UK Youth Climate Coalition
Encyclopedia
The UK Youth Climate Coalition (UKYCC) is a grass-roots, non-profit youth organisation in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

. The organisation is run entirely by unpaid volunteers, who are all under the ages of 25.

Formed in 2008, the mission of the organisation is to inspire, empower and mobilise a coalition of UK youth organisations and young people to build the movement for a clean, just future, and to take positive action on climate change. To achieve their aims and objectives, the organisation provides training to young people on public narration whilst coordinating a series of projects, campaigns and events each year, including youth delegations to the United Nations Climate Negotiations
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an international environmental treaty produced at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development , informally known as the Earth Summit, held in Rio de Janeiro from June 3 to 14, 1992...

.

The organisation is supported by a coalition of non-governmental organisations.

Formation

In June 2008, the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 ambassadors to the World Wide Fund for Nature
World Wide Fund for Nature
The World Wide Fund for Nature is an international non-governmental organization working on issues regarding the conservation, research and restoration of the environment, formerly named the World Wildlife Fund, which remains its official name in Canada and the United States...

's Voyage for the Future programme, Emma Biermann and Casper ter Kuile, returned from the Arctic
Arctic
The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...

 to found the UK Youth Climate Coalition (UKYCC) after being inspired by young people undertaking similar projects across the world, such as the Australian Youth Climate Coalition
Australian Youth Climate Coalition
The Australian Youth Climate Coalition is a youth organisation in Australia. The coalition consists of 25 other youth organisations, which includes the National Union of Students amongst many...

 and the Energy Action Coalition
Energy Action Coalition
The Energy Action Coalition is a North American non-profit organization made up of 50 partner organizations in the U.S. and Canada that runs campaigns to build the youth and student clean energy movement and advocate for tangible changes on local, state, national and international levels in North...

 in the United States.

By bringing together a number of youth organisations and a coalition of non-governmental organisations, the co-founders intended to unite the work of their partners and to "make it stronger." Following on from this, the co-founders formed a coordinating team who worked on a number of projects, campaigns and events over the duration of the next year.

Aims and objectives

The mission of the organisation is to inspire, empower and mobilise young people to build the movement for a clean, just future, and to take positive action on climate change. To achieve their aims and objectives, the organisation provides training to young people on public narative, using the techniques developed by Marshall Ganz
Marshall Ganz
Marshall Ganz is a lecturer in public policy at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He worked on the staff of the United Farm Workers for sixteen years before becoming a trainer and organizer for political campaigns, unions and nonprofit groups...

 who was part of the U.S. President Barack Obama's election campaign, whilst coordinating a series of projects, campaigns and events each year, including youth delegations to the United Nations Climate Negotiations
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an international environmental treaty produced at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development , informally known as the Earth Summit, held in Rio de Janeiro from June 3 to 14, 1992...

.

The UKYCC places strong emphasis on the need for its messaging to be positive and relevant, reflected through projects such as the "How old will you be in 2050?" campaign launched by the International Youth Movement in 2009 and the "Get Gordon Some Vision" fundraising campaign which ran in early 2009. The organisation has also gone on record calling for environmental groups to communicate their aims more effectively, with Communications Coordinator Ben West writing that
"Campaigners should focus on things people care about, not polar bears and melting ice caps"


Similarly, the organisation aims to bring together a number of diverse youth organisations, both national, regional and local non-governmental organisations to work alongside youth led organisations and other coalition partners to fulfil their goals.

Governance

The UK Youth Climate Coalition (UKYCC) is run by a team of young volunteers under the ages of 25. The organisation itself is a registered private company limited by guarantee, with no share capital, which means it is run for non-profit purposes. The daily activities are managed by two co-directors, who supported by eight coordinators who are in turn supported by a team of 30 appointed volunteers. The volunteers are supported by an Advisory Board, who advise on issues relating to finance, legal issues and communications, and a Steering Group.

The 2009 Coordinating team included: Ben West (Communications Coordinator); Guppi Bola (Coalition Coordinator); Anna Collins, Lizzie Gawen and Kirsty Schneeberger (Delegation Coordinators); Craig Ferriman (Outreach Coordinator); Kate Shayler (Powershift Coordinator) and; Emily Cousins (350 Day of Action Coordinator).

