This webinar, themed “Catalyzing Youths for Climate Action,” aims to provide an overview of the UNFCCC process and showcase opportunities for children and young people to connect at the local level, through youth-led platforms such as the LCOYs which are taking place across the region this year. It will highlight how YOUNGO utilizes the LCOYs as a critical bridge to being the voices of grassroots youth movements into the global climate process. Additionally, the session will raise awareness about capacity-building opportunities, and avenues for ongoing youth interaction and engagement in climate policy and action.

Background

Across East and Southern Africa, children- and youth-led climate action is gaining momentum, with young people driving community-based initiatives, raising awareness of climate change, developing innovative solutions and supporting the design and implementation of ambitious and effective climate policies and actions. Despite these important contributions, many young people remain unaware of structured pathways to engage meaningfully in the UNFCCC process. For those advancing climate action at the local level, it can be challenging to understand how their work connects to international climate negotiations and how they can contribute to shaping global climate action.

YOUNGO, the official children and youth constituency of the UNFCCC, provides an important platform for young people to connect to the intergovernmental climate process. In the region, a key vehicle for youth engagement is YOUNGO’s Local Conference of Youth (LCOY), a globally organized platform where youth consolidate their climate priorities, build capacity, and channel their collective voice toward the global climate agenda.
The UNFCCC Regional Collaboration Centre for East and Southern Africa (RCC EASA) is partnering with YOUNGO and selected youth organizations coordinating LCOYs across the region to raise awareness about the UNFCCC process, and existing youth-led mechanisms that connect children and young people at the local level to the international climate process, strengthening youth inclusion and impact. Youth empowerment and engagement, as a cross-cutting focus, is firmly anchored in the UNFCCC’s commitment to Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE), as outlined in Article 6 of the Convention and Article 12 of the Paris Agreement. It is further operationalized through key COP decisions, including the Glasgow Work Programme on ACE (Decision 18/CP.26 and Decision 22/CMA.3) its action plan (Decision 23/CP.27 and Decision 22/CMA.4), which aims to promote ACE implementation through education and public awareness, training, public participation and public access to information.

Objectives

• Demystify the UNFCCC Process: Provide an overview on the UNFCCC process and structure and explain how young people can connect with the process at all levels.
• Provide space for YOUNGO to raise awareness about upcoming LCOYs: To increase regional awareness of LCOY 2026 processes across East and Southern Africa and increase engagement with youth-led processes at the local level.
• Share information on concrete opportunities for children and youth engagement, including capacity-building, funding avenues, and roles in policy advocacy.
• Provide a space for young people to connect, network and enhance climate action in the region.

Format 

The webinar ran for one hour on a virtual platform and combined short framing remarks from RCC EASA, a presentation from YOUNGO, a country-by-country round of presentations from the selected LCOY-coordinating organizations, followed by a moderated regional discussion and open Q&A.

Target Participants

• YOUNGO Focal Points
• Children and youth advancing climate action at the local level
• RCC EASA staff, including Adaptation, Mitigation and Youth/ACE focal points.
• Youth organizations identified to coordinate national LCOYs across the 19 countries served by RCC EASA.
• National ACE focal points and UNFCCC national focal points where available.
• Relevant government ministries and development partners supporting youth climate engagement, as observers.

Outcomes and key takeaways

The webinar brought together 40+ youth from across East and Southern Africa, alongside YOUNGO focal points, LCOY national coordinators, ACE and UNFCCC national focal points, relevant government ministries, and development partners. Below are some of the Key highlights:

• UNFCCC Youth Engagement Pathways (ACE/UNFCCC): Laura Vinuela, Programme Officer at UNFCCC (ACE), outlined three formal engagement routes, including the ACE work programme, observer engagement through YOUNGO, and the Presidency Youth Climate Champion role. She emphasized that national-level entry points through NDCs, NAPs, and long-term strategies are often the most accessible and impactful for youth.

• Connecting Local Voices to the Global Level through LCOYs (Local Conferences of Youth): Dr. Anirudh Janagam, the 2026 LCOY Liaison (YOUNGO), explained the pipeline from LCOYs to regional conferences, culminating in the Global Youth Statement (noting that inputs for 2026 close on 15 August 2026).

• 2026 LCOY Country Experiences:
  • Uganda: Derrick Mugisha shared outcomes from Uganda’s LCOY (5–7 August 2026), which engaged 520 participants directly and reached approximately 3,000 additional youth through consultations and online polling.
  • Eswatini: Tamika Dupont presented Eswatini’s phased approach, delivered through regional convenings across the country’s four regions, culminating in a national youth outcome statement while highlighting ongoing challenges related to youth awareness of climate policy.

Key Takeaways

• Youths are no longer the by-standers in climate engagements. They are the implementers, solution driven, innovative, and deserve to be the center of climate discussions and negotiations.
• Youth engagement does not require travelling to COPs; national processes provide the most accessible entry points.
• LCOYs serve as a critical bridge between local youth priorities and global climate advocacy.
• Finance and access remain the biggest barriers, alongside the need for mentorship and practical support for COP31 participation (travel, visas, and connectivity).
• Youth awareness of national climate policy remains limited, underscoring the need for continued investment to enable deeper policy engagement.
• Sustained engagement is more effective than one-off youth events, supporting continuous community and regional platforms.