Young People Making Change
From WikiDemocracy
Jump to navigationJump to search
Good News This Week: June 6, 2026 - Bees, Turtles, and Community Progress
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | June 6, 2026
An 18-year-old student from Ireland created “EcoPurge,” a low-cost invention highlighted in this roundup of recent good news. The item fits the young changemakers theme because it shows a student using practical design and environmental concern to create a solution aimed at reducing waste and harm.
Students Rebuild: Unique & United
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | March 16, 2026
Students Rebuild’s “Unique & United” project invites young people to make art in support of immigrants and refugees. The project shows how students and children can use creativity, empathy, and collective action to raise awareness and help communities facing exclusion.
Young Climate Champions of Uzbekistan Initiate First-Ever Local Conference of Youth
| UNICEF Uzbekistan | UNICEF | 2026
Young climate champions in Uzbekistan helped launch the country’s first Local Conference of Youth, creating a platform for young people from all regions to share ideas, build networks, and influence climate policy. The article shows youth climate leadership moving from awareness into organized civic participation.
Eleven Young Climate Leaders Appointed as L.E.A.F. Ambassadors in St. Kitts and Nevis
| UNICEF Eastern Caribbean | UNICEF | April 16, 2026
Eleven young people were appointed as Leaders for Environmental Action and the Future after a national youth symposium in St. Kitts and Nevis. Their work shows how youth climate leadership can be formalized through training, public engagement, and community environmental action.
Young Climate Leaders 2026
| Heinrich Böll Stiftung | Heinrich Böll Stiftung | 2026
Heinrich Böll Stiftung profiles young women climate leaders from South Asia who connect climate action with dignity, rights, health, education, and community resilience. The article is useful for showing young people as climate thinkers and advocates, not only as protesters.
Climate Action Clubs: Nurturing the Next Generation of Climate Action Leaders
| Faris Amer | UNICEF Jordan | October 14, 2024
UNICEF-supported climate action clubs in Jordan give children and young people education, tools, and opportunities to act on climate issues. The article shows how school and community programs can turn climate concern into practical leadership and local action.
Good News This Week: April 24, 2026 - People Power, Energy, and Environmental Champions
| Gavin Haines | Positive News | April 24, 2026
Positive News highlights grassroots environmental champions and community action as part of a weekly roundup of progress. The article is useful for this topic because it shows the wider ecosystem in which young environmental organizers often work: local projects, practical wins, and public recognition.
The Young Traders Reviving Britain's Market Stalls
| Sally Howard | Positive News | May 20, 2026
Young entrepreneurs in Britain are using traditional market stalls to build businesses, test products, and learn customer skills at a time when youth job opportunities are difficult. The article shows young people turning economic uncertainty into creativity, independence, and local enterprise.
Three Mentorship Schemes That Help Youth Develop Skills
| Positive News | Positive News | 2026
Positive News highlights mentorship initiatives that help young people discover their abilities, build confidence, and shape their futures. The item fits the young changemakers theme because mentorship often gives students the support needed to move from talent or concern into leadership and action.
In the Age of Digital Revolution, I Fight for Everyone to Be Safe Online
| Aminata Savané | Global Citizen | April 22, 2026
Aminata Savané works to make digital spaces safer for women, children, and young people in Côte d'Ivoire. Her essay shows youth leadership in digital inclusion, online safety, gender justice, and community education.
Japanese Politicians Were Disregarding the Youth
| Akemi Kawasaki | Global Citizen | May 1, 2026
Akemi Kawasaki describes efforts to bring young people into political conversations in Japan, especially where youth and women are often ignored. The article shows civic changemaking through dialogue, advocacy, and creating routes for younger voices to reach decision makers.
Indigenous Women Bear the Brunt of Mining Pollution
| Margarita Aquino | Global Citizen | March 20, 2026
Margarita Aquino’s story focuses on land defense and environmental justice in Bolivia, including community education and early-warning systems. The article is useful for youth-change coverage because it shows the kind of grassroots climate and rights work that younger organizers often join, learn from, and carry forward.
My Home Is Spoken Of But Rarely Heard From
| Tala Odeh | Global Citizen | November 3, 2025
Tala Odeh, a young human rights defender from Jordan, co-founded a youth-led regional network supporting human rights defenders across the Middle East and North Africa. Her work shows young people building peace, defending rights, and demanding to be treated as partners in global decision-making.
Despite Challenges for Girls and Women in Afghanistan, I Still Believe Education Can Change the World
| Global Citizen | Global Citizen | May 2, 2025
A student connected to Learn Afghan describes the importance of girls’ education and the hope that education can create better futures for Afghanistan. The article highlights youth-led and youth-centered education work as a form of resistance, empowerment, and long-term community change.
I Fight Cybersexism for Women and Girls Everywhere
| Shanley Clemot McLaren | Global Citizen | March 17, 2025
Shanley Clemot McLaren founded #StopFisha to fight cybersexism and technology-facilitated gender-based violence. Her work shows young people confronting digital harm through advocacy, education, and survivor-centered activism.
I Became an Activist to Fight Climate Change
| Sharona Shnayder | Global Citizen | June 1, 2022
Sharona Shnayder describes becoming a young environmental activist and working for climate justice in the Middle East. Her essay is useful for showing how young changemakers often begin from personal experience and grow into broader public advocacy.
What I Learned About Indigenous Rights as a Young Native American Studying in Australia
| Victor Anthony Lopez-Carmen | Global Citizen | December 1, 2020
Victor Anthony Lopez-Carmen reflects on Indigenous rights, education, and advocacy as a young Native American student. The article shows how young people can connect personal identity, global learning, and public health or rights work into a wider commitment to justice.
Youth Climate Leaders Meet Minister of Youth Ahead of COP30 Brazil
| UNICEF Jordan | UNICEF | November 5, 2025
Young climate leaders selected for Jordan’s COP30 delegation met with the country’s Minister of Youth before traveling to Brazil. The article shows young people entering formal climate diplomacy and bringing community concerns into national and international climate spaces.
Thai Youth Lead the Call for Urgent, Inclusive Climate Action Ahead of COP30
| UNICEF Thailand | UNICEF | November 10, 2025
Thai youth networks developed climate recommendations ahead of COP30 and called for urgent, inclusive action. The article shows young people using consultation, network-building, and formal recommendations to push for stronger climate policy.
Tanzanian Youth Lead Climate Action Ahead of COP30
| UNICEF Tanzania | UNICEF | September 23, 2025
Young people in Tanzania gathered in youth-led climate forums and called on leaders to place children at the center of climate action. The article highlights youth organizing, climate justice, and the belief that children and teenagers can contribute meaningfully to national and global climate decisions.
Youth and Public Services: A Generation Ready to Serve
| UNESCO | UNESCO | December 19, 2025
UNESCO reports on young people’s interest in public service and their desire to contribute to solving social problems. The article is useful for showing youth changemaking as more than protest or invention; it also includes service, civic responsibility, and building better public institutions.
Youth Leaders Award
| Global Citizen | Global Citizen | 2025
Global Citizen’s Youth Leaders Award recognizes young innovators and advocates working on climate, gender equity, human rights, and extreme poverty. The program shows how young people can be supported with funding, networking, and visibility so their projects can reach more communities.
Young Inventors Challenge 2025
| Association of Science, Technology and Innovation | ASTI | 2025
The Young Inventors Challenge encourages secondary school students to work in teams and create innovative solutions to present-day problems. It is useful for showing how invention programs help teenagers practice collaboration, design thinking, science, and practical problem-solving.
WSA Young Innovators
| World Summit Awards | World Summit Awards | 2025
The WSA Young Innovators award recognizes digital solutions created by people under 26 that support the Sustainable Development Goals. The program highlights young entrepreneurs, student teams, and project groups using technology to address public problems.
BeChangeMaker Youth Festival 2025
| UNESCO-UNEVOC | UNESCO-UNEVOC | 2025
The BeChangeMaker Youth Festival focuses on young social entrepreneurs and their potential to create positive global impact. The event is useful for showing how training, networks, and international platforms can help young people turn ideas into stronger social-impact projects.
