The role of social media in engaging young people in environmental issues

Abstract

Social media is a privileged information medium for political and public actors due to the ease of participation and interaction it offers. These new media can promote both political and societal mobilization among citizens. Which is particularly important in addressing environmental issues and achieving sustainable development goals. To this end, Morocco has emphasized in its new development model the importance of involving all stakeholders, including young people, in environmental initiatives to ensure a green transition. This prompted us to question the role of social media in engaging young people in environmental issues. For this purpose, we opted for a quantitative survey, focusing on the #b7arblaplastic operation organized by the Mohamed VI Foundation for Environmental Protection, which literally translates to “plastic-free beach”. This initiative primarily targets young people. Our study revealed that our sample group is concerned about environmental issues and follows environmental news, mainly through social media. However, our study has shown that not all of participants were aware of the #b7arblaplastic operation. While the Foundation did use social media to reach out to young people, only a small percentage of participants saw the hashtag circulating on these platforms. This leads us to conclude that it’s not enough to simply use social media, it is also essential to know how to effectively leverage them to reach our target audience. Hence the need for a well-thought-out, relevant communications strategy. This will not only allow political and public actors to dematerialize their communications and reduce their environmental impact, but also enable them to involve and mobilize youth, through a means of communication with which they are familiar.

Keywords

• social media
• youth
• engagement
• environmental issues