New York City, NY – November 9, 2026 – Climate Cardinals is supporting the distribution of the Global Youth Statement 2026, the official youth document for COP31, the UN climate conference in Antalya, Türkiye.
The Global Youth Statement is coordinated by YOUNGO, the official children and youth constituency of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). It brings the priorities of young people around the world into one set of demands. YOUNGO then hands it to governments, the UNFCCC Secretariat and the COP Presidency, and uses it in negotiations throughout the conference.
The Statement is built from the ground up. Inputs come from YOUNGO's working groups, partner organizations, individual submissions, and Local and Regional Conferences of Youth held throughout the year. Young people then refine them in more than 50 policy hackathon sessions before YOUNGO volunteers combine them into one document.
What are LCOYs and RCOYs?
A Local Conference of Youth (LCOY) is a national or local gathering where young people learn about climate policy and agree on their priorities ahead of each COP. A Regional Conference of Youth (RCOY) does the same across a whole region. The outcomes of both feed directly into the Global Youth Statement.
Climate Cardinals chapters and fellows have taken part in RCOYs and LCOYs, bringing the priorities of their communities into the Statement.
Read the Global Youth Statement and add your support at gys.youngohub.org.
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Press Inquiries:
Hikaru Wakeel Hayakawa, Executive Director: [email protected]
About Climate Cardinals
Climate Cardinals is one of the world's largest youth-focused climate organizations. It breaks language barriers so every community can take action and protect their future, with a vision of climate resilience for all. Since 2020, more than 21,000 young people in 145 countries have volunteered with Climate Cardinals. Today it runs 180+ active chapters in 46 countries, 90% of them in the Global Majority, a paid global Fellowship, a research program, and translations of climate information into 100+ languages for partners including UNESCO, UNICEF and Yale. Learn more at climatecardinals.org and on our Program Dashboard.