Climate Action Week Maldives 2026
| International Institute of Management and Policy Studies | IIMPS | 2026
Climate Action Week Maldives 2026 is an international youth event focused on sustainability, leadership, innovation, and climate solutions. The event shows how young people from climate-vulnerable places can gather to design responses, share ideas, and build networks for environmental action.
UNICEF Innocenti Youth Fellowship
| UNICEF Innocenti | UNICEF | 2026
UNICEF Innocenti’s youth fellowship supports young climate educators, innovators, and systems thinkers working on climate education. The fellowship is a strong example of giving young people not only a platform but also research support, mentorship, and institutional backing.
The Children's Climate Risk Report 2026
UNICEF’s 2026 report calls for children and young people to be meaningfully included in climate action through education, skills, and participation in decisions that affect their lives. It is useful background for youth climate leadership because it frames participation as a right, not a favor.
Turkmenistan Joins Regional Ecological Summit 2026 and Endorses Regional Green Education Agenda
| UNICEF Turkmenistan | UNICEF | 2026
UNICEF reports that children and young people took part in high-level climate dialogues, youth-led sessions, and policy engagement during the Regional Ecological Summit. The article shows young people helping shape education and climate priorities rather than simply being talked about by adults.
Placing Children at the Heart of Climate Action
| UNICEF Maldives | UNICEF | June 5, 2026
UNICEF Maldives argues that children and young people must be placed at the center of climate action, especially in island nations facing serious climate risks. The article is useful for showing why youth voices matter in adaptation planning, education, and national climate policy.
Child and Youth Action for the Environment
UNICEF’s child and youth environmental action work aims to help millions of young people become climate advocates and take concrete green actions. The page is useful for showing how youth climate leadership can include local projects, school-based action, public advocacy, and environmental education.
Youth Leadership on Climate Change: Supporting Young Leaders to Strengthen Their Movement
| UNICEF | UNICEF | March 28, 2025
UNICEF describes efforts to support young climate leaders as they build stronger movements and influence policy. The article shows that youth activism becomes more powerful when young people receive training, coordination support, and opportunities to connect across borders.
Take Action With Reebok and Global Citizen
| Global Citizen | Global Citizen | 2025
This Global Citizen project highlights Dieter Cantu, a young activist using education, sports, and literacy programs to support young people in juvenile facilities. The article shows youth changemaking focused on equity, rehabilitation, reading, and practical support for marginalized young people.
13 Social Justice Heroes Who Are Inspiring Global Citizens
| Global Citizen | Global Citizen | February 17, 2023
Global Citizen includes young social-change activists Justice Faith Betty and Nia Faith Betty, who helped build Révolutionnaire as a platform for young changemakers. The article is useful for showing youth activism connected to education, organizing, and encouraging other young people to act.
I Became an Activist to Fight Climate Change
| Sharona Shnayder | Global Citizen | June 1, 2022
Sharona Shnayder describes becoming a young Nigerian-Israeli environmental activist working for climate justice in the Middle East. Her essay shows how young activists often begin from personal experience, community concern, and a desire to make environmental action more inclusive.
Unlock Your Influence With This Must-Know Guide to Becoming a Changemaker
| Global Citizen | Global Citizen | March 20, 2024
This guide encourages young people to choose a cause, learn deeply, connect with others, and take action through creative activism. It is useful background for youth changemaking because it explains the practical steps that turn concern into organized public action.
The Power of Community: Why Connecting With Others Is So Important for Civic Engagement
| Victoria MacKinnon | Global Citizen | July 17, 2025
Global Citizen explains why community connection is central to civic action and social transformation. The article is useful for showing young changemakers that lasting impact usually comes from networks, shared purpose, local relationships, and collective action rather than working alone.
Lemelson-MIT Awards 2024-25 InvenTeam Grants to Eight High School Teams
| Brian Lombardo | MIT News | November 4, 2024
MIT News reports that eight high school teams received InvenTeam grants to build technological solutions to problems they identified in their communities. The article shows students using engineering, mentorship, and funding to turn local challenges into real inventions.
MIT Students Advance Solutions for Water and Food With the Help of J-WAFS
| Emily Stangel | MIT News | April 10, 2025
MIT’s Abdul Latif Jameel Water and Food Systems Lab supports students working on water and food challenges through grants, fellowships, mentorship, and student clubs. The article is useful for showing how young researchers and student innovators contribute to food security, clean water, and sustainability.
Ambassadors of STEM
| MIT News | MIT News | June 2, 2026
MIT students who are alumni of FIRST Robotics created a club to promote hands-on STEM enrichment for K-12 students. The article shows young adults giving back by mentoring younger students, expanding access to robotics, and helping the next generation see themselves as inventors and engineers.
Eleven Young Climate Leaders Appointed as L.E.A.F. Ambassadors in St. Kitts and Nevis
| UNICEF Eastern Caribbean | UNICEF | April 16, 2026
Eleven young people in Saint Kitts and Nevis were appointed as Leaders for Environmental Action and the Future after a national youth symposium. The program shows students and young adults stepping into climate leadership through environmental education, public speaking, and community action.
A New Global Program Asks Kids to Make Art to Fight Division
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | March 16, 2026
Students Rebuild’s “Unique & United” project invites young people to create art that supports immigrants and refugees while encouraging empathy across differences. The article shows children and students using creativity as a form of civic action, turning small art projects into real fundraising and public awareness.
Teen Creates Yelp for Homeless People
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | March 21, 2025
Teen inventor Claire Cao created Shelter Bridge, an app that lets people experiencing homelessness review shelters, meals, and services. Her project is a strong example of youth technology being used to give vulnerable people more information, dignity, and voice.
High School Students Build Tiny House Village for Homeless Veterans
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | March 25, 2025
Students from Chicago’s Northwest Suburban High School District 214 built tiny homes for a village serving veterans experiencing homelessness in Georgia. The project shows how vocational education, construction skills, and student service can combine to create lasting community infrastructure.
Student Invents Self-Sanitizing Door Handle for Hospitals
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | September 26, 2025
Student inventor Ashley Stewart developed Xermosol, an ultraviolet self-sanitizing door handle designed to reduce the spread of pathogens in hospitals and public spaces. The article shows youth invention connected to health, safety, engineering, and practical public problem-solving.
London’s Newest Museum Opens as Civic Space for Creativity and Community
| Robin Eveleigh | Positive News | April 22, 2026
V&A East opened in London with local young people helping shape its vision and design. The article is useful for showing youth participation in cultural institutions, where students and young residents are treated as co-creators of public spaces rather than just visitors.
Young Climate Leaders 2026
| Heinrich Böll Stiftung | Heinrich Böll Stiftung | 2026
Heinrich Böll Stiftung features young women climate leaders from South Asia arguing that climate cooperation must support people, rights, dignity, health, and knowledge. The article shows young climate thinkers connecting policy with social justice and the lived realities of communities most affected by climate change.
Changemakers Program
| Wyss Academy for Nature | Wyss Academy for Nature | 2026
The Wyss Academy’s Changemakers Program is a youth-designed training effort for young people in Kenya, Madagascar, Peru, and Switzerland. It shows youth leadership as a practical learning process focused on nature, community projects, cross-cultural exchange, and local environmental solutions.
Kofi Annan Changemakers
| Kofi Annan Foundation | Kofi Annan Foundation | 2026
The Kofi Annan Changemakers initiative brings young leaders into intergenerational dialogue with experienced public figures. The program is useful for showing how young people working on peace, democracy, human rights, and development can be supported through mentoring, networks, and direct conversation with decision makers.
Global Changemakers
| Global Changemakers | Global Changemakers | 2026
Global Changemakers supports young people with training, mentoring, seed funding, and community connections so they can turn ideas into real projects. The organization is useful as a broad example of how youth-led initiatives can grow when young people receive practical support instead of only praise.
