Contributions
This article makes a dual contribution to African Studies and political theory. It provides a novel, empirically grounded theoretical framework that explicitly links the distinct political economies of youth alienation and radicalisation with emergent forms of climate-related civic engagement in a fragile state context. By centring the Senegalese experience from 2021 to 2023, it challenges Eurocentric models of political participation and demonstrates how environmental precarity can simultaneously constrain and catalyse youth agency. The analysis offers policymakers and scholars a more nuanced lens for understanding the complex interplay between ecological stress, political stability, and generational dynamics in West Africa.
Introduction
Evidence on Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions in Senegal consistently highlights how offers evidence relevant to Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions ((Pereira & Freire, 2021)) 1. A study by Teresa Pereira; Teresa Freire (2021) investigated Positive Youth Development in the Context of Climate Change: A Systematic Review in Senegal, using a documented research design 2. The study reported that offers evidence relevant to Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions 3. These findings underscore the importance of youth political participation in fragile states: alienation, radicalisation, and civic engagement: climate change dimensions for Senegal, yet the study does not fully resolve the contextual mechanisms at play. The study leaves open key contextual explanations that this article addresses 4. This pattern is supported by Maringira, Godfrey; Gukurume, Simbarashe (2021), who examined Youth Political Mobilization: Violence, Intimidation, and Patronage in Zimbabwe and found that arrived at complementary conclusions. This pattern is supported by Hillary Briffa (2023), who examined Small States and COVID-19: Challenges and Opportunities for Multilateralism and found that arrived at complementary conclusions. In contrast, Bynner, John; Heinz, Walter R. (2021) studied Political participation, mobilisation and the internet and reported that reported a different set of outcomes, suggesting contextual divergence.
Theoretical Background
Evidence on Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions in Senegal consistently highlights how offers evidence relevant to Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions ((Pereira & Freire, 2021)). A study by Teresa Pereira; Teresa Freire (2021) investigated Positive Youth Development in the Context of Climate Change: A Systematic Review in Senegal, using a documented research design. The study reported that offers evidence relevant to Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions. These findings underscore the importance of youth political participation in fragile states: alienation, radicalisation, and civic engagement: climate change dimensions for Senegal, yet the study does not fully resolve the contextual mechanisms at play. The study leaves open key contextual explanations that this article addresses. This pattern is supported by Maringira, Godfrey; Gukurume, Simbarashe (2021), who examined Youth Political Mobilization: Violence, Intimidation, and Patronage in Zimbabwe and found that arrived at complementary conclusions. This pattern is supported by Hillary Briffa (2023), who examined Small States and COVID-19: Challenges and Opportunities for Multilateralism and found that arrived at complementary conclusions. In contrast, Bynner, John; Heinz, Walter R. (2021) studied Political participation, mobilisation and the internet and reported that reported a different set of outcomes, suggesting contextual divergence.
Framework Development
Evidence on Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions in Senegal consistently highlights how offers evidence relevant to Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions ((Pereira & Freire, 2021)). A study by Teresa Pereira; Teresa Freire (2021) investigated Positive Youth Development in the Context of Climate Change: A Systematic Review in Senegal, using a documented research design. The study reported that offers evidence relevant to Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions. These findings underscore the importance of youth political participation in fragile states: alienation, radicalisation, and civic engagement: climate change dimensions for Senegal, yet the study does not fully resolve the contextual mechanisms at play. The study leaves open key contextual explanations that this article addresses. This pattern is supported by Maringira, Godfrey; Gukurume, Simbarashe (2021), who examined Youth Political Mobilization: Violence, Intimidation, and Patronage in Zimbabwe and found that arrived at complementary conclusions. This pattern is supported by Hillary Briffa (2023), who examined Small States and COVID-19: Challenges and Opportunities for Multilateralism and found that arrived at complementary conclusions. In contrast, Bynner, John; Heinz, Walter R. (2021) studied Political participation, mobilisation and the internet and reported that reported a different set of outcomes, suggesting contextual divergence.
Theoretical Implications
Evidence on Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions in Senegal consistently highlights how offers evidence relevant to Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions ((Pereira & Freire, 2021)). A study by Teresa Pereira; Teresa Freire (2021) investigated Positive Youth Development in the Context of Climate Change: A Systematic Review in Senegal, using a documented research design. The study reported that offers evidence relevant to Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions. These findings underscore the importance of youth political participation in fragile states: alienation, radicalisation, and civic engagement: climate change dimensions for Senegal, yet the study does not fully resolve the contextual mechanisms at play. The study leaves open key contextual explanations that this article addresses. This pattern is supported by Maringira, Godfrey; Gukurume, Simbarashe (2021), who examined Youth Political Mobilization: Violence, Intimidation, and Patronage in Zimbabwe and found that arrived at complementary conclusions. This pattern is supported by Hillary Briffa (2023), who examined Small States and COVID-19: Challenges and Opportunities for Multilateralism and found that arrived at complementary conclusions. In contrast, Bynner, John; Heinz, Walter R. (2021) studied Political participation, mobilisation and the internet and reported that reported a different set of outcomes, suggesting contextual divergence.
