Innovation30: Young Climate Innovators Shaping the Future
Transformative climate solutions for children and their communities, developed by climate innovators under 30 years old
Watch the documentary series on the climate solutions developed by the first Innovation30 cohort, here.
Young people have been have been at the helm of the tech evolution, from revolutionizing social media to pioneering Artificial Intelligence (AI). Research shows that many of the most successful companies are led by entrepreneurs who started nurturing their ideas in their twenties. These innovators have created seismic shifts that transformed society on a global scale. Climate change – one of the most existential challenges of our times is no exception to the transformative impact of youth-led innovation.
About Innovation30
Innovation30 is on a mission to build a dynamic global network of climate innovators under the age of 30.
Launched in 2023 by UNICEF’s Office of Innovation (OOI) in collaboration with leading climate and innovation accelerators, the global initiative is dedicated to sourcing and supporting scientifically vetted climate solutions ready to scale. The initiative, driven by the work of young entrepreneurs, aims to directly impact 20 million children and young people across more than 70 countries by 2030, offering integrated strategies for climate adaptation and resilience.
Why Innovation30 and why now?
Today, 3.8 billion people are under the age of 30, making this the largest generation of young people in history. Yet, as climate hazards intensify, many of the world’s youth face heightened risks, compounded by inadequate support systems. Despite their increased vulnerability, young people are often sidelined from climate policy negotiations. Shockingly, only 2.4 per cent of climate finance from major multilateral funds is allocated to child-responsive initiatives, and less than 1 per cent goes towards initiatives led by young people. Though equipped with scientifically proven solutions, young innovators lack access to capital and are not meaningfully engaged at key stakeholders in addressing climate change.
Despite this, young innovators are essential to driving breakthroughs in climate adaptation and mitigation initiatives. Their experiences with climate challenges equip them to confront and solve the problems they face daily. With creativity, fresh perspectives, and ideas, they are pioneering climate solutions with the power to transform the future. Yet, to truly unlock this potential, bold and visionary investments are needed.
“Young climate innovators are developing life-changing, localized solutions to tackle urgent global needs. Innovation30 is committed to bridging these groundbreaking innovations today and building pipelines for a just, green economy in the future.”
— Thomas Davin, Director, UNICEF Office of Innovation
The Investment Opportunity
Each solution in the Innovation30 pipeline undergoes rigorous vetting by independent climate scientists and experts in innovation commercialization from the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) and Imperial College London. They are meticulously assessed for their climate impact, benefits for children, scientific credibility, scalability and business viability. Thus, this evaluation process ensures solutions are not only scientifically sound, but bankable and ready to scale globally with investment from the right partners.
“We are delighted to bring technical expertise from across Imperial College, together with our climate innovation experience at Undaunted, to the international stage. We hope our work will bring opportunity to young innovators from around the world whilst amplifying solutions that fit a wide range of contexts, helping us to build a more sustainable future for everyone.”
— Alyssa Gilbert, Director, Undaunted & Director of Innovation, Grantham Institute for Climate Change
Our Vision for 2030
By the end of 2030, Innovation30 aims to impact the lives of at least 20 million children and young people towards a climate-resilient future by:
- Expanding and diversifying partnerships with leading top climate innovation accelerators and universities to source the next generation of climate solutions.
- Identifying and supporting a continuous pipeline of scientifically vetted breakthrough climate solutions, facilitating their iteration and scale via our field presence in over 190 countries.
- Convening and mobilizing climate funds and investors to unlock critical capital for scaling solutions developed by young climate innovators, setting benchmarks for child-centric climate investments and equity in innovation.
Our Impact Goals
We are building a founding circle of catalytic partners committed to providing financial and non-financial strategic expertise. By 2030, together, we will:
- Source and scientifically vet 500 climate solutions (104 vetted in 2023) through the co-creation of annual thematic cohorts
- Support the validation of at least 20 solutions, exploring their integration into UNICEF’s multi-country programmatic work and scaling opportunities in collaboration with government, private sector, and civil society partners
- Scale at least 10 breakthrough solutions across 74 countries where children are most at risk from climate change
- Influence the global climate funding ecosystem and raise the profile of young climate innovators as critical contributors to a net-zero future.
By investing in young climate innovators and scaling their solutions, you are directly contributing to a climate-resilient future for all. Join us in accelerating meaningful, measurable climate action today.
“At CISL Canopy we’re pleased to be working on the Innovation30 – Young Climate Innovators Shaping the Future with UNICEF and Undaunted to promote, support and scale up those youth-led enterprises with potential to provide solutions to the global challenge of climate change. We have many of the technologies we need to tackle climate change, but many more still need to be developed, and we need smart ways to deploy those we do have both at scale and in locally appropriate ways for people, nature and the climate.”
James Cole, Chief Innovation Officer, Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership
Click here to hear one-minute pitches of the young climate innovators on their groundbreaking solutions and click below to read more about each one.
Meet the innovators selected by Innovation30:
Our Collaborators
Innovation30 is a collaborative effort, made possible by the generous support of the Government of Sweden alongside a consortium of top global accelerators and universities, including:
- African Youth Climate Hub
- Anzisha Prize
- Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership
- Chatham House Sustainability Accelerator
- Global Alliance of University on Climate
- Ignite
- Imperial College London and the Royal Institution - Undaunted
- MIT Solve
- Mzuzah
- Seedstars
- The Canopy
- The Climate Pre-Accelerator
- The Royal Academy of Engineering
Learn More
Click here to find out more about the Innovation 30 vetting methodology, developed in partnership with CISL and Imperial College London, You’ll also find insightful articles on young innovators at COP28, bridging the investment gap in climate innovation, and how emerging entrepreneurs are tackling the climate crisis.
