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Monday
18 November
Driving
the day
The
‘Pact for
the Future’
that was recently signed by 193 countries has
forged a new shared accountability among nations
for the needs and interests of present and future
generations.
Galvanised
by this near-universally agreed commitment to
global cooperation, the youth movement is
applying its passion, cutting-edge skills, and
knowledge to boosting resilience of
climate-vulnerable communities, forming innovative
partnerships, and kickstarting actionable climate
solutions.
In
recent years, youth have emerged as critical
actors in the global climate movement, driving
unprecedented momentum for inclusion within the
COP process. Their advocacy has led to
historic acknowledgements of children and youth as
key stakeholders in the formal COP
outcomes. Ahead of COP 29, more than 80 Local
and Regional Conferences of Youth
shaped The Global
Youth Statement,
which calls for more ambitious policies
to urgently address the climate
crisis.
Race
to Resilience
- Resilience
Action Plans shield two billion
climate-vulnerable people: Today,
Race to Resilience (RtR) reveals steady
collective progress. Now
approaching the end of its third year, the RtR
campaign with 41 partners in 164 countries
working to fulfil their commitments.
Collectively, they have reached a significant
milestone by designing and starting to
implement action
plans for
protecting the lives and livelihoods of more
than 2
billion people most
vulnerable to the climate crisis.
Climate
youth movements
- Youth
partner initiatives strengthen the Race to
Resilience: The number of Race to
Resilience partners is growing, with 41 new
partner initiatives joining the campaign in
2024, a 20% increase from last
year.
Among
them, youth initiatives are playing a key role in
promoting adaptation and building resilience, for
example:
- GAYO
ramps up African resilience: The
Green Africa Youth Organization (GAYO) has made
clear progress in its resilience commitment,
having conducted nine impactful projects in
2024, directly benefiting over 1,500 people and
indirectly reaching more than 2,000 individuals.
Strikingly, GAYO has mobilized over
USD 500,000 in funding for these
initiatives, driving major impact on
the ground. It was the first youth-led partner
to join the Race to Resilience.
For
example, GAYO’s ‘Zero Waste Model’, which employs
and trains people from across communities,
including women, young people, waste collectors,
and waste pickers, to support circular waste
management, was a recent winner at
the Earthshot
Prize.
- 105K-strong
YoU-CAN Youth Network joins the
Race: Race
to Resilience welcomed its second youth-led
partner initiative: UNESCO
Youth Climate Action Network (YoU-CAN),
a platform connecting global youth climate
networks totalling more than 105,500 young
people, to enhance cooperation and support
youth-led climate actions and research across
Education, Science, Culture, and
Communication.
- The
Children and Youth Pavilion returns for its
third COP. Supported
by the High-Level Champions, alongside 20 youth
partners, the Pavilion acts
as a bridge enabling numerous different youth
movements from across the world to come together
as a unified front.
Today,
the pavilion will host a panel of Indigenous youth
leaders from various regions to inspire
action and foster a deeper understanding of
resilience within Indigenous communities. The
event will showcase their leadership and
innovative solutions and provide a space for
Indigenous youth to be meaningfully integrated
into discussions on climate action and
environmental policy, thereby continuing on the
mission of the COP 29 Presidency of meaningful
inclusion of Indigenous Peoples in climate
spaces.
The Popularising
Indigenous Know-Hows in Resilience: A Youth &
Indigenous Peoples Perspective event will take
place at 12:10pm - 12:55pm.
- Together
with the Marrakech Partnership, [a][b]the
High-Level Champions ensure global youth
participation across their work
through The
Climate Champions Youth Fellowship
Programme. Currently
in its fourth year, the programme welcomes seven
talented individuals from seven countries across
four continents. The programme is an
important mechanism for connecting global youth
networks to ensure knowledge sharing and
solutions exchange.
Human
Development
- Human
Development Day: Following
the signing of the Declaration of Future
Generations by 143 Governments in September
2024, COP 29 will host the first-ever Human
Development Day dedicated to tackling key issues
for future generations including health and
education. Businesses, investors,
universities and colleges, health institutions,
and youth are taking action to simultaneously
drive human development and ambitious climate
action.
- More
than 70 health institutions are delivering
action with health and climate co-benefits
through the Race to Zero, universities and
colleges are enhancing green skills of people
and small firms, and youth are supporting world
leaders to tackle the climate crisis. Health
Care Without Harm is asking philanthropy to
support a commitment to action through the
Clinton Global Initiative to double the number
of health care institutions in the Race to Zero,
and increase their resilience for 100 million
people.
