The most important climate negotiations go into their 30th round, this November in Belem, Brazil. And ambitious or at least sufficient climate policies are unfortunately not set to happen – same as every year.
YES-Europe engages in the UNFCCC sphere to fight alongside other young people and organisations for ambitious climate policies and a just (energy) transition that leaves no one behind!
On the Road to COP30, we present our Advocacy Roadmap!
This past year, YES-Europe in partnership with EYEN conducted extensive research on the most pressing debates concerning the energy transition, youth, and competitiveness at the EU level. Our research suggests that these topics converge on the issue of employment for young people. The outputs and policy recommendations are outlined in the advocacy roadmap.
Jointly, we demand ambitious and targeted climate policies alongside 5 pillars:
-> Promote a just energy transition: We recommend that stakeholders target green youth employment schemes in regions where brown industries are downsizing. Transition plans should focus on replicating the high labour standards of brown sectors in emerging green ones.
-> Ensure the necessary skills: We urge policymakers to ensure that people receive adequate training to contribute to the energy transition at all levels, from the more innovative fields (AI, data-science, etc.), to the most practical ones (electrician, installer, operator, etc.). This effort should support both youth entering their first jobs and experienced workers transitioning from brown to green sectors.
-> Ensure substantive youth inclusion: We ask policymakers to include social and labour conditionalities in all public subsidies and procurement. These should include the ban of unpaid internships and objectives in terms of youth hiring quotas (e.g.having at least 15% of entry-level workers).
-> Commit to gender-transformative outcomes: In line with the UNFCCC objectives, we call on stakeholders to ensure that the negotiation outcomes of all tracks deliver gender-transformative policies. Such policies include equal parental leaves for all genders and valorising house labour and activism within the job experience, especially for jobs in the green sector.
-> Secure adequate funding: We highlight the need to prepare the provision of financial resources to national and local actors based on historic contributions and the polluter principle to ensure the implementation of climate policies.
Read the details here:
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UNICEF x UNFPA x YOUNGO call for Child Inclusion
Children are disproportionately affected by the climate crisis, especially those already marginalized by gender, geography, and socioeconomic status. From increased risk of malnutrition, loss of education, and a higher burden of disease to displacement and increasing risk of early and child marriages and gender-based violence, children face compounding vulnerabilities that demand urgent, targeted responses. Yet, current gender policies – including the Informal Note on the new Gender Action Plan (GAP) – overlook how the climate crisis intersects with the life course of children and adolescents.
Under the leadership of YES’ COP30 Project Lead, YOUNGO’s Women & Gender Working Group joined forces with UNICEF and UNFPA to issue a collective call call on Parties to guarantee that child-focused measures are included and streamlined throughout all Priority Areas of the new Gender Action Plan (GAP) and beyond.
Read the full version below:
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Follow our COP30 teams activities and reports on socials, or via our blog!
Who are we? Meet our COP 30 Team!
On the ground, our aim is to actively promote decisive, effective and equitable climate and environmental action by engaging in negotiations, making interventions, conducting bilateral meetings with policymakers, co-organizing and participating in side events as well as other advocacy actions in cooperation with other youth-led NGOs. Moreover, we aim to foster the engagement of young people from diverse backgrounds in this process through a dedicated communications campaign prior to and during the conferences.
Maximilian Buechsteiner
What is COP?
The Conference of the Parties (COP) is the supreme decision-making body of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The UNFCCC is an agreement between 198 Parties (197 States and the EU) with the primary aim to address anthropogenic climate change. The treaty entered into force in 1994 and every year since then leaders from all over the world have come together at COP to discuss and agree on international climate policy. Many of the most significant international climate commitments and agreements have emerged from these summits, including the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement. Next to negotiators of each governmental delegation, also representatives from civil society, business and academia are present at COP to observe, influence and participate in the proceedings.
This year’s Conference of the Parties will be held between the 10th and 21st of November in Belém, Brazil. Stakeholders from across the world will focus on advancing the goals of the UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement, including efforts to limit global warming to 1.5 degree, adapt to the impacts of climate change and mobilize sufficient financing.
The YES-Europe delegation will follow the negotiations on ground in Belem as well as from home as an official observer NGO, as well as as part of the children and youth constituency of the UNFCCC (YOUNGO).
Do you want to learn more about COPs and the world of UNFCCC?
How have we contributed in the past?
At COP29, YES-Europe’s advocacy focused on advancing progress in the Just Transition Work Programme (JTWP) and the Mitigation Work Programme (MWP), emphasising the need for equity, ambition , and actionable outcomes:
- Just Transition Work Programme:
Building on COP28, we called for justice — procedural, intergenerational and distributive — to guide discussions on the socio-economic impacts of climate policies. Key recommendations included linking climate and social policies, reforming education for workforce readiness, and reallocating fossil fuel subsidies to support just transitions. We also emphasised equitable burden‑sharing between developed and developing nations and called for financial mechanisms to address funding gaps and foster resilient, inclusive economies.
- Mitigation Work Programme:
Recognising the urgency of scaling‑up ambition, we stressed the need to phase out unabated coal, expand renewable energy, and align updated NDCs with the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C goal. We advocated for stronger coordination between the MWP, JTWP, and other workstreams, alongside international cooperation on technology transfer and financing, to drive impactful mitigation outcomes.
By actively engaging in these discussions, we provided a youth perspective on the necessity of tangible, action‑oriented outcomes that prioritise justice and ambition.
A key highlight was hosting our UNFCCC side-event – Youth-Driven Sustainable Cities: Advancing Just Transformations of Urban Systems, which allowed us to deepen the conversation started by this year’s COP29 Position Paper. This forum spotlighted the role of young leaders in shaping equitable and resilient urban policies.
It was an exceptional opportunity to share our insights, engage with global stakeholders, and advocate for youth-driven innovations in urban sustainability. The event’s opening remarks were delivered by Italy’s Special Envoy for Climate Change. Panel discussions were attended by such organisations as EYEN, Youth4Climate, GAYO, UNDP Youth4Climate, ICLEI, Politecnico di Torino, European Economic and Social Committee, ParyavaranMitra, and VIKALP.
For more information on what we’ve accomplished at COP 29, click here.
Do you want to join us?
Follow our work
This year, YES-Europe will again actively engage in the international climate negotiations process and amplify the voices of young people at this crucial decision-making forum. If you want to stay up to date with the latest developments of our work at COP 30, make sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Instagram.
Partner with us
As a partner of YES-Europe, you will have the chance to connect with young professionals in the energy sector and help us have a meaningful impact on the industry. We are looking for media partners, event co-organisers, sponsors, as well as other NGOs to collaborate with us on this project. If you wish to make a meaningful impact with us, you can reach out to us at caterina.bittendorf@yeseurope.org and amaryllis.perotti@yeseurope.org
Join our team
Do you want to actively participate in the project as out team member? Our community spans across Europe and we are always looking for new people to join in! If you wish to cooperate with us make sure to reach out to us at caterina.bittendorf@yeseurope.org and amaryllis.perotti@yeseurope.org