The UKYCC is supported by a coalition of non-governmental organisations. As of 2010, the coalition includes 350.org
350.org
350.org is an international environmental organization, headed by author Bill McKibben, with the goal of building a global grassroots movement to raise awareness of anthropogenic climate change, to confront climate change denial, and to cut emissions of one of the greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide,...

, ActionAid
ActionAid
ActionAid was founded in 1972 as a child sponsorship charity when 88 UK supporters sponsored 88 children in India and Kenya, the focus primarily being to provide children with an education. Global accounts are now reported in Euros and in 2007 and 2008 turnover was close to 180m Euros...

, Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...

, British Youth Council
British Youth Council
The British Youth Council is a UK charity working to empower young people to have a say and be heard. Run by young people for young people, BYC exists to represent the views of young people to government and decision-makers at a local, national, European and international level; and to promote the...

, Diana Awards, Envision, Made in Europe, Medsin
Medsin
Medsin is a grassroots, student led organisation. Its vision is "A world where health is a universally realised human right" Its activities aim to "promote health as well as to act upon and educate students about health inequalities in our local and global communities."Formed in 1997, the...

, National Union of Students, Otesha Project, Oxfam
Oxfam
Oxfam is an international confederation of 15 organizations working in 98 countries worldwide to find lasting solutions to poverty and related injustice around the world. In all Oxfam’s actions, the ultimate goal is to enable people to exercise their rights and manage their own lives...

, Plan UK
Plan (aid organisation)
Plan is a global children’s charity which operates in 48 countries across Africa, Asia and the Americas. It is made up of 21 national organisations responsible for raising funds and awareness in their respective countries...

, People & Planet
People & Planet
People & Planet is a network of student campaign groups in the UK. It claims to be "the largest student campaigning organization in the country campaigning to alleviate world poverty, defend human rights and protect the environment."-Organization:...

, RSPB
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
Bird Notes and News was first published in April 1903.The title changed to 'Bird Notes' in 1947. In the 1950s, there were four copies per year . Each volume covered two years, spread over three calendar years...

, Stop Climate Chaos
Stop Climate Chaos
Stop Climate Chaos is a climate change coalition of primarily environmental and international development NGOs that was formed in September 2005. The coalition ran the big I Count campaign in 2006–07 and organised The Wave - a campaign focused on the climatic impacts of energy production which...

, Unicef, The Woodcraft Folk
The Woodcraft Folk
The Woodcraft Folk is a UK-based educational movement for children and young people, and registered charity no. 1073665. The constitutional object of this youth organisation is "to educate and empower young people to be able to participate actively in society, improving their lives and others'...

 and the National Trust's
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...

 You, Me & The Climate (YOMAC).

Alongside the coalition partners, the UKYCC boasts a membership of over 2,250 young people. The organisation is open to any young person to join, in addition to their coalition which is open to any organisation.

Internationally, the coalition is part of the Youth Climate Movement
Youth Climate Movement
The Youth Climate Movement or International Youth Climate Movement refers to an international network of youth organisations that collectively aims to inspire, empower and mobilise a generational movement of young people to take positive action on climate change.- Formation :Since the Rio Earth...

, with sister organisations in America
Energy Action Coalition
The Energy Action Coalition is a North American non-profit organization made up of 50 partner organizations in the U.S. and Canada that runs campaigns to build the youth and student clean energy movement and advocate for tangible changes on local, state, national and international levels in North...

, Australia
Australian Youth Climate Coalition
The Australian Youth Climate Coalition is a youth organisation in Australia. The coalition consists of 25 other youth organisations, which includes the National Union of Students amongst many...

, Canada
Canadian Youth Climate Coalition
The Canadian Youth Climate Coalition is a non for profit youth organisation in Canada. The coalition consists of various youth organisations, which includes the Canadian Federation of Students, the Canadian Labour Congress The charity aims to politically prioritize climate change as an important...

