The City of Kitchener has partnered with GreenHouse, a social impact incubator at the University of Waterloo's United College, to provide youth in the Waterloo region an opportunity to lead climate initiatives through Bloomberg Philanthropies' new Youth Climate Action Fund (YCAF). The fund offers young people, ages 15 to 24, technical assistance and $64,000 funding to design and implement climate solutions within their communities.
"Youth are an underrepresented and underserved population across the globe, and in partnering with GreenHouse, our focus is on youth mentorship and climate action," says Anne-Marie Cipriani, corporate sustainability officer, City of Kitchener.
"It's important for youth to establish their sense of agency in climate change to know their power, their voice and to engage in climate action. Allowing us to create processes that are representative of their demographic because they will be disproportionately impacted by climate change."
The first cohort of the YCAF saw 19 youth-led initiatives across the Waterloo region, ranging from community tree planting and sustainable gardens to public education campaigns focused on recycling, waste reduction, and more. Each YCAF project received $1,500 to $6,500 in funding and must be completed by December 31.
Waterloo students take climate action to create social impact
On December 11, YCAF participants joined GreenHouse at Kitchener City Hall for a wrap-up event, presenting their projects to an audience and attending a workshop led by a student entrepreneur.
"GreenHouse already has a lot of established work with youth engagement and climate action within the community, it seemed like a real natural fit to help bridge that gap between cities and their youth population," says Erin Hogan, GreenHouse programs manager. "Going forward, we are really eager to continue working with the City of Kitchener and explore how we can integrate youth engagement into the city's mandate to get youth more involved in their local communities."
Five of these projects were led by University of Waterloo students, including a community compost initiative, a student platform for sustainable trading, workshops on addressing food insecurity, a flood preparedness hackathon, and a podcast featuring climate and sustainability experts.
Swap Studio - $5,000
Jeanette Li, a Faculty of Environment co-op student, created Swap Studio, an online platform that allows students to exchange unwanted items to prevent landfill waste. Li, who regularly moved between Waterloo and the Greater-Toronto-Area, noticed how many items she would discard that could still be used.
"Students across the Region of Waterloo are verified through their school email to access Swap Studio," Li says. "Whether it's a pre-loved jacket finding a new owner, a lamp lighting up another student's dorm room or textbooks being passed on to the next cohort we want to enable students to list and browse items within their area to keep it very community based."
Swap Studio is an alternative solution for online marketplaces, by focusing on providing students a safe and accessible space for thrifting and connecting with local peers to reduce their carbon footprint. Li plans to host future events and workshops on sustainable fashion for youth and eventually expand the platform to other institutions outside of Waterloo.
Young and Restless Envirothon - $4,400
Samantha Kremer and Darren Harry Baine, Faculty of Science undergrads and Young and Restless co-founders, designed a hackathon focused on environmental sustainability and climate change.
"We are trying to encourage students to think about how they might apply their skills and interests to prepare the community and increase awareness on climate events," Kremer says.
The hackathon challenge provided a platform for students to address the flooding crisis through education, mitigation and adaptation strategies. Participants developed innovative solutions ranging from an app-based education and awareness platform to infrastructure plans for post-flood recovery.
Kremer and Baine awarded $1,600 in prizes to the student teams. Berry Vrbanovic, mayor of the City of Kitchener, was part of the panel of judges.
The co-founders look forward to supporting the student teams to as they continue developing their projects and preparing for next year's Young and Restless' Sustainable Impact Summit.
Participants of the Young and Restless flood preparedness hackathon with Faculty of Science undergrads and co-founders, Darren Harry Baine and Samantha Kremer. Berry Vrbanovic, mayor of the City of Kitchener, was part of the panel of judges and seen in the middle of the photo.
Kitchener Community Compost Project - $4,310
Ethan Gosnell, a student in the Faculty of Engineering, developed composting options to pair with existing community hubs to create a circular waste program within community gardens across the city. Gosnell partnered with Spenser Morouney, a student from Wilfred Laurier University, where the two have been working with Reep Green Solutions and the Waterloo Region Community Garden Network.
Young Eye International Podcast - $3,400
Baine, who is also the founder and host of the Young Eye International podcast, had a vision of building a socially connected world through conversations with individuals shaping the future. The podcast, supported by YCAF, connects Baine with climate and environmental sustainability experts who inspire young people to take action. The podcast episodes will soon be released to the public on all podcast platforms. Through these conversations, he hopes to foster a sense of community and collaboration among young people and organizations tackling climate change.
Harvest to Garnish - $2,500
Asiya Ali, an Environment student, led the Harvest to Garnish initiative with a high school student to address food insecurity through an environmental conscience lens. Ali and her partner want to promote culinary and ecological literacy within the community through cooking and gardening workshops.
Youth across Waterloo region pick up fresh apples as part of Harvest to Garnish's cooking and gardening workshops.
The University of Waterloo aims to be a global leader in sustainability research, education and innovation to benefit the environment, economy and society. GreenHouse is one of the many programs at Waterloo that aims to support students interested in creating social and environmental change through entrepreneurial ventures.
Interested in participating in the next Youth Climate Action Fund? Learn more about GreenHouse's partnership with the City of Kitchener, funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies, by visiting the Youth Climate Action Fund website.