Young Changemakers of the Year Award
| Ashoka Nordic | Ashoka | 2026
Ashoka Nordic’s Young Changemakers of the Year Award recognizes young people in Finland who are launching initiatives for their communities. The award highlights empathy, creativity, leadership, and problem-solving as skills that young people can practice through real social-impact work.
Sustainable Care: Designing Technologies That Support Children’s Long-Term Engagement With Social Issues
This research paper examines how technology can help children engage with issues such as climate change, conflict, and inequality without pushing them toward anxiety or burnout. It is useful background for youth activism because it asks how digital tools can support lasting care, action, and resilience.
Social Media for Activists: Reimagining Safety, Content Presentation, and Workflows
This study examines what activists need from social media platforms, especially around safety, coordination, and public communication. It is useful for understanding modern youth movements because young organizers often rely on digital tools while facing harassment, overload, and platform design problems.
Building a Village: A Multi-Stakeholder Approach to Open Innovation and Shared Governance to Promote Youth Online Safety
This paper explores how researchers, service providers, and industry groups can work together to improve youth online safety. The article is relevant to young changemakers because safer digital spaces make it easier for students and youth activists to organize, learn, and speak publicly.
Understanding the Challenges of Maker Entrepreneurship
This research looks at makers who turn creative work into small businesses and examines the challenges of becoming sustainable entrepreneurs. It is useful background for youth entrepreneurship because many young inventors and student makers need business support, mentoring, and practical training to move from prototype to impact.
A New Generation of Volunteers as Changemakers
| Maina Okech | Institute of Development Studies and IAVE | 2023
This paper examines youth volunteering as part of a larger landscape of activism, advocacy, and youth organizing. It is useful for showing that community service by young people is not just charity but can also be a route into leadership, civic participation, and social change.
20 Teen Activists Who Inspire Us to Do More Good
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | December 6, 2022
Good Good Good profiles teen activists working on racial justice, climate action, education, gun safety, disability rights, and other causes. The article is useful as a broad overview of young people who began organizing early and used school, community, and online platforms to build movements.
Meet the High School Senior Who Created Project TEAL to Revitalize Democracy
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | October 12, 2021
Shreya Joshi founded Project TEAL after noticing political polarization among students and wanting to help young people learn about local politics. Her work shows how student-led civic education can make democracy feel more accessible to teenagers and first-time voters.
8 Kids Making a Difference and Changing the World
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | December 22, 2021
This roundup highlights children and young teens who created projects around inclusion, education, service, and community needs. The article is useful for showing that kids do not need large institutions to start helping others; many begin with a local problem and a simple practical idea.
Meet the Educators Using Science to Teach Kindness
| Abby Young-Powell | Positive News | November 3, 2021
Positive News reports on teachers using science to help children understand kindness, empathy, and how caring behavior affects the brain. The article fits the youth-change theme because it shows schools deliberately preparing young people to become more compassionate community members and future leaders.
This High School Student Invented a Filter That Eliminates 96 Percent of Microplastics From Drinking Water
| Ramsha Waseem | Smithsonian Magazine | March 20, 2026
Virginia teenager Mia Heller invented a water-filtration system that uses ferrofluid, a magnetic oil, to capture microplastics from drinking water. Her work is a strong example of student invention focused on a growing public-health and environmental problem.
Young Guns Who Won Local Civic Battles in Bengaluru
| Times of India Staff | The Times of India | 2026
Young civic problem-solvers in Bengaluru tackled local issues including garbage dumping, plastic waste, garbage burning, broken streetlights, sanitation, and public safety. The article shows students and young adults using surveys, public complaints, direct appeals, and persistence to win practical improvements in their neighborhoods.
Good News This Week: May 23, 2026 - Puffins, Teabags, and Forest Protection
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | May 23, 2026
Students in Big Bear, California helped raise money to protect land used by the famous bald eagle pair Jackie and Shadow. They wrote letters, contacted public figures, posted flyers, washed cars, held bake sales, and showed how young people can make a real contribution to local conservation.
Call for the 2026 Young Changemakers' Academy
| European Liberal Forum | European Liberal Forum | 2026
The Young Changemakers’ Academy is a training program for young people who want to develop civic leadership and changemaking skills. It is useful as an example of youth leadership development that combines education, community, political participation, and practical action.
Good News This Week: June 6, 2026 - Bees, Turtles, and Community Progress
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | June 6, 2026
This good-news roundup includes examples of communities making progress through inclusion, conservation, and public-spirited action. It is useful for youth-change coverage because it connects everyday civic improvements with the broader idea that people of all ages can participate in building more caring communities.
Jane Goodall's Grandson Keeps Her Conservation Work Alive
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | May 21, 2026
Merlin Van Lawick discusses carrying forward Jane Goodall’s conservation legacy through environmental work and public engagement. His story is useful for showing intergenerational conservation, where young adults inherit earlier movements and adapt them for today’s climate and biodiversity challenges.
All You Need To Know: 2026 Global Citizen and PayPal Small Business Impact Awards
| Global Citizen | Global Citizen | June 2026
Global Citizen describes young activists and social-impact leaders connected to its 2026 prize programs, including people working on community problems through business, advocacy, and public service. The article is useful for showing how youth leadership often blends entrepreneurship with social change.
Priyaswara Bharti
| Global Citizen | Global Citizen | 2025
Priyaswara Bharti is a young Indian documentary filmmaker, development communication professional, campaigner, and youth advocate. Her work shows how young people can use storytelling, media, and public communication to raise awareness and push for social change.
2025: Voices of Children, Action by Children. #CountMeIn
| UNICEF Thailand | UNICEF | 2025
UNICEF Thailand’s #CountMeIn campaign spotlights young climate leaders taking action in many forms, from daily habits to larger community initiatives. The campaign is useful for showing that youth climate leadership can include local stewardship, public education, and advocacy for children’s rights.
UNICEF Launches Youth Climate Summer School 2025
| UNICEF Turkmenistan | UNICEF | 2025
UNICEF Turkmenistan launched a Youth Climate Summer School to give young people the knowledge and tools needed to lead climate action. The article shows how climate education can prepare students to become local organizers, communicators, and problem-solvers.
Youth-Led Action for Climate Change
UNICEF describes youth-led climate action through The Green Rising, an effort to mobilize millions of adolescents and young people to take concrete climate actions in their communities and countries. The page is useful background for youth climate projects because it frames young people as active agents of change.
Young Climate Activists Demand Action and Inspire Hope
UNICEF profiles young climate activists who are leading grassroots action, spreading awareness, and motivating others. The article is a strong general source for student climate activism and the growing role of young people in environmental movements.
Scottish Pupil Named a TIME Magazine Girl of the Year for Solar-Powered Blanket Design
| Libby Brooks | The Guardian | August 14, 2025
Rebecca Young, a 13-year-old from Glasgow, was recognized for designing a solar-powered thermal blanket to help people experiencing homelessness stay warm. Her invention shows how a young person can combine compassion, engineering, and practical design to address an urgent community need.
TIME and the LEGO Group Partner to Celebrate Extraordinary Girls
| TIME Staff | TIME | August 14, 2025
TIME’s first Girls of the Year list recognized ten young leaders ages 12 to 17 who are making a difference through advocacy, science, sports, invention, and creativity. The article is useful for showing girls as builders, innovators, and public leaders while challenging stereotypes about who gets to solve problems.
How We Chose TIME's First-Ever Girls of the Year
| Dayana Sarkisova | TIME | August 12, 2025
TIME explains the thinking behind its first Girls of the Year list, focusing on young people who show bravery, intelligence, kindness, and a willingness to tackle real-world problems. The article is useful for framing youth leadership as something that can begin well before adulthood.
Fourteen-Year-Old Avery Colvert Becomes Youngest Recipient of TIME100 Impact Award
| TIME Staff | TIME | February 26, 2025
Avery Colvert founded Altadena Girls after the Eaton Fire to help teenage victims recover with clothing, personal-care items, mental-health support, study space, and community. Her story shows how a teenager can respond to disaster by creating a practical support network for other young people.