, China and India
Indian Youth Climate Network
The Indian Youth Climate Network refers to an youth organizations in India that aims to raise the voice of Indian youth on the global platform as South Asia is one of the most vulnerable regions affected by potentially catastrophic climate change & environment issues.IYCN members work to generate...

. The UKYCC has also formed a partnership with the African Youth Initiative on Climate Change - Kenyan Chapter, with whom they share resources, experience and training. In 2009, the UKYCC committed to raising over £11,000 for their partner organisation.

Funding

The UKYCC advertises that its core funding comes mainly by donations from its supporters. Projects undertaken by the volunteers have previously been funded by foundation grant applications, such as the Youth Funding Network, and in-kind support. For example, Seventeen Events provided pro-bono support to the volunteers to ensure their Powershift event was sustainable.

2008

In 2008, the UK Youth Climate Coalition undertook a number of activities. Some of the campaigns included:
  • In December, the UKYCC participated in the National Climate March organised by the Campaign against Climate Change
    Campaign against Climate Change
    The Campaign against Climate Change is a UK-based pressure group that aims to raise public awareness of anthropogenic climate change through mobilizing mass demonstrations...

    , with a campaign called "Our time is now" to raise awareness of climate change amongst young people.
  • The same year, the volunteers organised a youth delegation to the 2008 United Nations Climate Change Conference
    2008 United Nations Climate Change Conference
    The 2008 United Nations Climate Change Conference took place at PIF Congress Centre, Poznań International Fair , in Poznań, Poland, between December 1 and December 12, 2008...

     in partnership with the Otesha Project. At the event, the delegation coordinated the 'Call Gordon' project, a viral telephone campaign asking the then Prime Minister Gordon Brown
    Gordon Brown
    James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...

     to pursue a tougher agreement on climate change at the talks.
  • The UKYCC also began supporting the Green Finger Project, an online viral campaign that aims to show how climate change affects everyone. The project was initially the idea of Step it Up 2007, founded by Bill McKibben
    Bill McKibben
    William Ernest "Bill" McKibben is an American environmentalist, author, and journalist who has written extensively on the impact of global warming. He is the Schumann Distinguished Scholar at Middlebury College...

     who went on to establish 350.org
    350.org
    350.org is an international environmental organization, headed by author Bill McKibben, with the goal of building a global grassroots movement to raise awareness of anthropogenic climate change, to confront climate change denial, and to cut emissions of one of the greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide,...

    .

2009

The UKYCC worked with the International Youth Movement, in particular the European Youth Climate Movement to contribute to the "How old will you be in 2050?" campaign, launched at the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...

 Climate negotiations taking place in Bonn
Bonn
Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999....

, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. The slogan has been used by the Youth movement since then and was also the focus for the International Youth "Young and Future Generations Day" in December 2009. The campaign seeks to emphasise the need to cut carbon emissions by 80% by 2050 on 1990 levels, as young people will be the ones to inherit this world and decisions made today will have a direct impact on their lives in 40 years time.

From 9-12 October 2009, the UK version of Power Shift
Power Shift
For the book by Alvin Toffler, see Powershift: Knowledge, Wealth and Violence at the Edge of the 21st Century. For the driving technique, see Powershifting....

 was held at the Institute of Education
Institute of Education
The Institute of Education is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom specialised in postgraduate study and research in the field of education and a constituent college of the federal University of London. It is the largest education research body in the United Kingdom, with...

 in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

. Modelled on a similar event to one organised by the Australian Youth Climate Coalition
Australian Youth Climate Coalition
The Australian Youth Climate Coalition is a youth organisation in Australia. The coalition consists of 25 other youth organisations, which includes the National Union of Students amongst many...

 and carrying the same name as the Energy Action Coalition
Energy Action Coalition
The Energy Action Coalition is a North American non-profit organization made up of 50 partner organizations in the U.S. and Canada that runs campaigns to build the youth and student clean energy movement and advocate for tangible changes on local, state, national and international levels in North...

 event in the USA, the event intended to develop the youth climate movement and provide young people with training on public speaking. The training was based on the techniques developed by Marshall Ganz
Marshall Ganz
Marshall Ganz is a lecturer in public policy at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He worked on the staff of the United Farm Workers for sixteen years before becoming a trainer and organizer for political campaigns, unions and nonprofit groups...

