By Monu Kumari, Independent Researcher, India

In a world that is warming, young people are positioned under a uniquely heightened degree of tension. They encounter the risks of climate change early in their lives and carry the longest load of the effects—socially, mentally, and physically—while their bodies and minds are still in formative developmental stages (Lee et al., 2020). In many areas of rural India, this current pressure is even forcing youth to migrate to cities, often after a disaster disrupted their livelihoods or in search of work (Baez et al., 2017). This generation also has key advantages that are essential elements for climate resilience: curiosity, adaptability, and a willingness to rethink the outdated systems of the past. As highlighted in the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, “youth-led ideas and innovation are critical contributors to effective adaptation and long-term climate solutions” (IPCC, 2022). There is no doubt that today’s youth can act as agents of change in the path towards resilience.

“With the climate emergency now woven into our daily lives, a future generation of changemakers is emerging-perceptive, outspoken, and unwilling to accept the illusion that the danger is far away.”

Climate Voice 1: Transforming Water Conservation Through a Simple Idea- Garvita Gulhati

The drought crisis in 2015 left 330 million Indians affected – a number that made the then 15-year-old Garvita Gulhati frantically look for answers (Thakur, 2022). As a teenager, she noticed how much water was wasted in restaurants through untouched half-filled glasses and started Why Waste? to change that pattern (The Logical Indian, 2025). Put together, this initiative shows how youth-led innovation can transform a simple behaviour change into systemic water-resilience action.

Climate Voice 2: Youthful Activism of India’s Greta-Licypriya Kangujam

Despite being only nine when she earned a Forbes 30 Under 30 “People to Watch” mention, Licypriya Kangujam has pushed India to confront climate pollution by demanding disaster-risk awareness, clean-air action and environmental education in every school, driven by what she has witnessed families endure in natural disasters (Dutta, 2025). She combines youthful boldness with a clear aspiration for an overhaul of systems, serving to make clear to young people everywhere: activism is not just speaking up, but working through institutions, mobilising peers, and bringing the future into today’s discussion.

Drawing from my experiences with young people from areas affected by disasters, I have seen how quickly they connect climate impacts to what they experience in their homes, schools and communities. Whether it is conducting risk-mapping exercises, supporting their youth-led adaptation projects or helping them transform local concerns into action plans, I have observed a level of clarity and urgency that often exceeds that of the adults. Young participants ask clear-cut questions about disproportionate exposure to impacts, unanswered policy dilemmas and the repetition of specific hazards year after year. They prototype, iterate, and ask for action that is real, not just symbolic. What is most impressive is their instinct to unite: to gather friends, community leaders and elders together to co-create responses that are rooted in place. These experiences further substantiate research that shows when given space, guidance and authority, it becomes necessary to reposition youth to be not just a part of resilience but a necessary part of the acceleration of resilience.

“Yet for many young leaders, awareness doesn’t stifle – it motivates. Understanding the task at hand, they are taking action instead of taking a back seat; they are acting on belief rather than acting out of comfort. They know awareness isn’t a passing cause, but a fight that will define the world they grow up in.”

References:

1. Baez, J., Caruso, G., Mueller, V., and Niu, C. (2017). Droughts augment youth migration in Northern Latin America and the Caribbean. Climatic Change, vol. 140, pp. 423–435. Available at https://doi. org/10.1007/s10584-016-1863-2
2. Dutta, A. (2025, April 24). Green voices: Youthful activism of Licypriya Kangujam. Humans of Northeast India. https://humansofnortheast.com/green-voices-youthful-activism-of-licypriya-kangujam-2/
3. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (2022). Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [H.-O. Pörtner, D.C. Roberts, M. Tignor, E.S. Poloczanska, K. Mintenbeck, A. Alegría, M. Craig, S. Langsdorf, S. Löschke, V. Möller, A. Okem, B. Rama (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press. In Press.
4. Lee, K., Gjersoe, N., O’Neill, S., and Barnett, J. (2020). Youth perceptions of climate change: A narrative synthesis. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, vol 11, No. 3, e641.
5. Thakur, C. (2022, July 7). Garvita Gulhati: The changemaker on a mission to save water. Global Indian.https://www.globalindian.com/youth/story/global-indian/garvita-gulhati-the-changemaker-on-a-mission-to-save-water/
6. The Logical Indian. (2025, March 14). How Garvita Gulhati’s ‘Why Waste?’ Saved Millions of Liters of Water. The Logical Indian. https://thelogicalindian.com/how-garvita-gulhatis-why-waste-saved-millions-of-liters-of-water/

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this piece are those of the author/s and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of AIDMI.