Climate Cardinals: Youth-led climate organizations need funding to succeed

No movement can afford to exhaust its most ardent supporters. For the climate movement, it's young people: while more than half of 16-25 year olds face climate anxiety, we are nonetheless committed to climate action. At Climate Cardinals, a youth-led non-profit organization dedicated to improving access to climate education by breaking down language barriers, we juggle our commitment with studies, internships and other responsibilities.

But our activism is only sustainable if it is adequately supported. Beyond moral support, we need financial and institutional support commensurate with the scale and intensity of the efforts deployed by young activists.

The problem is that right now the numbers don't match the talk. Despite being at the forefront of the movement, youth-led organizations receive just 0.76% of global funding from the largest climate foundations. This glaring imbalance stands in contrast to an already constrained funding landscape, in which only 2% of total philanthropic contributions are dedicated to fighting climate change, according to a 2021 report from the ClimateWorks Foundation. As fossil fuel subsidies continue to break records, climate organizations – especially those led by young people – are fighting for the remains, struggling to secure basic financial support.

At Climate Cardinals, we have succeeded against all odds, proving the resilience of youth-led initiatives. Over the past four years, our organization has grown from a group of like-minded high school students to a global network of more than 14,000 volunteers.

Our volunteers work tirelessly to strengthen basic climate education and make climate information more accessible to non-English speakers. This is a cornerstone of climate justice: ensuring that all communities, especially those most vulnerable and least responsible for climate change, have access to the knowledge they need to fight for their rights and adapt to environmental challenges.

Like many young activists, we focus our volunteer efforts between classes and jobs, fitting our tasks and meetings into our limited free time. Until we hired our first employee this year, the most our team members received was a $500 stipend, a modest recognition of their massive contributions.

We are here to make a difference, not to earn a paycheck. We give our time because we believe in what we do. And it works: our network spans 80 countries and we have translated more than two million words into 105 languages ​​as part-time volunteers. As high school students, we were producing translations for groups like UNICEF and UNEP, demonstrating the demand for our work from some of the world's largest organizations.

However, a lack of funding in the past has limited our ability to amplify our efforts and engage where it matters most. We had to turn down many partnerships with other organizations, not because we weren't interested, but because we simply didn't have the resources. Without continued support, we risk burning out our volunteers and losing the foundation we have laid for climate solutions at all levels.

Although financial constraints continue to pose challenges, we are fortunate to find supporters who believe in the power of youth-led movements. Most recently, Google pledged six-figure funding for our cause, allowing us to professionalize, bring on a full-time employee, and cover our administrative costs. It took us four years and the tireless work of thousands of people to get there, but we proved that substantial funding is possible for youth-led movements.

But this is just the first step for us, and we are just one story among many. While we are beyond grateful for the support we have received, we hope that this is the first of many such partnerships with funders for all youth-led organizations.

To truly make a lasting impact, youth-led organizations need financial investment. Look what we did on our own. Now imagine the possibilities if we had the full support of philanthropists, governments and businesses committed to real change.

With adequate funding, we – and our peers in other youth-led climate organizations – can expand our reach, innovate solutions, and accelerate our efforts to secure a sustainable future. It is time for those with the capacity to make a difference to step up and invest in the potential of young activists. Together, we can transform the climate advocacy landscape and create lasting global change.

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