Young Leaders for Global Climate Action Summit

The Young Leaders for Global Climate Action Summit, organized by Love&Future, convened at United Nations Plaza in New York immediately following the Summit of the Future. The youth-led gathering brought together global experts, policymakers, educators, and youth representatives to advance climate action and accelerate progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Under the theme “Youth-Driven Climate Solutions for a Healthier, Smarter, and Greener Future”, the Summit underscored the urgency of youth-driven action and highlighted the transformative power of intergenerational partnerships. The event also marked the launch of the Young Leaders for Global Climate Action Education Program, a five-year initiative designed to mobilize one million young people worldwide by 2030.

A Critical Moment for Climate Action

Professor Jeffrey D. Sachs, Director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University, provided a sobering assessment of the global climate emergency. He highlighted the intensifying pace of natural feedback loops—rising methane emissions from wetlands, collapsing ice sheets, and accelerating biodiversity loss—that are exacerbating global warming.

“Your earth, your planet, your future, are at stake right now,” Sachs told participants. He stressed the dual challenge of halting human-induced warming while building resilience against irreversible climate disruptions already underway. Achieving these goals, he argued, will require a fundamental transformation in both energy systems and land use.

Sachs called for breaking through political and financial bottlenecks that have long hindered climate progress. He emphasized the role of youth in building coalitions, advising governments, mobilizing development financing, and leading public education. “We need not only an energy transformation pathway but a land use transformation pathway,” he said, pointing to the urgency of ending deforestation, preserving biodiversity, and creating sustainable agricultural systems.

Intergenerational Leadership and Educational Reform

Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard of Mount Vernon, New York, emphasized the importance of intergenerational collaboration in local climate governance. Reflecting on her experience leading a city vulnerable to flooding, sewage collapse, and public health risks, she underscored the need to empower youth to hold leaders accountable and to position themselves as partners in decision-making.

“We cannot allow the future of our cities to be left solely in the hands of elected officials,” she warned. “Young people are not mascots. They must be co-designers of solutions from the very start.”

Mayor Patterson-Howard called for embedding climate change across school curricula and challenging students to address real-world problems in air quality, nutrition, and urban design. She further encouraged creative approaches to youth engagement, including leveraging digital platforms like TikTok to expand climate communication and awareness.

Digital Tools for Inclusive Participation

Professor Jonathan Collins of Columbia University highlighted the critical role of technology in strengthening civic participation in climate governance. Drawing from democratic theory, he explained the “free rider problem” of collective action, where individuals struggle to see the direct impact of their contributions to the public good.

“The hardest part is always changing the structure to get people to participate,” Collins observed. “That is where technology can play a transformative role.”

He argued that digital platforms can reduce socioeconomic barriers that prevent citizens—particularly young people working multiple jobs or living in underserved communities—from engaging in decision-making processes. By lowering entry barriers, technology can empower youth to become active participants in shaping climate policy.

Storytelling and Teacher Empowerment

Dr. Christina Torres spoke on the power of storytelling as a bridge between climate science and everyday learning. She described her work using narratives from ecosystems, such as rainforests and insect populations, to connect abstract scientific data with real-world experiences.

She also detailed initiatives that strengthen teacher capacity through collaborative lesson design. Her team’s summer institutes brought educators together to co-create climate lesson plans, later made open-source to ensure accessibility worldwide.

“Storytelling connects schooling to the environment,” Torres said. “By making climate lessons personal and participatory, we inspire radical hope in young people.”

Resilience and Economic Growth

Dr. Joshua DeVincenzo addressed the economic dimension of resilience. He explained how disasters not only destroy infrastructure but also derail policy agendas and interrupt economic growth.

“I don’t want people to learn about disasters from experience,” he cautioned. Instead, he urged governments to prioritize disaster preparedness and resilience planning to protect lives, livelihoods, and financial assets. His remarks underscored the need for proactive strategies that protect communities from the cascading shocks of climate disruptions.