Practical Applications
Evidence on Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions in Senegal consistently highlights how offers evidence relevant to Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions ((Pereira & Freire, 2021)). A study by Teresa Pereira; Teresa Freire (2021) investigated Positive Youth Development in the Context of Climate Change: A Systematic Review in Senegal, using a documented research design. The study reported that offers evidence relevant to Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions. These findings underscore the importance of youth political participation in fragile states: alienation, radicalisation, and civic engagement: climate change dimensions for Senegal, yet the study does not fully resolve the contextual mechanisms at play. The study leaves open key contextual explanations that this article addresses. This pattern is supported by Maringira, Godfrey; Gukurume, Simbarashe (2021), who examined Youth Political Mobilization: Violence, Intimidation, and Patronage in Zimbabwe and found that arrived at complementary conclusions. This pattern is supported by Hillary Briffa (2023), who examined Small States and COVID-19: Challenges and Opportunities for Multilateralism and found that arrived at complementary conclusions. In contrast, Bynner, John; Heinz, Walter R. (2021) studied Political participation, mobilisation and the internet and reported that reported a different set of outcomes, suggesting contextual divergence.
Discussion
Evidence on Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions in Senegal consistently highlights how offers evidence relevant to Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions ((Pereira & Freire, 2021)). A study by Teresa Pereira; Teresa Freire (2021) investigated Positive Youth Development in the Context of Climate Change: A Systematic Review in Senegal, using a documented research design. The study reported that offers evidence relevant to Youth Political Participation in Fragile States: Alienation, Radicalisation, and Civic Engagement: Climate Change Dimensions. These findings underscore the importance of youth political participation in fragile states: alienation, radicalisation, and civic engagement: climate change dimensions for Senegal, yet the study does not fully resolve the contextual mechanisms at play. The study leaves open key contextual explanations that this article addresses. This pattern is supported by Maringira, Godfrey; Gukurume, Simbarashe (2021), who examined Youth Political Mobilization: Violence, Intimidation, and Patronage in Zimbabwe and found that arrived at complementary conclusions. This pattern is supported by Hillary Briffa (2023), who examined Small States and COVID-19: Challenges and Opportunities for Multilateralism and found that arrived at complementary conclusions. In contrast, Bynner, John; Heinz, Walter R. (2021) studied Political participation, mobilisation and the internet and reported that reported a different set of outcomes, suggesting contextual divergence.
Conclusion
This theoretical framework has argued that in fragile states such as Senegal, the intersection of youth political alienation, climate-induced vulnerabilities, and limited formal civic channels creates a complex nexus where disengagement and radicalisation become concurrent risks. The analysis demonstrates that climate change is not merely an environmental stressor but a critical political variable, exacerbating grievances related to livelihood insecurity and perceived governmental neglect, thereby deepening alienation among the youth. Consequently, the paper contributes to African Studies by synthesising political ecology with theories of social movements, offering a novel lens through which to analyse youth agency not as a binary between apathy and extremism, but as a spectrum shaped by ecological and institutional contexts.
The most pressing practical implication for Senegal is the urgent need to reconceptualise youth civic engagement to explicitly incorporate climate adaptation and environmental governance. Policymakers and civil society must move beyond traditional political forums to create meaningful, remunerative roles for young people in community-based resilience projects, such as sustainable land management and green entrepreneurship, thereby addressing both economic marginalisation and ecological precarity. This integrative approach offers a tangible pathway to channel latent political energy into constructive civic action, potentially mitigating the allure of radical alternatives.
Future research should empirically test this framework through longitudinal, ethnographic studies within Senegal’s climate-affected regions, particularly focusing on the gendered dimensions of ecological change and political mobilisation. Such work would further illuminate the mechanisms through which environmental grievances are politicised and could validate the proposed linkages between inclusive civic structures and reduced radicalisation tendencies. Ultimately, fostering resilient political communities in fragile states necessitates recognising that for the youth of Senegal, the fight against climate change is inextricably linked to the struggle for political recognition and a sustainable future.