Youth Climate Activists
IN THE NEWS
Climate justice, one coffee at a time
In 2017, Summer Sharma started a coffee shop at Okanagan Mission Secondary School with Lauren Moody, Skye Noh and Angelica Phelan. They wanted to raise awareness among their fellow students about the difference collective action can make in achieving social and climate justice.
Rallying support for people impacted by climate disasters
Enya Fang rallies support for people impacted by climate-related catastrophes. This 16-year-old, Grade 12 student at Southridge School in Surrey, B.C., won a 2024 Youth Climate Activism Award from I-SEA Canada for raising awareness and over $10,000 since setting up the not-for-profit Evergreen Collective in 2021.
At 18, this Yukon activist turned school climate strikes into council meetings
Ella Bradford uses student climate strikes to raise awareness in Yukon. This 18-year-old student is a recipient of the I-SEA 2024 youth climate activism award for her high school leadership of the “Fridays for Future Yukon” student movement.
Climate Conversations to Encourage Action
Smiely Khurana’s online platform, The Sustainable Act, showcases thoughtful storytelling about the climate crisis, and encourages us to appreciate each other and take action to protect what we love.
Helping students express their feelings about the climate crisis
Luiza Salek is using art to help high school teachers provide a platform for students to express their feelings about the climate crisis, as part of the first UBC Climate Studies and Action cohort.
Equipping emotionally resilient climate leaders
McKenna Corvello helps youth become resilient in the face of climate change. The 23-year-old Carleton University master’s student works for Mochi4thePlanet, researching strategies for cultivating hope in young people.
Mapping the great outdoors
Lesley Johnson creates maps to help us explore Canada’s nature trails, as manager of geographic information system (GIS) mapping for Trans Canada Trail.
How a Vancouver advocate tells the story of climate change
Chloe Fraser, a 23-year-old Vancouver writer, was named a top environmentalist under 25 for her accredited university course that teaches participants about the power of stories to motivate engagement in climate issues.
Student climate striker still inspiring change
Shir Gruber helped lead the 2019 climate student strikes. Now she has parlayed that experience into a leadership role with Sustainable Youth Canada.
Teen leader keeps planet in mind
Fifteen-year-old Anna Brozek is teaching business leaders about sustainability.
Sharing climate stories of hope not doom
Charlotte Taylor tells hopeful stories about the real impacts of climate change.
Honouring invasive plants by turning them into art
Joshua Ralph honours the lives of invasive plants. This 25-year-old, Vancouver-based artist hosts workshops teaching participants to make art supplies from plants removed in the work of restoring and rewilding.
The Art of Youth Climate Activism
Finnegan Brown is using art and political action to protect our climate. This 16-year-old high school student from Sooke, B.C., received a 2023 I-SEA Youth Climate Activism Award for an essay featuring his nature sketches, urban design ideas and his presentation of a private member’s bill at the 2023-24 B.C.
Her school of thought? Plant a pocket forest.
Serena Chin wants a forest in every city. This 16-year-old in Grade 12 led the environmental team at Richmond Secondary School to plant the first Miyawaki pocket forest in Western Canada.