Thirty years ago, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change was created to protect young and future generations from climate change. Today, we are still on track to warm by 2.6 degrees and young people will live through 4x more intense impacts than their parents generations. Young people are the most vulnerable to the climate crisis, yet continue to overwhelming barriers when trying to engage in international climate negotiations. Nearly 94% of young people feel unsupported in multilateral spaces that determine the fate of their future. Despite their passion and critical role in driving ambition, youth are often sidelined due to lack of access, resources, and institutional knowledge. After firsthand experiences of feeling unprepared and unsupported in UN spaces, we created something that doesn't just prepare young people to enter decision-making rooms, but empowers them to navigate them strategically, advocate boldly, and influence real outcomes from wherever they are. Instead of sitting on the sidelines, our course empowers youth with knowledge and courage to stand up for the future and climate justice.
Our course turns theory into action by equipping youth with not only knowledge of climate diplomacy but also the tools and confidence to apply it in real-world contexts. Learners don't just study negotiation texts, they learn how to decode agendas, map power dynamics, and craft interventions that can shift outcomes. What makes the course especially innovative is its accessibility. To overcome the digital divide, the course is available for downloading content for accessibility offline, ensuring learners in low-bandwidth regions can still access high-quality content without relying on consistent internet access. We also leverage AI-powered translation tools to make the course available in seven languages, allowing for more accurate and culturally relevant translations, which traditional methods often fail to deliver at scale. This ensures young people from diverse backgrounds not only understand the material but feel seen and supported in their own linguistic and cultural contexts. Participants also gain access to a supportive ecosystem that includes live discussion sessions and social media explainers decoding real-time negotiations. These elements work together to shift participants from passive consumers of information to active agents of change who can advocate for climate justice at the highest levels.
The course started out as a pilot with a few countries from our Care About Climate community, including the USA, Nigeria, India, Argentina, and the UK. The first year the course was available, it reached participants in over 60 countries! To date, we've trained over 4,000 young people from 110 countries through the course and affiliated workshops. The course has spread widely through youth networks, university partnerships, UNFCCC events, and word-of-mouth. It’s also been amplified through social media, featured in the Annual UNFCCC ACE Reports adopted by countries at COP29, and implemented in regional climate weeks. Its reach is continuing to grow through collaborations with Youth4Capacity, Climate Justice Camps, and direct engagement with civil society groups. In just a few years, it's become a go-to resource for youth trying to break into global climate policy.
The course has continuously evolved based on feedback from young people. It began as a grassroots webinar series followed by youtube video series and has grown into a multi-dimensional training program on a learning management software. We’ve added languages, offline access, and new modules to offer regional perspectives and a solidarity lens. It's also updated each year for the subsequent UN climate conference, so it's always changing! Soon, we’re launching two major expansions: a COP Buddies mentorship program that will pair select participants with a mentor for their first COP and a simplified version of the course for kids who have a growing presence at the event.
The 2025 course version will be launching August 1st! You can reserve a spot and check out the course at careaboutclimate.org/climate-policy-and-advocacy. It is open-access and designed for youth advocates, educators, and anyone curious about international climate policy. We'v even trained IPCC scientists! If you represent a university, climate action, or youth group, reach out to explore partnership opportunities or tailored training sessions. And if you're attending a COP for the first time, let us know, our new mentorship program might be just what you need to feel ready.
