Fantu Kifle
G/meskel

Fantu Kifle is the team leader in the change misterming department of Addis Ababa Environmental Protection and Green Development Commission. She graduated from Addis Ababa University with her B.Sc. in Biology and her M.Sc. in Environment and Climate Change from Ethiopia Civil Service University. Fantu has more than 14 years working experiences: one year as a team leader of climate Change mainstreaming, two years as Climate Change Adaptation and mitigation project monitoring and four years as researcher of ecosystem and biodiversity conservation and pollution at AAEPGRC. One year researcher experience in Ethiopia Biodiversity Institute and taught Biology for seven years at high school level. She has one publication titled “Assessments of heavy metal accumulation capacity of selected plant species: a case study in little Akaki River, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia”. And one on going publication titled “Impacts of climate change on vegetable production along the little Akaki River, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia”. Fantu has also participated in several workshops and professional area trainings.

PROJECT

Green spaces in urban areas provide multiple environmental, social and economic benefits to the inhabitants. The project is titled Greening urban river banks via multipurpose indigenous trees nexus carbon sequestration and Phytoremediation: Implication for urban heat island regulation.  It focuses on informal green spaces development along the river side for urban climate and pollution reclamation and provide sustainable ecosystem service.

The main goals of the project are to estimate the carbon sequestration, phytoremediation capacity and urban heat island mitigation of the multipurpose indigenous trees planted/grown along the riverbanks and create awareness on the overall ecosystem services. This project has impacts on the establishment of healthy environment and enhances all ecosystem services through social, economic and political interaction among the users. The regulation of the urban heat island enhances the cooling effect of the river buffers through evapotranspiration. In addition, it contributes to the capacity building on the carbon sequestration and heat island measurement that can support the poverty reduction programs in the city through the reduction of jobless and enhancement of creating temporary and permanent jobs.

MOTIVATION FOR AND COMMITMENT TO CREATING A BETTER AND MORE SUSTAINABLE PLANET

My long-term professional goal is to become a very skilled researcher and expert for the grand benefit of my country. Moreover, given that sustainable use entails the utilisation of biodiversity in a manner that maintains it’s potential to meet current and future human needs and aspirations and to prevent its long term decline, my project can serve as an effective tool for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Therefore, working for the achievements of the SDGs, through multipurpose indigenous trees for estimating carbon sequestration and urban heat island mitigation can help to create a better and more sustainable planet.