Young people across the world are capturing the attention of policymakers and shining a light on the power of youth as contributors to climate research and solutions. Through the Global Youth Video Competition, organized by the UNFCCC and Television for the Environment, and the Planetary Health Film Lab (organized by the Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research) participants submit their films which are added to a GIS map, serving as an interactive digital platform for the Youth Climate Report initiative and bringing under-represented perspectives to UN Events.

From Greta Thunberg to activists from around the world, the Youth Climate Report showcases more than 450 videos produced by young people, representing 191 countries across all seven continents. Each year, approximately 60 videos produced by young people are screened at the COP. Additionally, the Planetary Health Film Lab provides training programmes to equip youth around the world with the skills to produce films, while teaching them how to create similar Geo-Doc projects.

Participants take this training back to their home countries and teach their peers, thereby extending the network of Youth Climate Reporters and replicating the project around the world. Through this approach to mobilizing youth as reporters, Youth Climate Reporters continuously produce visible evidence of SDG research giving under-represented youth cohorts – from remote indigenous communities to those living in extreme poverty – a voice at UN climate summits.