, a civil rights activist who is credited with devising the successful grassroots organizing model and public narrative training for 2008 Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...

 presidential campaign. The Power Shift
Power Shift
For the book by Alvin Toffler, see Powershift: Knowledge, Wealth and Violence at the Edge of the 21st Century. For the driving technique, see Powershifting....

 event intended to serve as a feeder to the International Day of Action organised by 350.org on 24 October.

Three days before the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference
2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference
The 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference, commonly known as the Copenhagen Summit, was held at the Bella Center in Copenhagen, Denmark, between 7 December and 18 December. The conference included the 15th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate...

 in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...

, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

, Kirsty Schneeberger, one of the 2009 Coordinators for the UKYCC, chaired a question and answer debate between a panel of government ministers and 80 young people. The panel included former Prime Minister Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...

, Former Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Ed Miliband
Ed Miliband
Edward Samuel Miliband is a British Labour Party politician, currently the Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition...

 and Former Minister of State, Foreign & Commonwealth Office Baroness Glenys Kinnock
Glenys Kinnock
Glenys Elizabeth Kinnock, Baroness Kinnock and Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead is a British politician....

.

A day later, members of the UK Youth Climate Coalition participated in the Wave, organised by coalition partner Stop Climate Chaos
Stop Climate Chaos
Stop Climate Chaos is a climate change coalition of primarily environmental and international development NGOs that was formed in September 2005. The coalition ran the big I Count campaign in 2006–07 and organised The Wave - a campaign focused on the climatic impacts of energy production which...

. It is estimated that between 40,000-50,000 individuals attended the march in London, in addition to over 7,000 participants in Glasgow.

Similarly to previous years, the organisation sent a second youth delegation to the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference
2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference
The 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference, commonly known as the Copenhagen Summit, was held at the Bella Center in Copenhagen, Denmark, between 7 December and 18 December. The conference included the 15th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate...

. In preparation for the talks in Copenhagen, the Youth Delegation met negotiators from the Department of Energy and Climate Change
Department of Energy and Climate Change
The Department of Energy and Climate Change is a British government department created on 3 October 2008 by Prime Minister Gordon Brown to take over some of the functions of the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs...

. Darran Martin, one of the youth delegates, was reported to have cycled from the United Kingdom to Copenhagen, Denmark. Prior to and whilst in Copenhagen, the youth delegation recorded a series of documentaries, with the goal of providing inspiring stories directly to young people within the UK.

Mid-way through the Climate negotiations in December, the UKYCC also organised a Day of Action as the UK Delivery partner for the Global Campaign for Climate Action
Global Campaign for Climate Action
The Global Campaign for Climate Action , is a global alliance of more than 280 non-profit organizations all over the world. Our shared mission is to mobilize civil society and galvanize public support to ensure a safe climate future for people and nature, to promote the low-carbon transition of our...

, also recognised as "TckTckTck". Alongside 1,600 actions taking place around the world, the UKYCC organised a flash dance outside the Houses of Parliament and projected an image onto the House of Commons, with the slogan, "the World wants a real deal". The day of action was designed to call on world leaders to create and agree on a fair, ambitious and legally binding deal as the outcome of the Climate negotiations that month.

2010

On 12 January 2010, following the Climate negotiations in the preceding month, over 150 young people came together to explore ways in which young people can join the fight against climate change, in an event organised by the UK Youth Parliament
UK Youth Parliament
The UK Youth Parliament is a youth organisation in the United Kingdom, consisting of democratically elected members aged between 11 and 18....

. The event was supported by the UK Youth Climate Coalition and coalition partners Oxfam
Oxfam
Oxfam is an international confederation of 15 organizations working in 98 countries worldwide to find lasting solutions to poverty and related injustice around the world. In all Oxfam’s actions, the ultimate goal is to enable people to exercise their rights and manage their own lives...

, Plan UK
Plan (aid organisation)
Plan is a global children’s charity which operates in 48 countries across Africa, Asia and the Americas. It is made up of 21 national organisations responsible for raising funds and awareness in their respective countries...

 and UNICEF.

