UNDERSTANDING AND ADVANCING YOUTH CLIMATE INITIATIVES: STUDENT ENERGY, GLOBAL COVENANT OF MAYORS, AND MELBOURNE CENTRE FOR CITIES, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE LAUNCH THE YOUTH IMPACT FRAMEWORK
Young people play a crucial role in advancing the climate and energy movement, from advocacy for policy and behavioral change to directly implementing solutions. Despite their remarkable leadership, youth face significant barriers in accessing resources to support and scale their work, facing disenfranchisement at community, national, and international levels.
The Youth Impact Framework is a pivotal leap forward towards establishing a unified methodology to measure and communicate the profound impacts of youth-led climate initiatives. Developed by Student Energy in partnership with the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy (GCoM) and Melbourne Centre for Cities, University of Melbourne, the framework empowers decision makers to understand and leverage the invaluable contributions of young people to the climate movement.
By gathering input from 16 youth leaders and industry stakeholders, along with a literature review of 17 community project impact assessment frameworks, the Youth Impact Framework seeks to equip decision makers at the local, regional, and national level with an evidence-based, transparent, and action-oriented tool. Its purpose is to assess current youth engagements and foster stronger collaborations in the future.
The Youth Impact Framework is available in two formats:
- A policy brief outlining top-level recommendations and takeaways for youth-led organizations and other stakeholders, including the full set of impact indicators
- A research report that thoroughly details the literature, methodology, and findings from a comprehensive year-long consultation process to arrive at the indicators and recommendations embedded within the Framework