Youth Leadership
Contact Info
For more information on this program, or to get involved, please contact:
Adriana Valenzuela
Youth Leadership Program Lead
youth@gca.org
Goal for 2025
“Connect, Educate, Innovate, Advocate, Participate”
The Youth Leadership Program aims to make young people central to driving the adaptation agenda and implementation worldwide. The program’s mission is to mobilize the next generation of adaptation leaders around the world, empowering young people to make the case for adaptation on the global stage and make their communities more climate resilient through action areas like the Youth Adaptation Network, Adaptation Education and Jobs Training, the Youth Adaptation Solutions Challenge, the Youth Adaptation Incubator Fund, Young Leaders, Youth Participation in Adaptation Policy and Young Women Leadership on Adaptation.
The Youth Adaptation Network (YAN) is piloting a flagship Youth Advisory Panel to provide strategic advice to the CEO of GCA, Prof. Dr. Patrick Verkooijen. The Panel will be a twelve (12) member gender-and geographically-balanced group, which will provide strategic advice on youth engagement to drive the adaptation agenda. Individuals can self-nominate, however, priority will be given to nominations received from existing regional and international youth climate networks. Read More
The Global Youth Call to Action on Adaptation has been co-designed by the Global Center on Adaptation’s Youth Adaptation Network through 15 global and regional consultations and inputs from hundreds of thousands of young people from 120 countries around the globe. The Global Youth Call to Action on Adaptation demands world leaders to adapt the world for their future, calling for a Decade of Action to combat the causes of climate change and prepare future generations for the transition to climate resilient development. Key messages from the Global Youth Call to Action on Adaptation can be found on the YouthAdapt, a web application platform that engages the Youth Adaptation Network and connects young people to interact on adaptation priorities in their region. The platform provides an opportunity for continuous consultation with young people on the most urgent adaptation needs for their future.
Goal for 2025
To provide young people with a platform to access adaptation knowledge and campaigning materials while connecting them with leaders and businesses driving the global response to climate change.
Description
The Youth Adaptation Network will engage, empower and amplify the role of young people in the adaptation agenda. By creating an environment where young people are engaged as equal stakeholders in climate adaptation actions and providing them with learning opportunities, the Youth Adaptation Network will translate knowledge into action by engaging and participating in the design and implementation of local and national adaptation plans.
Are you below 35 years? Sign up to become a YAN member and benefit from exclusive adaptation knowledge resources and professional opportunities. Sign up here or email youth@gca.org for further information.
Key partners:
The Youth Adaptation Network is working with partner groups, networks and education institutions in more than 110 countries and always seeking to connect with more.
Goal for 2025
To train one million young people in Africa for jobs related to adaptation and climate resilience.
Key partners
Description
GCA will work with the African Development Bank to train one million young people across Africa for jobs related to adaptation and climate resilience by 2025. As part of the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program, GCA will identify new job steams in adaptation, and partner with technical and vocational training institutions, non-profit organizations and universities to develop research and training related to jobs on adaptation and climate resilience. GCA also will work with UN agencies, governments and other development partners globally to mainstream climate adaptation and resilience into the education policies by integrating them into curricula at all levels of formal education. GCA’s scientists, experts and practitioners are also producing training materials, virtual courses and toolkits, to develop the capacities of young people to lead adaptation solutions.
Massive Open Online Course on Climate Adaptation Governance
The University of Groningen/Campus Fryslân, in cooperation with the Global Center on Adaptation, have developed an online course in Climate Adaptation Governance. Register for the free MOOC
Goal for 2025
To train youth for jobs related to adaptation and climate resilience to drive large scale green growth and innovative youth-led adaptation solutions.
Key partners:
Description
The Youth Adaptation Solutions Challenge is a competition and awards program for young people to submit innovative solutions on climate adaptation and resilience through the creation of youth led-green and climate-resilient businesses. The participants in the annual Youth Adaptation Solutions Challenge are between the ages of 18 and 35 and have an interest in climate change adaptation. Winners will receive seed funding, tailored training, coaching and networking opportunities to develop business plans on climate adaptation. The Youth Adaptation Incubator Fund will provide seed funding for the Youth Adaptation Solutions Challenge winners to implement their climate adaptation projects.
Goal for 2025
To support the development of the next generation of climate adaptation leaders.
Description
GCA will host Young Leaders for capacity-building internships to help generate the next generation of climate adaptation leaders. Young Leaders will work with GCA experts contributing to policy, advocacy and research efforts that help societies across the world become more resilient to climate-related threats. This action area provides the opportunity for participants to support the work of world-leading adaptation professionals at the global network of GCA offices in the Netherlands, China, Bangladesh and Côte d’Ivoire and develop adaptation solutions for three months while spending another three months with one of GCA’s partner organizations.
Testimonials
The Youth Adaptation Network is working with partner groups, networks and education institutions in more than 130 countries and always seeking to connect with more.
Goal for 2025
To increase youth participation and engagement in decision-making processes at the local, regional, national and international level
Description
GCA will enhance ambition and momentum to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement and to effectively implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by increasing youth engagement in the design and implementation of climate policies that will affect their future, including National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
Goal for 2025
The Online Executive Training – Young Women Leadership on Climate Adaptation is a virtual educational and capacity-building program that responds to the climate crisis by elevating the leadership of young African women. The 20-week long comprehensive training program is tailored to young African women in influential roles leading and advocating for sustainable solutions, and building resilience to the changing climate, initially in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, and Zimbabwe.
Read More
Key partners:
Blog
News
Videos
Technical and Whitepapers
Young People and Drivers and Barriers to Climate Adaptation Action
Young people are going to bear the brunt of climate change, so we must involve them—now—as we draw up solutions.
10 August 2021
Global Youth Call to Action: Adapt for Our Future
Today, the world is home to the largest generation of youth in history, with 1.8 billion worldwide.
Adapt for our Future
The world is witnessing one of the largest climate protests in its history, sparked by the determination of a 16-year-old and resonating across 160 countries through the efforts of children and young people.
Events
Contact Info
For more information on this program, or to get involved, please contact:
Adriana Valenzuela
Youth Leadership Program Lead
youth@gca.org