The Collective is a community of practice for youth leading climate policy advocacy in so-called Canada.
We know youth across the country are leading climate advocacy initiatives to further justice, equity and decolonization in climate policy. We also know that young people are still often un(der)represented in decision-making, and instances of tokenism are still too frequent.
We are bringing youth together to foster collective resilience and support deeper collaboration and connection in the youth-led climate movement across the country.
Coming this fall ⚡︎
Coming this fall ⚡︎
YCL is recruiting youth from across so-called Canada to join our pilot of The Collective!
Starting in October 2025, join The Collective to access monthly calls with youth from across the country. Together, you will have space to share your wins, your woes, and access training to build skills and capacity in collective advocacy.
Over the course of 8 months you will get to build relationships, access funds for your personal advocacy efforts, receive support and feedback from other engaged youth and professionals, and be part of something bigger.
A community of peers also committed to equity-centered climate advocacy in so-called Canada to listen to you, and learn alongside you!
Tailored professional development opportunities. The group as a whole will determine the priority areas where additional training is needed. Once identified, YCL will bring in trainers to support and further your learning!
Financial support for your personal advocacy efforts and a collective budget for the group to determine how to spend. Examples of what the collective budget could be spent on would be a collective advocacy campaign, amplifying some of the members advocacy work, or additional professional development training!
Support from the YCL team to amplify and support your advocacy work, such as through social media highlights, adding your work to our Green Pathways
Potential travel opportunities within Canada (funding dependent – see FAQ for more info!)
All members of The Collective are expected to have a personal commitment to their own advocacy work throughout their time in the community practice. What this looks like will likely vary greatly for each individual – advocacy takes so many shapes and forms (check out the FAQ section below for more information)!
Regarding the program specifically, you’ll be expected to commit 3-5 hours monthly from October 2025 - May 2026, including:
1 monthly meeting (1.5 - 2 hours)
Additional training opportunities (2-3 times throughout 8 months)
Contribution to thought leadership based on collective challenges, successes, and patterns in the group’s advocacy efforts (i.e. a policy brief, social media campaign, video, etc). How you contribute will be determined by you and what resonates with you!
Be 18-30 years old at time of application
Be involved in domestic climate-related advocacy – this can be provincial, municipal or federal level policy advocacy
Be able to commit 5 hours per month to the program for the duration (October 2025 - May 2026)
Be excited about meeting other youth, and curious about what could happen through working and sharing experiences together
Be willing and able to uphold our community of practice co-working principles to ensure a safer and welcoming space for all participants
Have access to your own laptop/phone and wifi to join virtual meetings — we recognize this is limiting for some youth and hope to be able to provide technical support one day!
We are hoping to have up to 12 youth from across the country in The Collective. Selection will prioritize equity-deserving youth and geographic diversity to ensure a broad range of perspectives across the community of practice!
Submit an Expression of Interest by Sunday, September 21st at midnight PT (form below).
YCL staff will review expressions of interest and book coffee chats with short list candidates in late September.
Selected participants will be notified in early October, and have to sign a participation agreement and complete an onboarding form.
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We are looking for youth who are actively taking part in pushing for equity-centered climate action in your community and beyond. This can involve climate advocacy at municipal, provincial, territorial, and federal levels and within Indigenous governance systems, including nations and communities. This program is not meant to be exclusive or define what advocacy means, so if something about this program resonates with you, we encourage you to apply!
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Monthly calls will be determined based on availability of the group, which is why we are requesting availability in the application form!
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“Communities of practice are groups of people engaged in learning together and experimenting with new ways of operating within a system. They often exist on the edge of the declining system, seeding new ideas and practices that may one day form the foundation of a new system.”
- The Systems Sanctuary -
For our pilot year, we have a budget of $200 per participant to support your efforts! We know it’s small but we’re glad it’s something to start!
To access the money, you just have to fill out a short request form which the Facilitator will approve within 1-2 weeks. Once approved, you can spend up to the approved amount and then you’ll submit a reimbursement form. If reimbursement is a barrier, YCL is able to provide funds up front on a case by case basis to support you doing your work!
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The group will have $3000 to decide how to spend collectively. To practice building consensus, we will determine a process together that ensures prioritizes equity!
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As a group, participants will determine their priorities for professional development, but based on feedback from youth in our network, some training we had in mind are: media training to write op-ed’s and do interviews, understanding mis/dis-information, two-eyed seeing and Indigenous-led policy, systems thinking, and government relations,
As a group, participants will determine their priorities for professional development, but based on feedback from youth in our network, some training we had in mind are: media training to write op-ed’s and do interviews, understanding mis/dis-information, two-eyed seeing and Indigenous-led policy, systems thinking, and government relations.
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This work would not be possible without the financial support of the Trottier Foundation and McConnell Foundation, as well as partnership support from Academy of Sustainable Innovation.
