Youth Action for Climate and Clean Air Now

The webinar 'Youth Action for Climate and Clean Air Now' brought together over 140 youth leaders and experts to discuss the role of young people in mitigating short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs) and improving air quality. Key discussions focused on the science of 'super pollutants' like methane and black carbon, the importance of youth engagement in the 2025 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) update process, and the implementation of community-led solutions such as solar dryers in Ghana and indoor air quality monitoring in UK schools. The event emphasized that reducing SLCPs can provide rapid climate benefits and improve public health, particularly for children in the global south who are disproportionately affected by pollution.

• Short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs), including methane, black carbon, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), and tropospheric ozone, are potent 'super pollutants' that contribute significantly to global warming and public health risks. Reducing these pollutants can slow warming more effectively over the next 20 years than strategies focused solely on CO2.
• Young people, especially in Asia, Africa, and other global south regions, suffer from diseases caused by polluted air despite being the least responsible for climate change and air pollution. They are frequently excluded from meaningful policymaking and action.
• Youth are encouraged to engage with the 2025 update of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to ensure that air pollution priorities relevant to young people are included in national policies.
• Community-led initiatives demonstrate the efficacy of youth-driven solutions, such as the use of solar dryers to reduce post-harvest cassava losses and the repurposing of cassava peels to provide cleaner cooking alternatives in Ghana, where 70% of the population relies on unclean fuels.
• Citizen science and monitoring projects, such as the Schools Air Quality Monitoring for Health and Education (SAMHE) project in the UK, empower youth to collect indoor air quality data across 800 classrooms to drive understanding and improvement.
• Advocacy networks in Latin America, such as El Derecho a No Obedecer in Colombia, are working to shift air quality management from reactive to preventive measures through collaboration and awareness workshops.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (2024). Youth Action for Climate and Clean Air Now. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/report-on-youth-action-for-climate-and-clean-air-now-webinar-1.pdf

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. Youth Action for Climate and Clean Air Now. 2024. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/report-on-youth-action-for-climate-and-clean-air-now-webinar-1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=Youth Action for Climate and Clean Air Now |date=12 July 2024 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/report-on-youth-action-for-climate-and-clean-air-now-webinar-1.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitute2024youth, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{Youth Action for Climate and Clean Air Now}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2024}, month = jul, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/report-on-youth-action-for-climate-and-clean-air-now-webinar-1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }