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Youth Climate Summit: Building Skills, Hope, and Climate Solutions Together

Andrea Stein, Director of Education at the Roger Williams Park Zoo

On November 8, our Education Department co-hosted our first Youth Climate Summit with the Rhode Island Environmental Education Association (RIEEA), bringing together 53 youth and 11 adult mentors from 11 schools and organizations for a day of learning, connection, and action around climate change.

The summit opened with a collaborative art experience led by local artist and advocate, AGONZA, setting a creative and hopeful tone. Participants then built skills for talking about climate change with anyone, especially across differences—in a session led by Kait Birghenthal from NNOCCI. As one youth shared, “Learning how to talk to others about climate change, even if they have different opinions than me, was very valuable.”

An inspiring keynote from Chris Gaynor (RIDEM) highlighted how personal stories and values shape climate leadership, followed by a reflective walk-and-talk around the zoo. Youth panelists James Tzul, Frank Jolifier, Abby Paull, and Ethan Paiva shared their own journeys in climate action, while adult mentors explored youth–adult partnerships with SJ Jennings. 

The summit culminated with participants coming together to reflect on the day and identify next steps for turning ideas into action. Youth and adult mentors worked side by side to consider climate projects they could advance in their own communities. As one participant shared, “It was nice to come together and to consider action steps around climate change projects.” This shared focus on moving from inspiration to action helped reinforce a sense of momentum and possibility. Teams will continue working on their climate action projects over the coming months and will reconvene this spring to share their work. Stay tuned to see how these ideas turn into action.

By investing in communication skills, storytelling, relationships, and youth–adult partnerships, we are helping to build the social and cultural foundation needed for meaningful climate action—now and into the future.

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