2025 Global Youth Statement

Introducing the document that could change the world in 2025

The Global Youth Statement (GYS) is the world’s largest youth-led negotiation document. A powerful testament to years of youth-driven advocacy, the 2025 Global Youth Statement (GYS) brings together over 30,000 voices from 150+ countries and represents more than 80,000+ hours of creation, consultation, and synthesis. It builds on previous youth statements coordinated by YOUNGO, and its youth constituency who have participated in yearly consultations on youth and climate policy since the mid-2000s. Most recently, the youth constituency submitted an in-depth statement on behalf of more than 750,000+ youth and engaged youth from more than 160 countries at COP 28 in December 2023.

Representing years of coordinated children & youth advocacy, the GYS exists in three complementary editions, including the Full Statement, the Summary for Policymakers, and the Advocacy Toolkit.  Each is designed to translate children & youth perspectives into actionable, negotiation-aligned climate policies.

What is the Global Youth Statement?

The Global Youth Statement (GYS) is an evidence-based collection of collective demands of children and youth across the world, constructed, articulated, and presented to the UNFCCC and GYS Parties, stakeholders, observers, and other key participants on climate policy by YOUNGO, the UNFCCC's official Children and Youth Constituency, as well as a formally structured process to transform youth perspectives into actionable policy-focused recommendations for global decision-makers.

The GYS process unfolds across four key stages:

1. Collection of Inputs – Gathering submissions from working groups, LCOYs, NGOs, and individuals from across the world.

2. Hackathons – Conducted over 50+ thematic policy hackathons to refine and align children and youth positions.

3. Synthesis and Editing – Reviewed and consolidated inputs for clarity, balance, and alignment with UNFCCC decisions.

4. Advocacy and Handover – Ensuring the final document is disseminated and recognized across Parties, observers, and negotiation platforms.

In 2025, the GYS includes demands across 20+ diverse thematic areas, including from energy, adaptation, and loss and damage to education, health, and peacebuilding, each grounded in the principles of climate justice and human rights.

The Global Youth Statement 2025: A united call for urgent climate action

The GYS is a unified call from children and youth from over 100 countries around the world to take urgent action for climate justice, climate resilience, and peace as ecological and humanitarian crises escalate around the world. According to a World Bank report, it is predicted that by 2050, over 1.3 billion people will experience severe ecological threats, and up to 1.2 billion people may be displaced from their homes due to climate change. Furthermore, even if the world keeps global warming to 1.5°C, children born in 2020 will live on average, seven times more heatwaves and double the number of wildfires than their grandparents' generation. We must recognize that this is only one more example of injustices that continue to widen across generations. Despite the growing urgency of the climate crisis, we have not seen an increase in global climate ambition; youth spaces and participation have been shrinking at an alarming rate, misinformation is increasing, implementation is lagging behind commitments, and the status quo is unsustainable.

The GYS adamantly responds: Youth will not inherit a broken world. Embodying the spirit of "Harvesting Hope'’ and Mutirão (collective action), youth are demanding the 30th session of the global Conference of the Parties (COP30) to be a definitive moment when governments, institutions, and businesses all join behind science, equity, and justice to secure the livable and peaceful future we all deserve.

What makes GYS 2025 unique

The 2025 GYS stands out for its inclusive process, negotiation relevance, and the depth of its thematic proposals developed by youth from around the world.

1. Negotiation-Aligned (NADs) – Every demand is completely and directly mapped to official COP30 agenda items, ensuring the document’s full relevance within UNFCCC negotiations.

2. Globally Inclusive and Data-Driven – Inputs from 30,000+ youth across 150+ countries were synthesized thoroughly through LCOYs, RCOYs, and YOUNGO’s thematic working groups.

3. Strategically Connected – Designed as a strategic tool to engage directly with Parties, observers, and stakeholders, bridging youth advocacy with institutional decision-making.

In essence, the GYS is a vital youth negotiation framework, transforming voices from the grassroots into influence at the highest policy tables.

Read the full Global Youth Statement here: https://bit.ly/GYS2025EDITION