Heman Bekele Is TIME's 2024 Kid of the Year
| Jeffrey Kluger | TIME | August 15, 2024
Heman Bekele was recognized for developing an experimental soap aimed at helping treat skin cancer more affordably. His story is a strong example of young scientific creativity directed toward public health and access to care.
The Future Looks Bright According to Young American Inventor and Author Gitanjali Rao
| Smithsonian Education | Smithsonian Magazine | June 12, 2024
Gitanjali Rao promotes STEM as a way for young people to solve problems, build confidence, and create positive impact. The article is useful background on youth invention because it shows how young innovators can inspire other students to see science as a tool for service.
TIME's 2020 Kid of the Year: Meet Gitanjali Rao
| Angelina Jolie | TIME | December 3, 2020
Gitanjali Rao was named TIME’s first Kid of the Year for using technology to address problems such as contaminated drinking water, opioid addiction, and cyberbullying. Her work remains a major example of youth invention, scientific curiosity, and student-led problem-solving.
Jack Andraka, the Teen Prodigy of Pancreatic Cancer
| Abigail Tucker | Smithsonian Magazine | December 2012
Jack Andraka became known as a teenage inventor after developing an experimental method related to pancreatic cancer detection. The article is useful historical background on how young inventors can draw attention to difficult medical problems and challenge assumptions about who can contribute to science.
Bridgeport Nonprofit Gives Local Girls a Seat at the Table With New HERSound Podcast
| Richard Chumney | Connecticut Post | June 16, 2026
The Bridgeport nonprofit #100GirlsLeading is launching HERSound Podcast, a girl-led project for ages 9 to 18 focused on mental health, self-esteem, and career readiness. The project gives young people a platform to speak in their own voices, practice media skills, and shape conversations about issues that affect girls in their community.
Everyone Can Be a Changemaker!
Ashoka’s Generation Changemaker program invites young people ages 14 to 24 to apply for support as youth changemakers. The program is useful for showing how institutions can help young people recognize problems, build teams, and turn early social-impact ideas into real projects.
Meet the Winners of the Una Europa Student Award 2026
| Una Europa | Una Europa | June 4, 2026
The Una Europa Student Award recognized students who offered ideas about the future of higher education, student voice, sustainability, and university life. The article shows students not just as learners but as co-creators of institutions that should prepare young people for uncertain futures.
Japanese Politicians Were Disregarding the Youth
| Akemi Kawasaki | Global Citizen | May 1, 2026
Akemi Kawasaki describes her work challenging political spaces in Japan that often ignore young people and women. Her activism shows how youth civic engagement can create new channels for dialogue, help students speak directly with leaders, and make public decision-making more open to younger generations.
From a Rio Favela to City Hall: How Education Changed Everything
| Salvino Oliveira | Global Citizen | December 22, 2025
Salvino Oliveira began a social project at age 15 to make education more accessible for poor children in Rio de Janeiro. His story shows how youth-led education work can grow from local service into public leadership, policy work, and a wider campaign for opportunity.
The Day Beirut Exploded, My Purpose Found Me
| Marina El Khawand | Global Citizen | December 9, 2025
Marina El Khawand founded Medonations after the Beirut explosion to help people access essential medicines. The article is a strong example of youth health activism, showing how a young person can respond to crisis with organizing, medical advocacy, and practical support for thousands of families.
Students Invent Robot to Replant Forests Destroyed by Wildfires
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | December 1, 2025
Students created a tree-planting “spider robot” after wildfires damaged forests in their area. The article shows youth invention at its best: students saw a local environmental problem, used engineering skills, and designed a practical tool for restoration and climate resilience.
Gen Z Movements and the Future of Protest
| Hivos | Hivos | November 28, 2025
Hivos examines the rise of Gen Z-led protest movements organized through platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, and Discord. The article is useful for understanding young people’s new organizing methods around corruption, inequality, public services, and accountability.
The Old Instruments Bringing New Opportunities to Young Lives
| James Banyard | Positive News | November 26, 2025
Positive News reports on programs that rescue used musical instruments and place them in the hands of children who might otherwise lack access to music education. The article shows how youth opportunity can be created through reuse, arts access, community generosity, and practical support for young creativity.
My Home Is Spoken Of But Rarely Heard From
| Tala Odeh | Global Citizen | November 3, 2025
Tala Odeh writes about her work as a young human rights defender from Jordan and co-founder of the NAMA Network for Human Rights Defenders. The article shows youth leadership in peacebuilding, rights advocacy, regional solidarity, and the effort to make young people partners in shaping human rights agendas.
Youth-Led US Climate Activists Widen Focus to Fight Authoritarianism
| Dharna Noor | The Guardian | October 5, 2025
The Guardian reports on the Sunrise Movement’s decision to connect climate activism with broader fights over democracy, universities, and civil rights. The article shows how youth-led organizations can evolve beyond a single issue while still grounding their work in climate justice and student organizing.
What Went Right This Week: A Global Success Story, Plus More
| Positive News | Positive News | September 19, 2025
Positive News highlights youth-led environmental projects that won support through the Iris Prize, including work on air pollution in Mongolia, river protection in Mexico, and marine conservation in the Philippines. The article shows young environmentalists creating local solutions that can be scaled with funding and recognition.
Misunderstanding Youth Activism: How Young People Are Redefining Democracy
| European Democracy Hub | European Partnership for Democracy | September 11, 2025
This article argues that young people are changing democracy through protest, community organizing, and new civic networks. It is useful for explaining student movements not as disorder but as a form of participation by young people who feel excluded from traditional politics.
Young Innovators Shine in the 2025 Apps for Good Showcase
| Tim Bradbury | STEM Community | July 3, 2025
Apps for Good showcased student-created app ideas focused on social action, climate change, and AI for good. The article shows young people using technology to solve real problems while learning design thinking, teamwork, coding, and public presentation skills.
Sustainable Technology Awarded at 2025 Young Inventors Prize
| European Patent Office | European Patent Office | June 18, 2025
The European Patent Office announced Young Inventors Prize winners working on rare earth recycling, biodegradable food-preservation sachets, and carbon-based sustainable textiles. The article shows young innovators applying science and entrepreneurship to resource use, food waste, and climate-related industry problems.
Project Invent Seeks Volunteer Engineers: Help Young Inventors Build Real Solutions
| Engineering for Change | Engineering for Change | June 23, 2025
Project Invent invited engineers to mentor student teams designing products that address real-world problems. The article is useful for showing how young inventors benefit when schools, engineers, and communities work together to turn student ideas into practical prototypes.
How Taily Terena Became the Voice of an Indigenous Nation
| Global Citizen | Global Citizen | May 9, 2025
Global Citizen profiles Taily Terena, an Indigenous climate defender from Brazil who advocates for land, culture, and environmental protection. Her work shows young leadership rooted in community, Indigenous knowledge, intergenerational responsibility, and climate justice.
Youth as Advisors in Participatory Design: Situating Teens' Expertise in Everyday Algorithm Auditing With Teachers and Researchers
This study examines teenagers serving as advisors in the design of classroom activities about algorithm auditing and generative AI. It shows that young people can contribute real expertise to technology education when adults invite them into the design process as partners.
Young Londoners Design Emojis to Celebrate Black and Mixed-Race Hairstyles
| Positive News | Positive News | January 6, 2025
Young Londoners helped design emoji concepts that celebrate Black and mixed-race hairstyles while challenging texturism and discrimination. The article shows youth creativity being used to change representation, start conversations about race and identity, and make digital culture more inclusive.
Youth4Climate Call for Solutions 2025
| Youth4Climate | Youth4Climate | 2025
Youth4Climate’s 2025 Call for Solutions offered funding and support for young people and youth-led groups working on climate projects. The program is useful for showing how small grants, mentoring, and visibility can help young climate leaders turn ideas into community-level action.
A Call to Young Changemakers: Building the Future We Deserve
| Jaya Srinivasan | GO Campaign | April 14, 2026
Jaya Srinivasan of the GO Campaign Youth Advisory Board writes about how Gen Z can turn frustration about global problems into practical action. The article emphasizes youth agency, community service, and the idea that young people do not have to wait for adulthood to begin building a fairer future.
