How can young people excluded from mainstream climate movements become active shapers of a sustainable future? This question was at the heart of a collaboration between Talking Hope and students from the Copernicus Institute for Sustainable Development at Utrecht University. 

As part of their three-month final project in the Global Sustainability Science programme, a team of eight students working in two groups explored how climate communication and transformative education can be brought together to motivate young people from disadvantaged backgrounds to engage for a sustainable future. 

Research Review and Best-Practice Studies 

The students conducted a systematic literature review of the current state of research in communication and education. They also carried out in-depth interviews on best practices with five grassroots organisations working at the intersection of climate and education in Germany and the Netherlands. 

Their findings strengthen and expand Talking Hope’s approach as a specialist organisation for socially inclusive climate communication and education: young people from disadvantaged backgrounds are by no means disinterested in climate action or politics. 

What is missing, however, are initiatives and forms of outreach that meet young people in their own realities, build genuine trust, and strengthen their sense of agency. Trust-building and authentic participation are the keys to fostering real empowerment and civic engagement among young people. 

What climate communication can learn from transformative education  

Importantly, climate communication has much to learn from transformative learning and educational approaches. The project identified four core principles as the foundation for developing agency and engagement in young people: 

• Low-barrier, collaborative, and participatory spaces — removing the barriers that exclude disadvantaged youth from spaces of engagement 

• Rooted in lived, everyday experiences — making climate issues personally relevant rather than abstract 

• Emotion-centred reflection as a starting point for collective action — processing feelings such as eco-anxiety and channelling them into motivation for collective action 

• Systemic knowledge and actionable skills — building both an understanding of climate systems and the practical competencies needed to act 

Based on their interviews, the students also identified promising practical approaches that support young people in gradually moving from audience to driving force in climate action and future-making: 

• Action-based storytelling — narratives featuring real people and concrete decisions that help participants process their own experiences and develop agency 

• Artistic approaches — creative methods such as theatre, music, and film that are accessible and foster self-reflection 

• Dialogues and reflective spaces — communicative settings in which a shared understanding of climate issues can be built collectively 

• Interactive and co-designed learning — democratic structures in which young people progressively move from participants to co-creators and initiators 

What makes this project especially valuable — and what enriches Talking Hope’s Framework for Socially Inclusive (Climate) Communication — is that it bridges two fields that usually operate in silos: communication and transformative education. In our ongoing project work, we are now bringing these together methodologically as well. 

Thank you! 

We are delighted by the outstanding work of Janne Verweij, Teresa Grandoni, Javier Alvaro Porras, Felix K. Walsh, Sascha A. Jonker, Marit G. H. Eißing, Oskar A. Olsson, and Paula M. Korn. We also extend our warm thanks to Prof. Dr. Brian Dermody and supervisor Beth for their excellent guidance!