During 2025, Healthy Cities for Adolescents (HCA-II) expanded its global footprint as two projects in Senegal and India moved from approval into active implementation. Each initiative puts adolescents at the centre of urban transformation – equipping them with the skills, confidence, and opportunities to shape the future of their cities.
My Path, My Pledge – Tambacounda & Kolda, Senegal
With high rates of teenage pregnancy, dropout, and malnutrition, adolescents in Tambacounda and Kolda face serious wellbeing challenges. The My Path, My Pledge project, led by RESOPOPDEV and partners, places mental health at the heart of the response. It strengthens school support systems through mental health clubs, builds safe community spaces using art and sport, and trains teachers, peer educators, and even jakartamen (motorbike drivers) to provide awareness and support. Youth-led advocacy ensures that adolescent wellbeing becomes a public priority for city leaders. This project builds on insights from the NACD initiative, funded in 2024, which highlighted mental health as a critical but under-addressed issue for young people in Senegal.
ACT Indore: Adolescents for Climate Transformation – Indore, India
Indore, celebrated as India’s cleanest city, is also home to a growing adolescent population eager to take climate action. The ACT Indore project, led by Start Up! and partners such as Youth Ki Awaaz and SHEDO, trains 100 adolescent fellows in leadership, storytelling, and advocacy. These young leaders will collaborate with city authorities through an Adolescent Board, drive climate storytelling campaigns, and co-create a Youth ACT framework that integrates adolescent voices into Indore’s climate and urban planning.
Together, these projects reflect HCA’s commitment to creating healthier, more inclusive and sustainable cities – where adolescents are not just beneficiaries, but leaders of transformation.