Young Entrepreneurs Solve Real-World Problems at Invention Convention Arizona
| Marshall Terrill | Arizona State University | March 31, 2026
Arizona State University reports on hundreds of students participating in Invention Convention Arizona, where young people designed products and solutions for everyday problems. The article is useful for showing how invention programs help students practice engineering, entrepreneurship, public speaking, and real-world problem-solving.
The Summit Designed to Help Young Leaders Put Their Ideas Into Action
| Students Demand Action | Students Demand Action | March 2, 2026
Students Demand Action recaps a Young Changemakers Summit where students learned organizing skills, campaign planning, and ways to build local groups in schools and communities. The article shows youth activism as a skill-building process that turns concern about gun violence into sustained civic action.
Ignite 2026: Projects by Young Changemakers Making an Impact
| Young Social Innovators | Young Social Innovators | 2026
Young Social Innovators highlights youth-led community projects developed through its Ignite Community Programme. The article shows young people identifying local issues, building confidence, working in teams, and turning ideas into projects that can improve their communities.
UNICEF Innocenti Youth Fellowship
| UNICEF Innocenti | UNICEF | 2026
UNICEF Innocenti introduces a youth fellowship focused on climate leadership, research, and global advocacy. The fellowship is useful as an example of institutions giving young climate leaders the support, funding, and networks needed to shape policy and community action.
Mumbai Climate Week 2026: UNICEF India and YuWaah to Centre Children and Youth Voices
| UNICEF India | UNICEF | January 20, 2026
UNICEF India and YuWaah announced youth engagement work around Mumbai Climate Week 2026, with children and young people helping shape climate dialogue. The article shows young people using art, advocacy, consultation, and public participation to influence climate policy and awareness.
Youth-Led Research Can Unlock Young People's Agency as Changemakers in Their Communities
| TrustAfrica | TrustAfrica | November 6, 2025
TrustAfrica argues that youth-led research can help young people become co-creators of solutions rather than subjects of outside study. The article is useful for showing how research, listening, and local knowledge can give marginalized young people more power in decisions that affect their communities.
Malaysia Kicks Off ASEAN Children & Youth Climate Summit 2025
| UNICEF Malaysia | UNICEF | September 2, 2025
UNICEF Malaysia reports on the ASEAN Children & Youth Climate Summit, which gave young people a platform to connect children’s rights with climate policy. The article shows youth climate leadership across Southeast Asia and emphasizes that young people must be treated as part of the solution now, not only in the future.
TIME's Kid of the Year Is Protecting Seniors From Cybercrime
| Jeffrey Kluger | TIME | September 9, 2025
TIME named 17-year-old Tejasvi Manoj its 2025 Kid of the Year for creating Shield Seniors, a platform to help older adults recognize and avoid online scams. Her work shows how a teenager can combine technology, empathy, and volunteer service to protect vulnerable people in the digital world.
TIME and TIME for Kids Name the 2025 Kid of the Year
| Allstate Newsroom | Allstate | September 9, 2025
This announcement describes Tejasvi Manoj’s recognition as TIME’s 2025 Kid of the Year and explains the purpose of her Shield Seniors project. The article is useful as a supporting source on youth invention, cybersecurity education, and student-led service for older adults.
GLAAD 20 Under 20 2025: Meet the Young LGBTQ Changemakers Shaping the World
| Teen Vogue Staff | Teen Vogue | 2025
Teen Vogue profiles twenty young LGBTQ changemakers working in activism, media, science, politics, religion, and the arts. The article shows young people using visibility, storytelling, school advocacy, and public leadership to challenge exclusion and build safer communities.
New UNICEF Report Reveals That Thai Youth Drive Climate Action but Are Left Out of Key Decision-Making
| UNICEF Thailand | UNICEF | 2025
UNICEF Thailand reports that many Thai young people are taking climate action even though they are often excluded from formal decision-making. The article is useful for showing both sides of youth climate leadership: strong initiative from students and youth groups, and the need for adults to share real power.
The Possibilists Report 2025
| The Possibilists | The Possibilists | 2025
The Possibilists Report studies young social innovators, social entrepreneurs, and activists around the world. It is useful background for understanding what young changemakers need to sustain their work, including funding, networks, recognition, and support for burnout.
Changemakers for Youth
| ChangemakerXchange | ChangemakerXchange | 2026
Changemakers for Youth supports social entrepreneurs in countries across Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East who are addressing social, economic, and environmental problems. The program shows how young leaders can be connected across borders and supported with training, community, and seed funding.
Shaping the Future of Youth Entrepreneurship to Drive a More Inclusive Economy
| Youth Business International | Youth Business International | 2025
Youth Business International’s impact report describes support for young entrepreneurs building businesses and creating jobs, including work on climate, sustainability, and social challenges. The report is useful for showing youth entrepreneurship as a path to both economic opportunity and community problem-solving.
The Future of African Youth and Women in Entrepreneurship: Leading Africa to 2030
| Brookings Institution | Brookings | February 4, 2025
Brookings discusses how African youth and women entrepreneurs are helping drive economic transformation and progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals. The article connects young entrepreneurship with jobs, resilience, innovation, and the long-term future of communities across the continent.
Digital Natives, Digital Activists: Youth, Social Media and the Rise of Environmental Sustainability Movements
| Manya Pandit, Triveni Magadum, Harshit Mittal, and Omkar Kushwaha | arXiv | May 15, 2025
This research examines how young environmental activists use social media to organize sustainability movements. The article is useful for explaining how young people combine online storytelling, hashtags, peer networks, and offline action to build modern climate and environmental campaigns.
Engaging Young People for a More Inclusive National Energy Transition: A Participatory Modelling Framework
This study describes a participatory modelling framework that incorporates young people’s views into national energy transition planning. It is useful for showing that students can contribute meaningful ideas to complex policy questions when researchers and officials create real channels for participation.
Youth WellTech: A Global Remote Co-Design Sprint for Youth Mental Health Technology
This case study describes a global co-design sprint in which young people helped imagine and design technology for youth mental health. The article shows how students can become co-researchers and designers, especially when adults create structures that treat youth experience as expertise.
Young Humans Make Change, Young Users Click: Creating Youth-Centered Networked Social Movements
| Mina Rezaei and Patsy Eubanks Owens | arXiv | March 14, 2023
This paper examines how young people use digital platforms and public spaces to organize social movements. It is useful background for understanding youth activism as a form of civic agency that can build confidence, challenge exclusion, and reshape how communities organize for change.
Changemaking Is the New Cool
| Ashoka | Ashoka | June 9, 2026
Ashoka profiles a new group of young changemakers selected in 2025 and reflects on the skills, confidence, creativity, and community support that help young people become leaders. The article is useful for showing youth leadership as something that can be learned early through practice, encouragement, and real-world projects.
India's Ponds Are Silently Dying. Here's What I'm Doing to Save Them
| Dev Karan | Global Citizen | February 12, 2026
Seventeen-year-old Dev Karan explains his work organizing community stewardship around polluted and neglected ponds in India. His project shows how a young person can turn local environmental concern into a broader movement for water justice, civic responsibility, and community-led conservation.
In the Age of Digital Revolution, I Fight for Everyone to Be Safe Online
| Aminata Savané | Global Citizen | April 22, 2026
Aminata Savané describes her work helping women, children, and young people in Côte d'Ivoire protect themselves in digital spaces. The article connects youth leadership with online safety, digital inclusion, gender justice, and the need to make technology safer for vulnerable communities.
Young Entrepreneurs Solve Real-World Problems at Invention Convention Arizona
| Marshall Terrill | Arizona State University | March 31, 2026
More than 260 student entrepreneurs took part in the 2026 Invention Convention Arizona competition at Arizona State University. The article highlights students designing practical inventions inspired by everyday problems, showing how invention education can turn curiosity into problem-solving and early entrepreneurship.