A month later, the Department for Energy and Climate Change launched a Youth Advisory Panel, including representatives from the UKYCC. It is reported that this followed 12 months of campaigning, led by the UK Youth Climate Coalition and their coalition partners People & Planet
People & Planet
People & Planet is a network of student campaign groups in the UK. It claims to be "the largest student campaigning organization in the country campaigning to alleviate world poverty, defend human rights and protect the environment."-Organization:...

 and Plan UK
Plan (aid organisation)
Plan is a global children’s charity which operates in 48 countries across Africa, Asia and the Americas. It is made up of 21 national organisations responsible for raising funds and awareness in their respective countries...

.

In April, the UKYCC launched a viral video campaign called "Shake your money maker" to raise awareness of ethical banking
Ethical banking
An ethical bank, also known as a social, alternative, civic, or sustainable bank, is a bank concerned with the social and environmental impacts of its investments and loans. Ethical banks are part of a larger societal movement toward more social and environmental responsibility in the financial...

 amongst their supporters. The campaign ran with the slogan, "It might not come with a free popcorn machine, but an ethical bank account will sow the seeds for a cleaner, brighter future." The organisation estimated that if each of their 2,000 supporters had £500 in their account and they were all to switch to an ethical bank, this would total £1 million pounds.

Prior to the May General Elections, the UKYCC supported the British Youth Council
British Youth Council
The British Youth Council is a UK charity working to empower young people to have a say and be heard. Run by young people for young people, BYC exists to represent the views of young people to government and decision-makers at a local, national, European and international level; and to promote the...

 Manifesto and the Vote Global campaign which intended to raise awareness of key issues during the election campaign.

Following the general election and to coincide with the formal opening of Parliament and the Queen's Speech on Tuesday 25 May, the UKYCC also launched a project called "Adopt an MP". The scheme intends to see 650 Members of Parliament in the UK "adopted" by a young person in their constituency, in an attempt to keep climate change at the top of their agenda.

Reception

In 2009, following the UK Youth Climate Coalition's Powershift conference and activities on 350.org's International Day of Action, Casper ter Kuile, co-founder of the organisation, was awarded Climate Community Citizen of the Week Award by the Climate Community.

In 2010, Kirsty Schneeberger, former Coordinator with the UK Youth Climate Coalition, was awarded an MBE
MBE
MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...

 for her work with the organisation.

Although the UKYCC has not formally won any awards, the organisation was recognised by Seventeen Events, one of the judges of the MediaGuardian Innovation Awards, for their ability to use the internet to communicate, network and organise.

See also

  • 350.org
    350.org
    350.org is an international environmental organization, headed by author Bill McKibben, with the goal of building a global grassroots movement to raise awareness of anthropogenic climate change, to confront climate change denial, and to cut emissions of one of the greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide,...

  • Canadian Youth Climate Coalition
    Canadian Youth Climate Coalition
    The Canadian Youth Climate Coalition is a non for profit youth organisation in Canada. The coalition consists of various youth organisations, which includes the Canadian Federation of Students, the Canadian Labour Congress The charity aims to politically prioritize climate change as an important...

  • Community youth development
    Community youth development
    Community youth development, or CYD, is a philosophy emphasizing the uniquely symbiotic nature of youth development to community development by situating the two practices in a common framework...

  • Energy Action Coalition
    Energy Action Coalition
    The Energy Action Coalition is a North American non-profit organization made up of 50 partner organizations in the U.S. and Canada that runs campaigns to build the youth and student clean energy movement and advocate for tangible changes on local, state, national and international levels in North...

  • Indian Youth Climate Network
    Indian Youth Climate Network
    The Indian Youth Climate Network refers to an youth organizations in India that aims to raise the voice of Indian youth on the global platform as South Asia is one of the most vulnerable regions affected by potentially catastrophic climate change & environment issues.IYCN members work to generate...

  • Youth Climate Movement
    Youth Climate Movement
    The Youth Climate Movement or International Youth Climate Movement refers to an international network of youth organisations that collectively aims to inspire, empower and mobilise a generational movement of young people to take positive action on climate change.- Formation :Since the Rio Earth...


External links

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