Free, fully online capacity development for people aged 16-35. Build the knowledge and confidence to engage in international climate policy ahead of COP31 in Antalya (9-20 November 2026).
Thank you to everyone who applied to Global Youth Climate Training 2026. Winners have been selected and will be notified shortly by email. Check the inbox you used on the form, including spam. While you wait, here is what the programme opens onto.
GYCT 2026 is more than the Tuesday Zoom. Selected participants use the Learning platform between sessions and can follow the ACE expert engagement track. GYC House in Antalya is the coalition meeting space through COP31. Hack for the Futures is a separate free programme in the same city, with its own application.
Food systems, land use, and rights of nature.
Energy access, transition finance, and the jobs that come with them.
Heat, flooding, infrastructure adaptation, and community resilience.
Negotiations, geopolitics, and intergenerational equity in the process.
MRV, risk modelling, transition planning, and capital allocation.
Climate education, participation, and public engagement under the ACE agenda.
Horizon scanning, scenarios, and methods an institution can keep running after COP.
A political position on how AI should be governed in climate institutions.
A snapshot of the selected cohort across countries. Darker teal means more selected participants. Gold outline marks COP31, COP32 and G20 host partners. Hover a country for its name. Scroll to zoom, drag to pan.
The Global Youth Climate Training Programme (GYCT) is a free, fully online capacity development programme that equips people aged 16-35 with the knowledge and confidence necessary to engage in international climate policy. Young people are increasingly being given a seat at the table in domestic and international climate policy, and therefore require appropriate capacity development to ensure their interventions are cogent and relevant.
From 2023 to 2025, GYCT was delivered as a collaboration between the Global Youth Coalition (GYC) and researchers at the University of Oxford (Oxford Net Zero, Oxford Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment). Building on that success, responsibility for programme delivery is transitioning to the Global Youth Coalition in 2026, with Oxford Net Zero continuing to provide strategic and academic support. This evolution reflects our shared commitment to youth leadership — giving young climate changemakers greater ownership over the programme’s direction, content, and long-term future, while maintaining academic rigour.
The 2026 programme continues to combine expert-led lectures, interactive peer-learning, and practical assignments — featuring Oxford academics alongside leading practitioners worldwide, elevating Global South expertise, and keeping youth speakers central. An advanced pathway is developed with the Youth Negotiators Academy for the road to COP31 in Antalya.
100,000+ recorded session views · 6 languages in live interpretation · £36,000 distributed as youth bursaries · ~100 expert speakers connected
Read the Impact ReportCOP31 will be held in Antalya, Turkiye, from 9 to 20 November 2026. GYCT 2026 is timed so participants finish training before the summit window, with practical focus on COP roles, negotiations, finance, and influence pathways.
Built from three years of delivery with Oxford Net Zero and GYC partners, and redesigned for the road to Antalya.
Across 2023–2025, 65% of participants identified as from Most Affected People and Areas (MAPA), and 21% as Indigenous. For 2026, live interpretation is planned (including Spanish), with final languages confirmed for selected applicants. Main-session recordings are intended for public release.
Weekly sessions with expert input, moderated discussion, and Q&A. Main track on Zoom Webinar for a large open cohort. Advanced YNA track on Zoom Meeting for a smaller selected group. Certificate pathway: complete each session's Prep and watch live or the 7-day replay (about 80% of Main sessions).
Four public sessions covering sovereignty and climate, energy transition, education and climate risk, and climate finance. Designed in the open-access spirit of previous GYCT years, with recordings intended for wider public use.
Three focused sessions with the technical advice of Youth Negotiators Academy for negotiation practice, COP roles, and strategic influence. A smaller selected group for deeper preparation on the road to Antalya.
GYCT is designed for emerging climate leaders who want to engage more effectively in international climate policy.
Session 2 is Tuesday 8 September, 14:00–15:30 UTC (16:00–17:30 CEST). Format: welcome, expert input, moderated discussion, Q&A, and close.
| # | Track | Session | Date | Platform |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Main | Realism as a World Order: Sovereignty and Climate | Tue, 2 Sep 2026 | Zoom Webinar |
| 2 | Main | The State of the Energy Transition | Tue, 8 Sep 2026, 14:00–15:30 UTC | Zoom Webinar |
| 3 | Main | Education, ACE, and Disability Inclusion | Tue, 15 Sep 2026 | Zoom Webinar |
| 4 | Main | Is Climate Finance Still Hot? | Tue, 22 Sep 2026 | Zoom Webinar |
| 5 | YNA | Inside COP: Roles, Power, and Informal Influence | Tue, 29 Sep 2026 | Zoom Meeting |
| 6 | YNA | How to Determine Your Role at COP and How to Plan and Prepare | Tue, 6 Oct 2026 | Zoom Meeting |
| 7 | YNA | Negotiations 101: How Text Is Fought Over | Tue, 13 Oct 2026 | Zoom Meeting |
| 8 | All | Hybrid Ceremony at the GYC House — during COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye | Tue, 10 Nov 2026 | Hybrid — GYC House + online |
Previous lecture recordings are freely available on the Oxford Smith School YouTube channel — a core part of GYCT’s open-access approach. Use them to prepare before 2026, or catch sessions you missed.
Recordings hosted by Oxford Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, with interpretation support from Eco Interpreters. Lecture sessions are public; interactive workshops are generally not recorded.
Born from a chance meeting at COP27 between Alexis McGivern (Oxford Net Zero) and Agustín Ocaña (Global Youth Coalition), GYCT was created to remove barriers to meaningful youth engagement in international climate policy.
Curriculum shaped by consulting 180 young climate justice activists. Covered Climate Finance, Loss & Damage, Adaptation & Resilience, and more.
Smaller, community-focused cohort. First COP bursary recipients attended COP29.
Ran 21 May–16 July 2025, with Bonn SB prep and a COP30 session on 4 November. Supported by ClimateWorks Foundation.
GYC leads programme delivery; Oxford Net Zero provides strategic and academic support. Main + YNA tracks timed for Antalya.
Applications are open now and close on 10 August 2026 at 23:59 BST.
Named reflections from past GYCT participants.
“The training I received through Global Youth Climate has been a transformative experience in my life. It has not only equipped me with valuable knowledge and skills but has also given me the confidence and motivation to contribute meaningfully to the global efforts in addressing climate change. As a refugee, this opportunity has been a ray of hope.”Byaombe Lumona
“Honestly I have no words to express what I have learned with the opportunity to attend this training. My views on different aspects and levels surrounding climate change have expanded enormously and this has been shaping the local projects I have been working towards.”Marilynn Holguín Clover
“Sometimes the global agenda and negotiations in climate change seem so far from me… but thanks to the organisers and the smart and young speakers I see that anything is possible, and this atmosphere inspires me to keep pushing forward.”Linara Khadimullina
“Three cheers! To the Global Youth Training Team and Oxford Net Zero team. I loved all the sessions. One of the finest youth training I have come across. The content is just great and brilliantly curated!”Shaurya Patel
“One of the greatest things that happened to me this year was being part of this group. Love it here… thank you for such an informative learning session!”Nhlanhla Sibanda
ClimateWorks Foundation funding for 2024–2025 has ended. We are seeking partners to sustain GYCT delivery, interpretation, and equity pathways into the COP31 season.
Not an organisation? Individual gifts of any size help keep GYCT free for youth on the road to COP31.