Service Projects of 2025
| Cumorah Academy | Cumorah Academy | February 20, 2026
Cumorah Academy describes student-led service projects in which young adults research local needs and carry out community service as teams. The article is useful for showing how structured service can teach planning, cooperation, compassion, and direct responsibility for improving a community.
Youth and Public Services: A Generation Ready to Serve
| UNESCO | UNESCO | December 19, 2025
UNESCO reports on a youth-led discussion showing that many young people are motivated by public purpose and want to contribute to public service. The article connects young people’s desire to serve with education, social inclusion, and the need to remove institutional barriers that keep youth from helping solve public problems.
Five Young Africans Named Among 2025 UN Young Leaders for the SDGs
| Zipporah Musau | Africa Renewal | November 21, 2025
Africa Renewal profiles five young Africans selected among the 2025 UN Young Leaders for the Sustainable Development Goals. The article shows young people working across digitalization, education, development, and community change as part of a wider global generation pushing progress on the SDGs.
Thai Youth Lead the Call for Urgent, Inclusive Climate Action Ahead of COP30
| UNICEF Thailand | UNICEF | November 10, 2025
Young leaders from 97 youth networks in Thailand developed climate recommendations ahead of COP30. The article highlights student groups, Indigenous and ethnic youth communities, and environmental advocates working together to shape national climate policy and demand inclusive action.
UNICEF Concludes Climate Cinema Campaign, Amplifying Children and Young People's Voices
| UNICEF Nepal | UNICEF | November 10, 2025
UNICEF Nepal describes a climate cinema campaign that used young people’s creativity and storytelling to raise awareness before COP30. The article shows how art, film, and youth voices can become tools for climate education, public engagement, and national climate leadership.
Government, UNICEF Back Youth Recommendations for COP30
| UNICEF Philippines | UNICEF | November 6, 2025
Young people in the Philippines presented climate recommendations calling for meaningful participation in policy design, implementation, and accountability. The article shows youth climate leadership moving beyond consultation into demands for a real role in building climate-resilient communities.
COP30: Zimbabwe's Youth Shape the Nation's Climate Future
| UNICEF Zimbabwe | UNICEF | October 21, 2025
UNICEF Zimbabwe reports that young people played a major role in shaping the country’s national position ahead of COP30. The article shows youth speaking directly to officials and policy makers with urgency and clarity about the climate future they will inherit.
Youth Take the Lead: Pathways for a Sustainable Future Ahead of COP30
| UNICEF Bosnia and Herzegovina | UNICEF | October 22, 2025
Young people in Bosnia and Herzegovina took part in intergenerational climate dialogue ahead of COP30. The article emphasizes evidence-based climate solutions, youth participation, and the importance of including children and young people in decisions that affect their future.
United Nations Youth Office Announces 17 New Young Leaders for Sustainable Development Goals
| United Nations Youth Office | United Nations | October 24, 2025
The United Nations Youth Office announced 17 young changemakers selected as the 2025 Young Leaders for the SDGs. The group includes young people working in areas such as science, advocacy, education, digital innovation, and social impact, showing how youth leadership is being recognized across many fields.
Tanzanian Youth Lead Climate Action Ahead of COP30
| UNICEF Tanzania | UNICEF | September 23, 2025
More than 450 young people in Tanzania gathered for youth-led climate forums before COP30. The article shows students and youth advocates turning climate concern into declarations, policy ideas, and organized pressure for a safer future.
Youth Recommendations for Climate Action at COP30
| UNICEF Maldives | UNICEF | August 7, 2025
Young people in the Maldives developed recommendations for leaders as the country faces floods, wave surges, and rising seas. The article is useful for showing how youth in climate-vulnerable island nations are translating lived experience into policy demands.
Bringing Young Leaders Together Now Matters More Than Ever
| World Economic Forum | World Economic Forum | July 9, 2025
The World Economic Forum describes young innovators and community leaders from the Global Shapers network gathering to address systemic problems. The article shows youth leadership as a global network of local action, with young people working across unemployment, climate, inequality, and civic change.
Global Shapers Impact Report 2025
| World Economic Forum | World Economic Forum | January 16, 2025
This impact report spotlights thousands of young leaders from more than 140 countries working on climate change, unemployment, inequality, and community resilience. It is useful background for showing how youth-led local projects can add up to a global movement for practical problem-solving.
A New Generation of Changemakers: Meet the YGL Class of 2025
| World Economic Forum | World Economic Forum | April 15, 2025
The World Economic Forum introduces its 2025 Young Global Leaders cohort, a group of under-40 leaders working in politics, business, science, culture, and civil society. The article shows how young leaders are being recognized for work that blends innovation, public service, and long-term social impact.
Despite Challenges for Girls and Women in Afghanistan, I Still Believe Education Can Change the World
| Global Citizen | Global Citizen | May 2, 2025
This article shares the perspective of a student connected to Learn Afghan, a nonprofit education effort founded by young activist Pashtana Durrani. It highlights how youth-led education work can keep hope alive for girls and women even in extremely difficult political and social conditions.
I Fight Cybersexism for Women and Girls Everywhere
| Shanley McLaren | Global Citizen | March 17, 2025
Young activist Shanley McLaren explains her work against cybersexism and online gender-based violence through #StopFisha. The article shows youth activism addressing a modern form of harm by combining digital rights, gender justice, public education, and survivor-centered advocacy.
Meet the Activist Transforming Kenyan Agriculture Through Food, Gender, and Climate Justice
| Global Citizen | Global Citizen | February 3, 2025
This article profiles a young Kenyan activist working through Hawiri Nawiri Afrika to support youth, students, women, smallholder farmers, and communities affected by climate change. It connects youth leadership with food justice, gender justice, climate justice, and community organizing.
Rising Changemakers: Young African Climate Leaders Shaping a Greener Future
| Ashoka | Ashoka | February 3, 2025
Ashoka profiles young African climate leaders working to build agency and action around environmental challenges. The article is useful for showing that young climate leadership in Africa includes local organizing, innovation, storytelling, and efforts to make communities more resilient.
Youth in Action
| United Nations | United Nations | 2025
The United Nations highlights young leaders working on the Sustainable Development Goals and climate action. The page is useful as a broad source on youth climate leadership, showing young people as scientists, artists, organizers, entrepreneurs, and advocates for a more sustainable future.
Young Climate Activists Demand Action and Inspire Hope
UNICEF profiles young climate activists who are spreading awareness, motivating others, and taking grassroots action. The article is a strong general source for showing how young people respond to climate threats with organizing, education, and hope grounded in action.
Youth for Climate Action
UNICEF describes its work supporting young people who are taking action to protect the planet. The article emphasizes youth participation, youth voices, and climate leadership, making it useful background for articles about student activists and young climate organizers.
Youth in Climate Change Action: Bringing Young People to the Decision-Making Table
| UNICEF Serbia | UNICEF | 2025
UNICEF Serbia describes efforts to place young people at the center of climate discussions and help them engage with decision makers. The article shows youth climate action as civic participation, where students and young leaders learn how policy works and how to advocate for better living conditions.
Youth Recommendations for Greener and Fairer Communities
| United Nations ECOSOC | United Nations | April 2025
The 2025 ECOSOC Youth Forum gave young people a platform to share concerns and recommendations with governments and other stakeholders. The article is useful for showing youth participation at the international level, where young leaders connect local problems to global development goals.
IFIA Revives the International Youth Invention Olympiad at SVIIF 2026
| IFIA | International Federation of Inventors' Associations | May 21, 2026
IFIA announced the return of the International Youth Invention Olympiad as part of the Silicon Valley International Invention Festival. The article shows how global invention events can give young inventors a platform to collaborate, present ideas, and gain confidence as problem-solvers.
USF Hosts Hundreds of Young Inventors From Across the State
| University of South Florida | University of South Florida | April 15, 2025
The University of South Florida hosted hundreds of young inventors for a statewide invention event focused on hands-on problem-solving. The article highlights invention education as a way for students to develop creativity, persistence, communication skills, and practical solutions for real-world needs.
