Empowering Youth for Climate Action: Launching the DOT UK Climate Champions Initiative

The climate crisis is one of the most pressing challenges of our time, and young people are at the forefront of driving change. We’re developing the Climate Champions Initiative, to empower young people to develop climate action projects focused on the needs of their communities.

This pioneering programme is designed to equip marginalised, low or no income youth in the UK with digital and green skills to lead community-driven climate projects. The initiative is built on experiential learning, fostering a new generation of digital-savvy Climate Champions who will develop innovative and localised solutions to environmental challenges.

DOT UK, its partners and young community leaders are learning alongside each other to discover effective ways to develop and leverage digital skills for the green economy. By embedding digital skills within community-based climate projects, this systems change approach fosters a generation of climate leaders who drive grassroots impact in local communities. 

The DOT UK Climate Champions Initiative will follow a structured, action-oriented model:

• Equipping Youth with Digital Skills: Provide training in foundational digital skills, branding, marketing, and climate action participation methods.
• Enabling Community-Based Climate Projects: Train young people to identify local climate challenges and increase digital skills to connect with local businesses, councils, and environmental groups to scale impact.
• Embedding a holistic hearts, minds and hands approach to climate action: Hearts embrace our planet with hope, our minds understand science and innovate to find solutions and our hands are used for action
• Facilitate Pathways to Green Jobs: Connect participants with mentorship programmes with professionals in services and sustainability sectors.

We’re kicking off this project with an initial inception phase. Co-designing alongside 10 marginalised, low or no income youth, we will build a programme and curriculum to be tested in and around Newcastle in the North East. This will inform a wider pilot, set to take place over the coming year. By the end of year 1 we expect to:

• Train 1 Master Trainer who will lead the programme.
• Empower 20 Climate Champions to lead sustainability efforts.
• Engage 50+ community members in climate action initiatives, brought together through community project committees
• Develop 10 impactful community-led projects addressing local environmental challenges.
• Increase the participation of young women and marginalised youth in the green economy and local climate action.
• Strengthen community environmental resilience through community action, at scale. 

DOT UK is leveraging its global expertise from successful climate initiatives in Africa and MENA regions. The UK programme will benefit from DOT UK’s partnership networks including community outreach partners working with young people, marginalised communities, climate and nature focused organisations, transition to work partners and coaching partners such as Climate Change Coaches and Niya.

We’re keen to connect with organisations, policymakers, and individuals passionate about climate action and digital inclusion to support this initiative. We are specifically looking for young marginalised people who are on low or no income and are passionate about harnessing digital skills for climate action, to join our co-design and testing phases. Young people can apply here to take part, by March 21st. Please reach out to anooshabadi@dotrust.org if you’re keen to chat about any of the above further.