Local Solutions, Global Equity, and Youth Inclusion

Mr. Syed M. Ali Mustafa as a leader working across climate-vulnerable regions, he underscored that the young people most directly impacted by climate disasters—often in the Global South—are rarely present in international forums where solutions are debated.

“The young people who are actually affected don’t have a seat at the UN,” Mustafa noted, pointing to the financial and structural barriers that exclude marginalized youth from global policy spaces.

He argued that local, community-driven initiatives—whether entrepreneurial projects in agriculture, innovative adaptation strategies, or grassroots disaster response—hold immense potential to inform global strategies. However, these solutions can only have impact at scale if global platforms recognize and resource them.

“Local solutions are creative, entrepreneurial, and effective,” Mustafa said. “They not only respond to global challenges but can also be adapted across borders. What we need is equitable access to platforms and financing so that youth voices from the most vulnerable regions are heard and acted upon.”

Mental Health and Holistic Education

Mr. Daniel del Valle Blanco, Chair of the UN-Habitat Youth Advisory Board, addressed the often-overlooked link between mental health and effective climate leadership.

“If young people are not mentally well, they cannot contribute to the fight against climate change,” he said. Blanco stressed that education reform must not only prepare students for technical and scientific challenges but also cultivate resilience, critical thinking, and holistic life skills.

He called for education systems that move beyond awareness to empower youth with agency, positioning them as global citizens equipped to lead climate action.

Youth Perspectives

Youth representative Tianyu Lei delivered a compelling reflection on the role of her generation in shaping climate futures. She spoke about the challenge of balancing passion with dedication in climate activism and highlighted the importance of collaboration, innovation, and policy engagement.

“Our generation must transform education and elevate advocacy to achieve holistic solutions,” Tianyu said. She affirmed that young leaders are ready to co-create with governments and institutions, bridging the gap between ideas and implementation.

Launch of Global Youth Education Program

A central outcome of the Summit was the launch of the Young Leaders for Global Climate Action Education Program, a five-year initiative that will expand from New York to China in 2025 before returning to the United Nations General Assembly in Fall 2025.

The program aims to reach one million young people by 2030, equipping them with knowledge, leadership skills, and opportunities to drive climate action. Through cross-sector partnerships, it will scale youth-led innovations, expand educational access, and strengthen intergenerational collaboration.

Closing Reflections

Gege Dong, Founder of Love&Future, emphasized the transformative role of young people in global sustainability.

“Our future is here, in this room, transforming the world,” she said. “Young people are not only advocates of climate action but practitioners of solutions. Their leadership is essential for the 2030 Agenda.”

The Summit reaffirmed that youth engagement is not optional but imperative. By investing in education, well-being, innovation, and equitable participation, the global community can harness the creativity and resilience of young people to confront the climate crisis and build a healthier, smarter, and greener future.

Key Outcomes and Recommendations

The Young Leaders for Global Climate Action Summit produced a series of actionable insights and policy recommendations:

• Climate Action and Resilience

  • Achieve net zero emissions by 2050 through energy and land use transformation.

  • Strengthen resilience systems to protect communities from economic and climate shocks.

• Education and Youth Empowerment

  • Integrate climate change education into curricula at all levels.

  • Expand teacher training and provide open-source lesson plans for global adaptation.

  • Leverage digital platforms to reach young people and inspire green career pathways.

• Health and Well-Being

  • Recognize youth mental health as integral to climate leadership.

  • Integrate physical and emotional well-being into youth empowerment programs.

• Youth Innovation and Economic Growth

  • Expand financing, mentorship,  and visibility for youth-led enterprises, particularly in climate-vulnerable regions.

  • Scale local innovations into transferable global models.

• Partnerships and Inclusion

  • Institutionalize youth participation in decision-making processes at all levels.

  • Ensure equitable access for young people from marginalized and climate-affected regions.

  • Strengthen intergenerational partnerships to co-design solutions, moving beyond symbolic inclusion.