As youth unemployment soars and climate anxiety deepens, a youth training and employment program focused on climate resiliency offers hope.

Clara Phillips is helping Nunavut return to quiet. As development project manager at Nunavut Nukkiksautiit Corporation, this 25-year-old engineer-in-training from Newfoundland is leading the installation of Nunavut’s first wind turbine and battery.

Saanich, BC-based Elwyn Thom upcycles unwanted couches so they are like new and resells them at deeply discounted prices. His work has diverted more than 100,000 pounds of waste from landfills.

Elle Larsen, a 14-year-old student from Saanich, BC, has been helping shape a better future since she was eight. This fall, as she enters Grade 9, she is intent on transforming beverage services at the University of Victoria.

Quinn MacAskill helps us imagine a better future. This 20-year-old Dalhousie University student asks groups, 'What is your dream for your community?' Then, she helps participants work together to step into that future.

Lily YangLiu is a social media educator and advocate who ensures youth voices are represented at international climate talks. This 16-year-old also advises the BC government on climate curriculum and is designing a 135-hour climate education program for elementary school students.

Kanchan Lal helps young people fall in love with the ocean. As managing director of Vancouver-based Sea Smart, she oversees programs that inspire thousands of students to explore, understand and protect marine life and coastal ecosystems.

Abhi Mishra, co-founder of Mosa Technologies, has over the past two years played a key role in diverting more than 40,000 glass bottles from waste bins, instead converting them into beautifully upcycled glasses, platters and candles.

Lauretta Pearse is depolarizing Canada’s energy conversation. As a Fellow at Alberta’s Energy Futures Lab (EFL), she is part of a diverse group searching to understand people’s perspectives on how best to arrive at the low-carbon future most want. She is Canada’s Clean50 Emerging Leader winner.

Sasha Emery brings climate conversations to young francophones. This 22-year-old from Yukon and her Franco-Manitoban friend, Anne-Sophie Règnier, produce the Conversations Climatiques podcast.

Ginger Boehme-Vertefeuille invites us to get close to raptors. This 19-year-old from Cowichan Valley, British Columbia, spends her summers educating visitors at Vancouver Island’s The Raptors. 

Juliana Janot wants all post-secondary students to understand climate change. This 20-year-old University of British Columbia student co-founded ‘Climate Education for All’ to make sure every student is educated about the causes and impacts of the climate crisis and its solutions.

Emma Rae Lierley helps communities stop deforestation. As senior communications manager for the forests program at the Rainforest Action Network, this Vancouverite amplifies the voices of communities all over the world contending with corporations destroying their forest homes.

When Parker saw the environmental damage along the North Thompson River, she stepped up. What began as a high school capstone project evolved into a youth-led riverbank restoration effort focused on native plants and sustainable solutions. In this interview, Parker discusses her journey as a 2023 YCAA winner and how youth-led climate action can spark real change — even in the face of uncertainty.

When Sophia saw how transportation barriers were limiting youth access to school, work, and community, she decided to act. What started as a local campaign for free youth bus passes in Regina grew into a multi-year movement that engaged thousands — and sparked policy change.

Ulwiana Mehta-Malhotra keeps clothing out of landfills and helps students stay hopeful. This 18-year-old from North Vancouver inspires highschool students to trade fast fashion for thrift shops and clothes swaps.

Liam Sisson wants to teach you about bees. This 19-year-old University of British Columbia science student from Kelowna, B.C., spends his summers keeping bees and hosting guided beekeeping tours for visitors.

Graeme Hopkins is passionate about immersing young people in nature. This 20-year-old from Saskatchewan takes groups of youth, aged 13 to 18, into wild spaces in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.

Alexandra Chow encourages students to collaborate, so they increase their impact on the climate crisis. This 18-year-old from Vancouver was a 2024 winner of The I-SEA Youth Climate Activism Award for bringing together high school students from seven Vancouver schools.

Karishma Porwal uses her influence with millions of TikTok and Instagram users to link their day-to-day concerns to the climate crisis.