Youth Engagement in Climate Finance: Challenges and Opportunities
When it comes to climate action, youth and children face a dual challenge: on the one hand, taking responsibility for climate advocacy, articulation, and engagement, as well as having to care for their own futures and livelihood. Due to lack of access to funding, local, national, global projects and programs often struggle to ensure their long-term sustainability and effectiveness. You may have already experienced the limits of volunteerism, for example, during your climate engagement. This discussion comes at a critical time when we need paradigm-shifting initiatives to be undertaken in multiple geographical areas sparked by the minds, willingness and ambition of young people.
Furthermore, the process of allocating finances for climate action deliberation and decision-making appears distant from the reach of young people. This is often due to the presence of complex language and a lack of inclusivity, with youth frequently encountering unwelcoming environments in these spaces.
However, these barriers can also serve as fuel for youth to develop innovative solutions and alternative financing mechanisms. Successful examples of youth-led initiatives in this regard do exist!.
We want to highlight the importance of Youth Engagement in Climate Finance at the ECOSOC Youth Forum, the UN’s largest platform for youth voices. Therefore we kindly ask you as young changemakers and climate renegades to give your inputs to the below questions:
- How do financial barriers, such as lack of access to funding and lack of understanding the financial opportunities negatively affect youth involvement in climate action?
- How can young people leverage technology and digital platforms to access climate finance and facilitate fundraising for climate projects?
- What alternative financing mechanisms can be explored to empower youth-led climate initiatives?
- Can you provide examples of successful youth-led climate initiatives that have overcome financial barriers?
- How can mentorship programs and partnerships with financial institutions help bridge the gap for youth in accessing climate finance?
- What are the capacities and skills that you feel in need to boost your climate project finance or fundraising?