Camp Invention 2026
| National Inventors Hall of Fame | National Inventors Hall of Fame | 2026
Camp Invention gives children a structured setting to solve challenges, learn about intellectual property, and practice invention skills. The program is useful as an example of how early STEM education can encourage kids to see themselves as inventors and community problem-solvers.
Capital Region Gives Community Service Awards: floydwarriors, We Are Revolutionary
| Times Union Staff | Times Union | June 2026
We Are Revolutionary is a youth-and-family-centered grassroots organization working on trauma, school discipline, restorative justice, and civic advocacy. The article highlights how young people and community organizers are building safer spaces for families affected by adverse childhood experiences and pushing for healing-centered responses instead of punishment.
Ribbon Cutting Celebrates Improvements to The Rec at Sands Park
| Manistee News Advocate Staff | Manistee News Advocate | June 2026
A local leadership cohort helped renovate The Rec at Sands Park, a teen center serving young people in Manistee, Michigan. The project brought new furniture, games, paint, storage, and electrical improvements to a youth space, showing how community leadership programs can make practical changes that directly improve students’ daily lives.
Service and Volunteer Work Linked to Key Benefits for Youth
| Gallup | Gallup News | March 9, 2026
Gallup reports that young people who take part in service and volunteer work show stronger feelings of career readiness, resilience, connection, and problem-solving ability. The article is useful for showing that youth service helps communities while also helping young people build confidence and practical life skills.
Youth Sensitised to Become Climate Champions
| UNICEF Bhutan | UNICEF | January 26, 2026
UNICEF Bhutan reports on efforts to train and engage young people as climate champions after nationwide youth climate consultations. The program shows how students can help shape national climate planning, connect local environmental concerns to policy, and become leaders in climate awareness.
The Power of Youth in Co-Creating Climate Education
| UNFCCC | United Nations Climate Change | January 23, 2026
UN Climate Change describes youth participation in climate education and policy discussions around COP30. The article emphasizes that young people are not only demanding action but also helping create climate education, accountability, and institutional change.
9 Inspiring Young Leaders to Follow in 2026
| Moonshot Pirates | Moonshot Pirates | December 3, 2025
This roundup profiles young leaders working on climate justice, education, technology, social entrepreneurship, and community change. It is a useful overview of youth changemakers who are using organizing, invention, storytelling, and nonprofit work to address problems that affect their generation.
It Fully Changed My Life: How Young Rewilders Transformed a Farm and Began a Movement
| Phoebe Weston | The Guardian | November 25, 2025
The Guardian tells the story of Youngwilders, a youth-led rewilding group that helped transform Maple Farm in Surrey into a restored ecological space. Young volunteers removed fences, restored habitats, built community, and turned a local conservation project into a wider movement for youth-led nature recovery.
Leaders of International Gen Z Movement Reflect on Their Countries' Political Futures
| Le Monde Staff | Le Monde | November 14, 2025
Le Monde examines Gen Z-led protest movements in countries including Nepal, Indonesia, Madagascar, Bangladesh, Kenya, Peru, and Morocco. The article shows how young people are using digital tools, decentralized organizing, and civic pressure to challenge corruption, inequality, unemployment, and weak public services.
LCOY 2025 and the Role of Youth in Armenia's Climate Response
| UNICEF Armenia | UNICEF | November 5, 2025
UNICEF Armenia reports on young people taking part in Local Conference of Youth climate work and national climate discussions. The article highlights youth climate leadership as a process of education, consultation, community engagement, and participation in international climate spaces.
Youth Climate Leaders Meet Minister of Youth Ahead of COP30 Brazil
| UNICEF Jordan | UNICEF | November 5, 2025
Young climate leaders selected for Jordan’s COP30 delegation met with national officials before the conference in Brazil. The article shows young people moving from awareness into formal climate diplomacy, where youth representatives can bring community concerns into national and global conversations.
Ashoka UK Launches Generation Changemaker
| Ashoka UK | Ashoka | October 16, 2025
Ashoka UK’s Generation Changemaker program spotlights young leaders ages 13 to 18 who have founded or co-founded social impact initiatives. The article is useful for showing how teenagers are already building organizations, campaigns, and community projects before adulthood.
IUCN Changemakers Demonstrate the Power of Innovative Entrepreneurship and Youth Leadership to Achieve Conservation Goals
| IUCN | International Union for Conservation of Nature | October 12, 2025
IUCN profiles youth changemakers using entrepreneurship and leadership to support conservation goals. The article connects young innovators with biodiversity protection, sustainable livelihoods, and the idea that environmental work can include both business creativity and community stewardship.
8 Young Activists, 8 Powerful Voices: Meet Our Youth Voices Fall/Winter 2025 Cohort
| Raelee Sweet | It Gets Better Project | September 10, 2025
The It Gets Better Project introduces eight young activists selected for a youth storytelling and advocacy cohort. The program helps young people use their own experiences to support peers, build leadership skills, and speak publicly about inclusion, identity, safety, and resilience.
Misunderstanding Youth Activism: How Young People Are Redefining Democracy
| European Democracy Hub | European Partnership for Democracy | September 11, 2025
This article argues that youth activism is changing democratic participation by creating new forms of political engagement outside traditional institutions. It is useful for explaining how young people organize, build networks, challenge exclusion, and press for more inclusive decision-making.
Young People Are Social Innovators — Here's How They Thrive
| World Economic Forum | World Economic Forum | August 26, 2025
The World Economic Forum discusses findings from the 2025 Possibilists Study on young social innovators, entrepreneurs, and activists. The article shows that young changemakers often act from a strong sense of collective purpose and need supportive ecosystems, funding, and recognition to sustain their work.
Meet Four Young Creators and Innovators Transforming Local Ideas Into Global Solutions Using Intellectual Property
| WIPO | World Intellectual Property Organization | August 12, 2025
WIPO profiles four young creators and innovators from Angola, Brazil, the United States, and Viet Nam. The article shows how young people are using creativity, invention, and intellectual property tools to turn local problem-solving into broader social and economic impact.
TOI Ecopreneur Honours 2025: Youth-Led Movements and Digital Platforms Drive Environmental Action
| Times of India Staff | The Times of India | August 2025
The Times of India reports on youth-led environmental action and digital organizing highlighted at the TOI Ecopreneur Honours 2025. The article shows how young people are using online platforms, public advocacy, and grassroots energy to push climate and environmental work into wider public view.
Bridge Gap Between Environment and Business, Innovator Sonam Wangchuk Urges Bengal Youth
| Times of India Staff | The Times of India | August 2025
Innovator Sonam Wangchuk encouraged students and young entrepreneurs to build businesses that solve environmental and social problems. The article is useful for showing youth entrepreneurship as a public-interest tool, especially when practical education, local needs, and sustainability are connected.
From Strategy to Impact: How Young People Create Social and Environmental Change Through Youth Service Programs
This research article examines how young people create social and environmental change through youth service programs. It emphasizes that young people are not only beneficiaries of service projects but active agents who use strategy, collaboration, and local knowledge to produce measurable community impact.
Youth as Advisors in Participatory Design: Situating Teens' Expertise in Everyday Algorithm Auditing with Teachers and Researchers
This study looks at teenagers serving as advisors in the design of classroom activities about algorithm auditing and generative AI. It shows how students can contribute real expertise to education and technology design when adults treat youth as partners rather than passive learners.
It's Great Because It's Ran By Us: Empowering Teen Volunteer Discord Moderators to Design Healthy and Engaging Youth-Led Online Communities
| Jina Yoon, Amy X. Zhang, and Joseph Seering | arXiv | February 10, 2025
Researchers interviewed teen moderators who help run youth-led Discord communities. The article shows that young people are already doing complex community leadership online, including safety work, peer support, cultural organizing, and moderation.
Poorer Nations Deserve Climate Justice — So We Took the World's Biggest Problem to the World's Highest Court
| Cynthia Houniuhi | Global Citizen | February 3, 2025
Cynthia Houniuhi describes how Pacific Island students and youth activists helped drive a campaign that brought climate justice questions before the International Court of Justice. The article is a strong example of young people using law, diplomacy, and coalition-building to seek protection for future generations.
