Pato Kelesitse

Pato Kelesitse is a climate justice advocate. She is the founder of Sustain267 and the host of the Sustain267 Podcast. This podcast aims to amplify the voices of Africans in climate action, including people on the front line, policymakers, researchers, and climate solution implementers. Her experience in advocacy includes youth and community engagement and organizing, project coordination, as well as movement building and storytelling. As a feminist, she advocates for the adoption of African feminist principles in addressing the climate crisis. 

She serves as a climate action and sustainability lead at Climate Action Network South Africa (SACAN). She has previously served as the coordinator of Resilient40, which is a network of over 60 young people in 29 African countries. She holds a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Accounting and Finance and is a Master of Arts in Development Studies candidate at the University of Botswana. Pato is an official party delegate with the Government of Botswana to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. 
 
In 2019 Pato was named by Wilton Park, an Executive Agency of the UK Foreign Office, as one of the “40 under 40 African Leaders for Climate Resilience.” She represented Africa, as one of eight youths globally at the UN Climate Summit in addressing world leaders on climate change as a global priority. Pato is a member of the World Economic Forum Global Shapers Community-Gaborone Hub. She serves as an advisor for Urgent Action Fund-Africa and is a FuturElect Class of 2022 Fellow.