- Race
to Resilience partner,
Regions4 launched
its annual report “ From
Cali to Belem: Subnational Governments Leading
Nature Action to Adapt to Climate Change “ bridging
CBD COP 16 (biodiversity) and UNFCCC COP 29
(climate). It examines how subnational
governments are addressing both biodiversity and
climate crises. Using data from CDP across 40
regions in 16 countries, key findings
include:
- 70%
of reporting regions acknowledge deforestation
and forest degradation as major challenges, but
only 45% have implemented specific deforestation
risk assessments, revealing a gap between
recognizing the issue and taking structured
action.
- Of
the 196 identified climate risks, 57% impact
nature conservation and forestry
sectors, emphasizing the need for
climate resilience strategies
that prioritize nature.
- Regions
are
increasingly prioritizing nature-based
solutions and improving governance and capacity
building in the forestry and nature conservation
sectors.
Children speak
out on climate change
Francisco
Vera (15), Sofía Mejía Cadavid (15), and Melissa
Obeng-Kyereh (14) are stepping up in a world
already transformed by climate impacts.
They’re driving
the call for
policies that protect their rights and empower
their generation. At COP 27, the High-Level
Champions supported a children’s delegation to
join the conference and meet with global leaders
to present their aspirations for a sustainable
future.
In
Kenya, Melissa is part of an advocacy group that
uses radio to address development issues and
encourage young people’s local action. From
Colombia, Francisco amplifies his fight for
climate action, children’s rights, and climate
justice thanks to his presence on social media. As
a presenter and reporter for an education
children’s news programme, Sofía is leveraging the
efforts of young people in the Dominican Republic
to promote environmental conservation and
renewable energy commitments.
Youth
Fellows speak out on climate change
Race
to Resilience Youth Fellow, Ferdison
Valmond,
explains how inclusive climate action can create a
more resilient and sustainable world. Ferdison
highlights the campaign’s commitment to empowering
underrepresented groups to ensure they play an
active role in shaping climate resilience
efforts.
Daniel
D’Elia da Costa, Climate Champions’ Finance Youth
Fellow, shares
his perspective on the critical intersection of
climate finance and biodiversity as we look beyond
COP 29. Reflecting on recent global climate
events, Daniel highlights the role of the
Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action
in mobilizing capital for nature-based
solutions and building bridges between project
developers and financiers. With Brazil’s upcoming
role as COP 30 host, Daniel envisions a future
where financial stakeholders champion both climate
and biodiversity goals, transforming regional
challenges into global opportunities for
sustainable growth.
In
a world where “systems change” is frequently cited
as essential for tackling global challenges, what
does the term truly mean? Why do we refer to these
structures as “systems,” and what does
transforming them actually entail? Richard
Shen, Climate Champions Systems Transformation
Youth Fellow, explores
these questions through a nuanced perspective on
green demand and systems thinking.
Water
resilience
Today,
the Implementation Lab will explore how
partnerships can transform food systems through
sustainable water management. By utilising
evidence from Egypt, India and Africa, the
session ‘iLab Water: Scaling
Resilience: Impact-Driven Partnerships for Food
& Water Through Evidence &
Innovation’ will
focus on showcasing scalable solutions aligned
with Nationally Determined Contributions, and
National Adaptation Plans through public-private
collaboration in developing regions.
Impact
Makers
In
the face of the climate crisis, solutions are
emerging faster than ever, tackling every aspect
of the challenge. The new High-Level Champions’
series, Impact Makers, shines a spotlight on those
leading this change from the ground up.
Explore
today’s Impact
Makers, revolutionizing industries from
wine and textiles, to energy and
transport.
MARYAM
BELLO -
Bridging healthcare gaps through climate-resilient
mobile health solutions
ZEINABA
NARABENE -
Championing environmental education and climate
action through Green Schools in Mali
SELLAH
BOGONKO -
Empowering Africa’s youth through green
jobs
ANGELA
CHAUDHURI -
Connecting climate solutions with health for
vulnerable communities
Call
for inputs: COP 29 climate action
announcements
The
UNFCCC secretariat is tracking climate action
announcements made at the twenty-ninth session of
the Conference of the Parties (COP 29), including
the launch of:
- climate
initiatives;
- pledges
and declarations;
- publications
and reports;
- any
other climate action announcements.
This
information will be used to inform the Global
Climate Action Portal (GCAP), formally known as
Non-State Actor Zone for Climate Action (NAZCA),
in particular, its COP 29 event page. Please
find the online form to submit your
inputs here or
via the QR code below.
For
further information please visit: https://climateaction.unfccc.int/Events/COP29).
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