ups and awareness workshops after being registered formally with the government in 2012. It evolved further after me and my former Co-Director, Milan̄ Loeak, took the helm and were exposed to the international community of climate change activism.

I gained that exposure after delivering a speech and poem dedicated to my daughter at the opening of the United Nations Climate Summit, where I received a standing ovation from world leaders. During the same month, Milan̄ stood alongside 350.org Pacific activists as they participated in an action that used traditional Pacific canoes to blockade a coal ship in Australia, and toured Australia speaking to various news agencies to shed light on climate change effects on the Marshall Islands. Through this exposure, we both began to see the potential and the importance of speaking out on climate issues internationally.

The organization developed stability once I was recognized as an Impact Hero under the Japan based nonprofit Earth Company in 2016. Through non-profit management trainings as well as a fundraiser, we have since established a partnership with the College of the Marshall Islands, and will be opening our first Jo-Jikum Youth Climate Change Center, as well focusing on our two existing and ongoing programs – the Earth Champions Program and the Climate Change Arts Camp.

We are still a young organization, so we recognize that the road ahead will be long and hard. Our focus this year will be building our first Jo-Jikum Youth Center in the Uliga of Majuro, Marshall Islands, as well as running the second round of Earth Champions, our first pilot of the Climate Change Storyteller’s Program, and revamping our Climate Change Arts Camp. Stay tuned, and thank you for following our journey!

komol,

Kathy