UNDP and UNICEF launch global campaign to help 500 million young people see themselves in a sustainable future

YEREVAN, 22 October 2026 – The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) today launched See It, Be It, a global campaign to help young people discover the people, skills and career opportunities shaping a nature-positive, low-carbon future.

The campaign will showcase young professionals already making a difference across science, technology, business, agriculture, communications, finance, the creative industries and community leadership. From scientists restoring ecosystems and entrepreneurs building sustainable businesses to innovators developing new technologies and community leaders protecting local environments, their stories will demonstrate the many ways young people can build careers that benefit people and the planet.

Young people need more than new opportunities to build a sustainable future: they need to know these opportunities exist, understand how to pursue them and see people with whom they can identify already making a living through them.

Research (including for example by the OECD https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/cultivating-green-futures_7c9912c5-en.html) highlights how young people's career expectations remain concentrated in a relatively narrow range of traditional professions, while UNICEF (together with the European Training Foundation https://www.unicef.org/eca/reports/learning-careers) found that career guidance is failing to adequately showcase opportunities emerging from the green transition. These gaps underline the importance of making a wider range of career pathways visible, particularly to young people in developing countries who have fewer opportunities to access career guidance and professional networks.

See It, Be It aims to broaden young people's horizons by bringing diverse, relatable role models into view and showing how their own interests, skills and ambitions can contribute to a more sustainable world. The campaign aims to reach 500 million young people worldwide by the end of 2027.

A campaign powered by partnerships

See It, Be It is designed as a collective effort, embracing co-creation and bringing together organisations, youth networks, educators, employers, communicators and sustainability professionals to share stories and expand their reach.

Early supporters of the campaign include the Global Youth Biodiversity Network (GYBN), an international network connecting young people working to protect biodiversity; the Nature Working Group of YOUNGO, the official children and youth constituency of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change; and the Youth Negotiators Academy, a youth-led organisation that trains young people to negotiate in multilateral decision-making.

Partners are invited to join the campaign to contribute stories, amplify profiles through their networks and help ensure that young people from different countries and communities see a broad range of role models and career possibilities.

“Every child and young person deserves the chance to imagine a future full of possibility and see how their interests and talents can make a difference in a sustainable way. Young people are agents of change and by connecting them with diverse role models and stories of change, See It, Be It can broaden their horizons, build confidence and inspire them to explore the many ways they can contribute to a more resilient world,” said Silvia Mestroni, Acting Representative of UNICEF in Armenia.

“Science tells us we’ll need three earths to sustain us by 2050 if we carry on the way we are. The transition to nature-positive and low-carbon lifestyles, economies, and lives is not optional and the coming generations have enormous potential to shape a future where people and nature thrive. But potential needs opportunity, and opportunity often starts with being able to imagine what is possible. Through See It, Be It, we want to make the people and pathways driving change far more visible and help many more young people recognise that there is a place for their talents in building a sustainable future,” said Midori Paxton, Global Head, Biodiversity and Ecosystems, UNDP. 

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About See It, Be It

See It, Be It is a joint UNDP–UNICEF-led global campaign, supported by a growing network of partners, that showcases the people, skills and career opportunities shaping a nature-positive, low-carbon future. By making diverse role models and pathways into sustainable work more visible, the campaign aims to inspire young people and reach 500 million youth worldwide by the end of 2027.