Exploring the impact of climate change, environmental degradation, and conflict on marginalized youth to amplify their voices in multilateral decisions and drive innovative solutions.
The Challenge
Fourteen of the twenty-five most climate-vulnerable countries are already affected by conflict, underscoring the urgent need to address these converging issues. Climate change’s repercussions disproportionately affect vulnerable populations, including youth, women, and indigenous communities, exacerbating existing challenges. With 90 percent of the global youth population residing in developing or conflict-ridden countries, where climate change acts as a serious ‘risk multiplier’, the stakes are high.
Despite the intertwined nature of climate and the Youth, Peace, and Security (YPS) agenda, this connection is often overlooked in international discourse. Yet, on the ground, young peacebuilders are actively engaging as climate activists, recognizing the interconnectedness of these issues. Establishing a framework that identifies the pivotal role of youth is essential to driving systemic change at the multilateral level and reshaping global governance for a more sustainable future.
“Unless action is taken on climate change, sustainable development will not be achieved.”
Kofi Annan
About the Environment of Peace research project
In 2024, we joined forces with the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) and the six organizations leading our Extremely Together Chapters to research the interconnected issues of conflict, environmental degradation and climate change and their impact on youth.
The research, conducted with the support of the Global Challenges Foundation, was led by young people and engaged marginalized youth aged 15-30 in Burkina Faso, Niger, Pakistan, the Philippines, Somalia and Uganda.
Results
The research began a wider programmatic effort to strengthen youth resilience in addressing environmental and social fragility.
Based on the research conducted in six countries, we produced country-specific case studies and a comparative executive summary to highlight young people’s lived experiences of the combined effects of conflict and climate change. In the last quarter of 2024, we presented the key findings at an online event, making them available to a global audience.
“As an African proverb says: the earth is not ours, it is a treasure we hold in trust for our children and grandchildren. We must be worthy of that trust. By working together, every nation and every individual…we can defeat the threat of global warming. Let us act now, not tomorrow.”
Kofi Annan
Impact
Environment of Peace
+1.6 billion
90% of the world’s 1.8 billion youth, i.e. over 1.6 billion young people, live in developing or conflict-affected countries where climate change acts as a serious “risk multiplier” for peace and sustainable development.
Our research gained insights from over 1,000 young, marginalized individuals across six countries.
1,000
6
The research produced six case studies – one per target country: Burkina Faso, Niger, Pakistan, the Philippines, Somalia and Uganda.
Our inter-country collaborative effort aims to explore the interconnectedness of youth, climate, and conflict in depth.
Waiting any longer to address the convergence of escalating conflict, environmental degradation, and climate change is not an option.
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Country Partners
Environment of Peace
Suudu Andal (Burkina Faso), meaning “Temple of Knowledge” in Fulfuldé, was created in 2016 to contribute to a fairer, more inclusive, more united, and more prosperous world.
By supporting youth and women’s leadership and participation in peace and development, Suudu Andal pursues its mission of creating the conditions to act together for a bright future in Burkina Faso.
The mission of Cercle de Réflexion et d’Action pour un Développement Local “Cercle Dev” (Niger) is to create the conditions for innovative local development based on the empowerment of local skills and resources in Niger. Since its creation in 2016, it has developed a country-wide network of 250 volunteers committed to enhancing local potential and empowering youth to become actors of change within communities living in rural and peri-urban settings. Cercle Dev supports youth leadership through their engagement in civic actions and violence prevention efforts, the promotion of volunteerism and their socio-professional integration.
Established in 2015, HIVE (Pakistan) is a social-impact organization working to address issues of extremism and marginalization.
Since 2020, HIVE has managed the Extremely Together Pakistan Chapter, which has become a leading youth movement in multiple cities across the country. HIVE strives for an inclusive, equal, and peaceful Pakistan through community-led research, facilitative grant-making, upstream mobilization, innovative campaigning, needs-based mentorship, and participatory collaboration.
KRIS (Philippines) is a non-profit organization that promotes peace through education by empowering young people to become pillars of peace in their own families, schools, and communities. KRIS started in 2008 by building peace libraries, providing scholarships, and donating educational resources to young people affected by conflict and poverty.
KRIS commits to developing Filipino youth by building avenues that cultivate a cycle of peace and empowerment. The organization aims to strengthen the networks between the youth and its fellow civil society organizations through different projects, campaigns, and exhibits to showcase unity in the country despite differences between individual Filipinos.
Elman Peace (Somalia) is a non-profit organization founded in 1990. It is dedicated to promoting peace, cultivating leadership and empowering the marginalized brackets of society to be decision-makers in the processes that ensure their wellbeing.
Elman Peace provides innovative, life-saving support to those in need and strives to create more enabling and progressive environments through their work. Their philosophy on aid and development is centred on locally driven solutions from a committed and professional collective of compassionate people
Uganda Muslim Youth Development Forum – UMYDF (Uganda) is a non-profit, faith-based peacebuilding and development organisation that seeks to address root causes and effects of violent conflicts through education, research, art, sports, gardening, dialogue, advocacy, and strategic communications. Since 2011, UMYDF has engaged Ugandan youth from vulnerable communities in peacebuilding and development activities, including providing skills training and support to marginalized youth to start small income-generating businesses and increase their resilience.
Partners
Environment of Peace
The Global Challenges Foundation is a non-profit organisation whose mission is to facilitate the changes needed in global governance to mitigate global catastrophic risks. Collaborating with partners, the Global Challenges Foundation builds support for necessary change and formulates alternative outcomes.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) is an independent international institute dedicated to researching conflict, armaments, arms control, disarmament, and the interactions between climate and security. Established in 1966, SIPRI provides data, analysis, and recommendations, based on open sources, to policymakers, researchers, media, and the interested public. Based in Stockholm, SIPRI is regularly ranked among the most respected think tanks worldwide.
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