Youth Climate Action Fund
Empowering young people in Glasgow to take action and build a greener future
The Youth Climate Action Fund is a programme supporting young people aged 15 to 24 to design and deliver climate-focused projects within their communities.
Funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies and led by Glasgow City Council's Green Economy Team and the Centre for Civic Innovation, the YCAF provides mini grants to young people and youth-focused organisations to encourage grassroots environmental action, with a focus on youth voice, skills development and linking young people to future pathways and things they are passionate about.
2026 will be Glasgow's third year running the Youth Climate Action Fund, enabling young people to develop more impactful projects as solutions to local climate challenges, while giving them the opportunity to gain valuable skills for the future, such as design thinking, problem solving, leadership, collaboration and communication. By embedding design thinking into the YCAF, we can promote collaboration, innovation and a people‑centred approach.
2025 Funding
There were 20 projects funded in 2025 covering a range of different activities, from food growing and outdoor learning to green careers field trips, storytelling and live performances to nature-based art therapy initiatives. Each of the projects funded align with the goals and ambitions of Glasgow's Climate Plan.
In addition to their focus on climate change, the projects also had a strong focus on health and wellbeing, co-design and creative methods, youth voice and confidence building, skills development and creating future opportunities for young people.
Funded Projects
Select the boxes below to find out more about each project*
*These are colour-coded based on the themes above but many of the projects are linked to more than one theme.
Hot City Cool Solutions Crossroads Youth & Community Development Association
Climate Anxiety Writing Workshops 2050 Climate Group
Climate Action Leadership Programme
2050 Climate Group
Youth Climate Action Education Project
St Mungo's Academy
Leaders' Network Community Event
2050 Climate Group
Drumchapel Speaks Green
The Play Center Glasgow
Fair Futures
Scottish Fair Trade
Stories for Change
The Village Storytelling Centre
Youth Cafe
Spider Arts
Wear the Change
Scottish Fair Trade
Connect and Grow
Young Movers (YoMo)
Calm Outdoors
Spider Arts
Our Dear Green Garden
St Thomas Aquinas Secondary School
Notre Dame's Green Takeover
Notre Dame High School
Tip-Off Mural Project
Spider Arts
Developing Our School & Community Garden
Bellahouston Academy
Community Hub @ Cardonald Campus
Glasgow Clyde College
St Mungo's Academy School Garden
St Mungo's Academy
500 Bottles
Impact Arts
Sketchy Youths Deliver 500 Bottles
Impact Arts
Kick-off event
The Kick-off event brought together all funded projects for the first time to get to know each other, make connections, and have an opportunity to shape the programme.
In response to last year's YCAF participants telling us they wanted to have more opportunities to connect with the other project teams, an exhibition space was created to showcase each project and encourage the teams to start conversations and build relationships with each other.Check out our video from the session: https://www.instagram.com/p/DNh9OZXMQPa/
Planting Seeds is a series of webinars set up to inspire people of all ages to turn challenges into opportunities or an idea that can catalyse change, big or small. Throughout the Youth Climate Action Fund, we spoke to a range of environmentally focussed experts, who provided inspiration for the young people and gave them an opportunity to speak about their work or provide guidance on their own projects.
You can watch all of these webinars here: https://www.cciglasgow.org/events/planting-seeds/
Celebration Event
We hosted an event to celebrate the 20 projects that took part in the Youth Climate Action Fund in Glasgow! Young people from across the city shared the work they've done throughout the year to tackle climate change and improve their community!
We invited local organisations who have climate focussed principles to hear about the young people' amazing work as well as sharing their own work and providing the young people with inspiration to continue their projects!
Check out our video from the session: https://www.instagram.com/p/DNh9OZXMQPa/
