YouthLink Scotland is delighted to announce additional investment from Scottish Government of £160,000, to support local authorities to engage in the COP26 Scottish Youth Climate Programme. Funding will be used to support Local Champions to prepare for and attend the COP26 Youth Summit and contribute to the youth climate declaration.

The aim of the COP26 Youth Climate Programme, delivered in partnership between YouthLink Scotland, Keep Scotland Beautiful and Young Scot, is to:

• Increase climate action taken by young people
• Deliver a legacy of youth involvement in climate change policy and decision making
• Increase climate change awareness – supporting young people as climate champions, with a focus on Scotland’s ambitions toward Net Zero and increasing “Carbon Literacy” in young people
• Respect, protect and realise the rights of children and young people in Scotland, particularly “the right of every child to freely express her or his views, in all matters affecting her or him, and the subsequent right for those views to be given due weight, according to the child’s age and maturity” (United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) article 12)

Commenting on this additional investment, Tim Frew, CEO, YouthLink Scotland said:

“These funds to Local Authority CLD Youth Work Services are about ensuring a wider representation of young people’s voices in Scotland are heard, listened to and acted upon in the lead up to and beyond COP26.

“It is young people who, along with future generations, will have to live with the worst consequences of climate change. Therefore, the youth work sector must be central to, and actively engaged in any public engagement and social/policy action. We know the climate is a priority area of action for young people and they are eager to engage in action to address the climate emergency.”

Mark Molloy, Service Manager for Young People at Dumfries & Galloway Council, said:

“This investment will support the further involvement of young people in local communities across Scotland to further engage in work around climate change and the environment at a grass roots level. This investment is welcome and shows the important role that youth work has to play in supporting social action with young people.”

This very welcome additional funding, forms part of the wider programme with our partners Young Scot and Keep Scotland Beautiful, to support young people to engage in COP26, and build a lasting and meaningful legacy. This grant will:

• Enhance staff capacity at local level to support the recruitment, training and ongoing support of 10 COP26 youth champions in each local authority providing a more meaningful, connected and cohesive experience for the young people involved and stronger network building and legacy opportunities beyond COP26
• Support Local Champions to prepare for and attend the COP26 Youth Summit and contribute to the youth climate declaration ensuring a wider representation of young people’s voices in Scotland are heard, listened to and acted upon in the lead up to and beyond COP26
• Facilitate the development and delivery of a co-designed local climate change project, involving a larger, more diverse, group of young people that builds a legacy of COP26 and provides a platform for young people to have a voice in local climate action plans and policy
• Support the local COP26 Champions to work locally with existing youth groups and programmes to highlight, amplify and enhance existing activity
• Build the capacity and resources to create a longer-term, embedded offer for climate action and sustainable education programmes through youth work provisions in your local area

More information on COP26 Youth Climate Programme.