GLOBAL YOUTH CLIMATE TRAINING
The Global Youth Climate Training Programme (GYCT) is a free, fully online capacity development programme that equips people aged 16-35 with the knowledge and confidence necessary to engage in international climate policy. Young people are increasingly being given a seat at the table in domestic and international climate policy, and therefore require appropriate capacity development to ensure their interventions are cogent and relevant.
This project ran from 2023-2025 as a collaboration between the Global Youth Coalition (GYC), a coalition of climate youth changemakers, and researchers at the University of Oxford (Oxford Net Zero, Oxford Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment). The joint team delivering this project represents a strong international and intergenerational collaboration, spanning multiple continents, professional background and ages. Our impact report (linked below) demonstrates the massive amount of interest across the first phase of the programme: 27,000 applications, 5,400 young people trained, of which 65% represented the Most Affected People and Areas.
Building on the success of this first phase, the programme is entering a new chapter in 2026. Responsibility for programme delivery is transitioning to the Global Youth Coalition, with Oxford Net Zero continuing to provide strategic and academic support. This evolution reflects our shared commitment to youth leadership by giving young climate changemakers greater ownership over the programme’s direction, content and long-term future, while maintaining the academic rigour and collaborative approach that have underpinned the programme to date.
The 2026 programme will continue to combine expert-led lectures, interactive peer-learning sessions and practical assignments. Sessions feature a balance of academic expertise and practitioner perspectives, including Oxford academics alongside leading experts from around the world. The curriculum remains intentionally designed to elevate Global South expertise on climate issues, and youth speakers continue to play a central role throughout the programme. This year the programme runs from 2–22 September.
You can apply to join the 2026 programme at this link. The closing date for applications is 10 August 2026. Queries for the 2026 programme should be directed to the GYC team: takeaction@theglobalyouth.co.
Our Programme History
This programme was launched May 2023 to provide greater clarity on the negotiation tracks of the UNFCCC ahead of COP28. It brought together leading experts and young climate professionals and covered topics such as Climate Finance, Loss & Damage, Adaptation & Resilience and more. We have received more than 20,000 applications since the programme opened in 2023. As of October 2025, there have been 100,000 views of our recorded sessions from 2023-2025.
Alexis McGivern, Oxford Net Zero Fellow, created and led the programme alongside several youth activists from the Global Youth Coalition, leveraging the University of Oxford’s wide network of climate experts.
The 2023 curriculum was built by consulting 180 young climate justice activists who gave their input on their training needs. In 2023, we educated 4,500 activists under the age of 35 spreading over 177 countries, with 64% identifying as from Most Affected People and Areas (MAPA).
Our 2024 programme focused more on on the integrity and ambition of non-state climate action, and for our cohort, we focused on community creation and therefore we only accepted 285 participants, of which 79% identified as MAPA and representing 135 countries.
With the generous support of the ClimateWorks Foundation, we ran our third iteration of the programme from 21st May to 16th July 2025. This includes preparation for the June UNFCCC conference in Bonn, where participants can apply their newly-learned skills and work collaboratively with other participants to prepare position papers. We also held one final session on 4th November, preparing the cohort for anticipated opportunities and outcomes of COP30. The 2025 programme brochure for can be found here as a PDF and here as a Word version (if using a text-to-voice reader).
Participant Profile
- Age: 16-35
- Demonstrated experience in climate activism (e.g., campaigns, projects, community engagement).
- Some knowledge of the UNFCCC process and recent COP outcomes
- Demonstrated ability and experience in advocating effectively for change (e.g., communication, persuasion, collaboration).
- Strong passion for climate action and a desire to make a difference.
- Preference for applicants representing diverse regions and groups most impacted by climate change.
This youth training is a trial of radical open access and inclusion, with all of the recordings published to YouTube, making it a completely free course for participants. We also partnered with EcoInterpreters to offer the course in six languages: English, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Arabic.
We have received wide recognition for our course, including being used as an example of best practice by the UN Youth Climate Champions team and winning the University of Oxford’s Vice Chancellor’s Awards for Environmental Sustainability.
TESTIMONIALS FROM PAST PARTICIPANTS
“The training I received through Global Youth Climate has been a transformative experience in my life. It has not only equipped me with valuable knowledge and skills but has also given me the confidence and motivation to contribute meaningfully to the global efforts in addressing climate change. As a refugee, this opportunity has been a ray of hope, a chance to grow, and a reminder that even in the face of adversity, there are organizations like yours that value the participation of most marginalized people like me.” – Byaombe Lumona
“Honestly I have no words to express what I have learned with the opportunity to attend this training. My views on different aspects and levels surrounding climate change have expanded enormously and this has been shaping the local projects I have been working towards. Thank you so much! – Marilynn Holguín Clover
“One of the greatest things that happened to me this year was being part of this group. Love it here…thank you for such an informative learning session!”- Nhlanhla Sibanda
“Thank you a lot for arranging such lectures! Sometimes the global agenda and negotiations in climate change seem to be so far from me, some days I doubt my abilities to make a valuable contribution and enter the discussions of the international cooperations and institutes, but thanks to the organisers and the smart and young speakers I see than anything is possible, and this atmosphere inspires me to keep pushing forward towards a more resilient and sustainable world.” – Linara Khadimullina
“Three cheers! To the Global Youth Training Team and Oxford Net Zero team. I loved all the sessions. One of the finest youth training I have come across. The content is just great and brilliantly curated! I do hope to see more such training sessions with more specialised topics! Thank you once again!”- Shaurya Patel
Photos by John Cairns.
Above: Members of the Global Youth Climate Training team at COP28
Left to right: Raul Fretes, Fredrick Binamungu, Alexis McGivern, Carlos Shanka, Agustin Ocaña, Genaro Matías Godoy González
Right: Hosting a youth capacity-building event at Oxford’s New York Offices, New York Climate Week (September 2023)
Alexis McGivern and Genaro Matías Godoy González
Alexis McGivern and Fredrick Binamungu hosting a youth capacity-building event at the Global Alliances of Universities on Climate (GAUC) Pavilion, COP28
Alexis McGivern and Agustin Ocaña hold “The Climate Guidebook”, a written summary of all 13 training sessions pulled together by volunteers and led by Irene Delfanti and Bruno Sirote.
GYCT sessions on YouTube
Recordings of GYCT sessions are available in English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Mandarin and Arabic. Click below to watch each playlist.
English
French
Spanish
Portuguese
Mandarin
Arabic
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