Global Youth Call to Action on Adaptation Launched at COP30: Youth Set Out 10 Priorities for NDCs and NAPs
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elém, Brazil, November 12, 2025 — The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA), together with young people from around the world, today launched the Global Youth Call to Action on Adaptation: Recommendations on Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) at COP30 on Education Day.
Developed through a global consultation process convened for Youth Climate Adaptation Day 2025, the Call to Action reflects inputs from thousands of young people across 90 countries—including youth-led organizations, students, and grassroots movements—on national and global adaptation priorities. Consultations were organized using GCA’s Guide to Organizing Youth Consultations on NDCs and NAPs, which empowers young people to engage directly in adaptation policy and decision-making.
“At the Global Center on Adaptation, we are proud to stand beside this generation—a generation that turns ideas into action and action into impact. Under the African Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP), we have seen youth-led innovation transform communities and build real resilience on the ground. As we advance AAAP 2.0, young people must be at the center of the adaptation agenda, shaping and implementing solutions that deliver resilience for all,” said Professor Patrick V. Verkooijen, President and CEO, Global Center on Adaptation.
Ten Youth Recommendations to Strengthen Global Adaptation
The consultations—one of the largest coordinated youth dialogues on adaptation—were analyzed and compiled by GCA into ten priority recommendations for integrating youth perspectives into NDCs and NAPs:
1. Build resilient economies, jobs, and well-being through adaptation-aligned policies and investments.
2. Scale adaptation finance and improve access and delivery to communities most at risk.
3. Recognize youth as agents of change with meaningful participation across NDC and NAP cycles.
4. Align adaptation and mitigation to maximize co-benefits for people and planet.
5. Embed climate education and capacity building at all levels of learning and governance.
6. Create adaptation jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities for youth and local innovators.
7. Ensure inclusive and equitable implementation backed by robust monitoring, reporting, and evaluation.
8. Integrate local and Indigenous knowledge into policy design and delivery.
9. Strengthen intergenerational partnerships and national–international collaboration for scale.
10. Leverage technology, innovation, and responsible AI to accelerate effective adaptation solutions.
The Call to Action urges governments, policymakers, and international institutions to integrate youth priorities into the design, implementation, and monitoring of NDCs and NAPs—and to partner with young people to deliver adaptation solutions that generate tangible benefits for people, economies, and ecosystems.
The Global Youth Call to Action on Adaptation: Recommendations on Nationally Determined Contributions and National Adaptation Plans is available here.
Notes to editors
About the Global Center on Adaptation
The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) is an international organization that promotes adaptation to the impacts of climate change. It works to climate-proof development by instigating policy reforms and influencing investments made by international financial institutions and the private sector. The goal is to bring climate adaptation to the forefront of the global fight against climate change and ensure that it remains prominent. Founded in 2018, GCA is the first international organization to maintain dual headquarters in both the Global North in Rotterdam and in the Global South in Nairobi – underscoring the equal partnership between regions and the conviction that climate adaptation solutions must be co-designed and co-owned. Its regional hubs in Abidjan, Dhaka and Beijing, leverage local expertise to pilot and scale context-specific approaches. Together, these centers ensure a continuous, two-way exchange of knowledge and best practices that empower communities and drive resilient and inclusive growth worldwide.
About My Climate Adaptation Action Day
The Youth Climate Adaptation Action Day, organized by the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) around the 12th of October, is the largest-running annual youth adaptation event taking place in over 100 countries around the world. In 2025, the Youth Climate Adaptation Action Day invited young people, youth-led organizations, students and grassroots collectives to organize consultations on Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), youth, and adaptation. The theme of “NDCs, NAPs, Youth and Adaptation” emphasized the role young people play in building resilient economies and achieving these national commitments.