National Service-Learning Awards Honor Outstanding Leaders in 2025
| National Youth Leadership Council | NYLC | March 4, 2025
The National Youth Leadership Council announced award recipients recognized for using service-learning to empower young people and create community impact. The article is useful for showing how school-linked service projects can turn students into civic participants and local problem-solvers.
Youth Engagement for a Sustainable Future
| UNDP | United Nations Development Programme | January 2025
This UNDP resource focuses on climate change education that connects young people with local communities and practical sustainability work. It is useful for showing how youth engagement can move beyond awareness into local climate literacy, community projects, and long-term environmental action.
I Saw Cyclones and Floods Swallow Entire Villages
| Sohanur Rahman | Global Citizen | December 6, 2024
Bangladeshi climate activist Sohanur Rahman explains how young people are organizing for climate adaptation, justice, and community resilience in one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries. The article connects youth activism with disaster experience, local organizing, and international climate advocacy.
Young Leaders Advancing Potential Climate Solutions Could Win $1 Million Grants
| Thalia Beaty | Associated Press | 2024
The Associated Press reports on a major grant program offering large, flexible funding to youth-led climate organizations. The article shows that young climate leaders are increasingly being recognized as serious institutions capable of managing resources, building movements, and implementing solutions.
5 Ways the Young Activists Summit Empowers Changemakers Around the World
| Jaxx Artz | Global Citizen | September 3, 2024
Global Citizen explains how the Young Activists Summit supports young changemakers through visibility, networking, training, and fundraising. The article is useful for showing how youth activism can be strengthened when young leaders are connected to global platforms and practical support.
100 Days of Good News to Help You Feel Better About the World
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | September 18, 2024
This collection includes the story of Kids Boost, a nonprofit inspired by a 12-year-old that gives young people startup money and coaching to raise funds for causes they care about. The example shows children learning philanthropy, entrepreneurship, and community service by turning small seed funding into larger help for others.
Youth Activism and Community Change
| CIRCLE | Tufts University | 2024
CIRCLE explains how youth activism can transform communities while also strengthening the young people who participate. The article is useful background for understanding student organizing, civic learning, and why youth-led movements are especially important for young people who have historically been excluded from political power.
Young People as Changemakers on Issues of Climate and Health
| Restless Development | Restless Development | 2025
This report examines young people as changemakers on climate and health issues, with attention to community experience and youth-led responses. It is useful for connecting climate activism to public health, showing that young people are identifying risks, gathering knowledge, and helping communities respond to climate-related harm.
Young Gamechangers Fund Impact Report 2025
| Restless Development | Restless Development | 2025
The Young Gamechangers Fund report describes how flexible funding and youth-led governance help young activists, campaigners, and social entrepreneurs create real-world change. The article is useful for showing what happens when resources and decision-making power are placed directly in the hands of young people.
Good News This Week: June 13, 2026 - Bees, Mangroves, and Young Kenyan Inventors
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | June 13, 2026
Two 17-year-old Kenyan students, Fredrick Njoroge Kariuki and Miron Onsarigo, won the Africa regional round of The Earth Prize for HewSafi, a low-cost vehicle exhaust filter made from maize cobs and coconut shells. Their invention shows how young people can connect local agricultural waste, air pollution, and practical engineering into a solution aimed at cleaner communities.
The Young Traders Reviving Britain's Market Stalls
| Sally Howard | Positive News | May 20, 2026
Young entrepreneurs in Britain are using traditional market stalls as a route into business at a time when formal job openings are harder to find. The story highlights how young people are building confidence, testing products, learning customer skills, and bringing new energy to local markets.
Young Inventors Prize 2025: Meet the Tomorrow Shapers
| European Patent Office | European Patent Office | May 6, 2025
The European Patent Office profiled ten young innovators from around the world whose inventions address problems including e-waste, rare earth recovery, aviation, artificial intelligence, carbon capture, food security, and environmental protection. The article shows youth innovation as a global force tied to practical sustainability and development goals.
InvenTeams Turns Students Into Inventors
| Zach Winn | MIT News | July 25, 2025
MIT News reports on the Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams program, which helps student teams identify real problems in their communities and design inventions to solve them. The program emphasizes hands-on engineering, teamwork, local problem-solving, and the idea that students can be inventors before they even leave high school.
These Teens Have Refurbished 80,000 Bicycles to Help People in Their Community — and Abroad
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | November 6, 2025
This article tells the story of teens involved in refurbishing tens of thousands of bicycles for people who need transportation locally and internationally. It is a strong example of youth service that combines repair skills, environmental reuse, mobility justice, and practical help for communities.
Good News This Week: August 9, 2025 - Books, Butterflies, and Climate Adaptation
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | August 9, 2025
Students in Denver are transforming a school lawn into a water-saving sustainable landscape through the Neighborhood Resilience Corps’ Summer Climate Adaptation Academy. The project gives young people direct climate science education while letting them build a visible adaptation project in their own community.
How Young People Are Building Skills for Climate Action and a Resilient World
| UNDP Climate Promise | United Nations Development Programme | July 14, 2025
UNDP describes how young people around the world are gaining the skills needed to respond to climate change and build resilience. The article focuses on youth leadership, training, and local action, showing that climate work is not only protest but also education, organizing, adaptation, and community preparedness.
In a New Earth Day TED Talk, Xiye Bastida Shares Her Blueprint for Climate Hope
| Good Good Good | Good Good Good | April 21, 2025
Climate activist Xiye Bastida uses her Earth Day TED Talk to argue for hope rooted in action rather than denial or despair. The article frames youth climate leadership as both moral and practical, emphasizing community, Indigenous knowledge, intergenerational work, and persistence.
Youth Activism in Action in Response to Climate Change
| European Youth Portal | European Union | 2025
The European Youth Portal highlights examples of youth-led climate activism and advocacy from the Youth Action for Climate compendium. The article shows how young people are using many forms of democratic action, from organizing and education to advocacy and community-based environmental projects.
How Youth Climate Leaders Are Making Change Happen
| Save the Children Australia | Save the Children | 2025
Save the Children profiles youth climate leaders and explains how young people are pushing for climate justice, resilience, and child-centered climate action. The article emphasizes that young people are not only affected by climate change but are also leading campaigns and local solutions.
Under 30 2025 Social Impact: Meet the Young Leaders Building New Businesses for a Better World
| Jena McGregor | Forbes | December 3, 2024
Forbes profiles young social entrepreneurs working on issues such as climate change, disability, mental health, elections, and sustainable business. The article is useful for showing how young changemakers are combining entrepreneurship with public-interest goals instead of treating business and social good as separate worlds.
Youth-Led Climate Action: Empowering the Next Generation of Environmental Leaders
| Oxford Saïd Business School | University of Oxford | September 19, 2024
This article discusses youth-led climate action and the training of young leaders in environmental policy, project management, and sustainable development. It presents youth climate work as a serious leadership pipeline that gives students the tools to design and implement real projects.
Young Leaders Advancing Potential Climate Solutions Could Win $1 Million Grants
| Thalia Beaty | Associated Press | 2024
The Associated Press reports on a major grant initiative supporting youth-led climate organizations, with funding for leaders ages 15 to 35 working on conservation, education, justice, and disaster preparedness. The article shows that youth movements are increasingly being treated as serious institutions worthy of major investment.
Young Inventors
| United States Patent and Trademark Office | USPTO | 2024
The USPTO collects stories of young inventors who turned ideas into practical innovations. The page is useful as a source on invention education, youth creativity, and the importance of giving students access to the tools and confidence needed to solve problems through design.
All About Greta Thunberg, the Young Activist Who Sparked a Global Movement at 15 Years Old
| People Staff | People | June 9, 2025
People summarizes Greta Thunberg’s rise from a solo school strike outside the Swedish parliament to a global youth climate movement. The article is useful background on how one teenager’s protest helped inspire student climate strikes and made youth climate activism a major international force.
