SE team were speakers, hosts, and facilitators in various events during COP 27. The team included:

Meredith Adler – Executive Director

Helen Watts – Senior Director of Partnerships

Shakti Ramkumar – Director of Communications & Policy

Abdullah Khair – Partnerships Manager

Grace Young – Alumni & Community Manager

Eduarda Zhogbi – Student Energy Senior Advisor

Vaughn-Xavier Jameer – Chapters Associate

Oluwadabira Abiola-Awe – Partnerships Associate

Danielle Kehler – SevenGen Manager

Launch of the Energy Transition Skills Report Initial Findings

Student Energy, in partnership with Ørsted, launched initial findings from the Energy Transition Skills Report at COP 27. The report contains survey results and recommendations from around 5,000 young people globally on how to create accessible and inclusive entry points for youth to enter and stay in careers that accelerate the global energy transition. The findings were delivered by Shakti Ramkumar, Student Energy’s Director of Communications & Policy, at the Danish Pavilion last November 16th.

The Energy Transition Skills Project was launched this year to identify the needs of ready young people for energy transition jobs. 

Launch of the Youth Impact Framework Initial Findings

With the recent developments of the Youth Impact Framework in place, Student Energy, with the Global Covenant of Mayors, shared the initial findings at COP 27. The findings were discussed by Shakti Ramkumar at the UNFCCC Innovation Zone last November 10th.

The Youth Impact Framework is a set of impact measurement tools and indicators to help youth climate advocates, project leaders, and founders measure and communicate the impact of their initiatives to incorporate youth-inclusive project design principles, by recognizing the impact of youth contributions to SDG 7 and across the Sustainable Development Goals.

International Student Energy Summit (SES) 2023 Abu Dhabi: Uniting the Energy Transition Announcement

More than 1,000 young people have already pre-registered for the International Student Energy Summit 2023 (SES 2023) during its first week since the launch. The Student Energy Summit team, led by Grace Young, announced the International Student Energy Summit 2023 at the UAE Pavilion last November 15th. 

SES 2023 will be a transformative space for intergenerational collaboration in the energy sector. For the first time, the summit will come to the United Arab Emirates from November 9 – November 12, 2023, and will be hosted by New York University Abu Dhabi (NYUAD). With the theme Reimagining the Future, 600+ young people, industry experts, and world leaders from over 100 different countries will gather in Abu Dhabi, making it the world’s largest youth-led energy conference hosted in the Middle East. In collaboration with local and global partners, SES 2023 will empower a new generation of energy sector leaders and highlight the success story and the vision of the UAE’s energy transition.

We were speakers, hosts, and facilitators at these COP 27 events:

November 8

How can clean energy mitigate climate change, accelerate development, and support food security?

Shakti speaking

Danish Pavilion, hosted by Danish Chamber of Commerce

November 9

Compact presentation at the SDG 7 Pavilion

Dabira speaking

SDG 7 Pavilion

Youth Financing Done Right: How to best structure youth-financing program in developing countries

Dabira speaking

SDG 7 Pavilion

Youth Leadership for the Energy Transition

Grace Young facilitating, Joyce facilitating

IRENA Pavilion, hosted by IRENA

Just sustainability, Circular Economy and Social Justice: employment and social policies to support a just green transition across the globe

Shakti speaking

EU Pavilion (Blue Zone – Area B – Hall 4),  hosted by EC DG EMPL

November 10

Launch of the Energy Transition Commission

Eduarda moderating, Helen speaking, Arsenii speaking

SDG 7 Pavilion, hosted by SEforALL

Youth in the Energy Transition – Panel Discussion

Abdullah speaking

Atoms4Climate Pavilion, hosted by International Atomic Energy Agency

Teaching for the Transition

Grace speaking, Mira moderating

IRENA Pavilion, hosted by IRENA

Youth Energy Compact Showcase

Dabira speaking

SDG 7 Pavilion, hosted by SEforALL

Empowering Youth in Climate and Sustainable Energy

Abdullah speaking

Green Zone, hosted by Regional Center for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency

Energy for Change Panel Event with Fortescue Future Industries

Benji and Natalia speaking

Mineroo Pavilion, hosted by Mineroo and Fortescue Industries

Investing in Youth for a Just Energy Transition

Grace moderating, Eduarda speaking, Vaughn speaking

SDG 7 Pavilion, hosted by Student Energy and Carbon Trust

Fireside Chat with Simon, CEO of GEAPP and Dabira

Dabira speaking, Meredith supporting

GEAPP Office, hosted by GEAPP and Student Energy

Launch of the Youth Impact Framework with the Global Covenant of Mayors

Shakti speaking

UNFCCC Innovation Zone, hosted by Student Energy and GCoM

November 11

Just Transition Session

Kajol speaking

UNDP COP27 Hour

Dabira speaking

UN Broadcast Center, hosted by UNDP

Global Alliance for Sustainable Energy Event

Meredith moderating

Wind and Solar Pavilion Zone D, hosted by Enel Foundation

Panel Discussion – Energy Transition, Green Jobs and Skills

Dabira speaking

WMB Pavilion, hosted by National Grid

Net Zero Urban Program: Calling for solutions and a coalition of the willing

Helen speaking

Global Goals Room – Innovation Zone, hosted by KMPG

November 12

There is No Food Security Without Clean Cooking

Shakti speaking

SDG 7 Pavilion, hosted by Clean Cooking Alliance

Achieving NDC Targets through Clean Cooking Action

UN Climate Change Global Innovation Hub, hosted by Clean Cooking Alliance

Capacity Building: Energy Literacy to Power a Greener Future The Commonwealth Secretariat

Helen speaking

SDG 7 Pavilion, hosted by the Commonwealth Secretariat

November 14

Where is the Money for a Gender Just Transition

Dabira speaking

SDG 7 Pavilion, hosted by UNIDO

The role of partnerships across generations and countries in the just transition

Helen speaking

Nordic Pavilion, hosted by Danish Youth Delegates and the Danish Youth Climate Council

The Renewable Energy Sector as a Catalyst for Gender Equity

Eduarda speaking

SDG 7 Pavilion, hosted by GEAPP

Achieving Energy Security, Independence, and Sustainability with Renewables focused Local Action

Vaughn speaking

Multilevel Action Pavilion at COP 27, hosted by Scottish Gov, Cities & Regions in UNFCC process

Meeting between youth representatives and Mary Warlick, IEA Deputy Executive Director

Dabira and Eduarda

SEforALL Networking Reception: Women and Youth at the Forefront

SE attending

SDG 7 Pavilion, hosted by SEforALL

November 15

Game Changers Accelerating the Global Energy Transition

Eduarda speaking

Climate Action Rooms, hosted by IRENA, Marrakesh Partnership

Unlocking Potential: Working with Young People for a Just Transition

SE as Lead Organizer

We Mean Business Pavilion, hosted by Student Energy and We Mean Business

Africa’s Just Energy Transition: Scaling Up Renewable Energy Minigrids for People and Planet

Dabira speaking

UNDP Pavilion, hosted by UNDP, the GEF, the Rocky Mountains Institute, and the African Development Bank

Green Jobs in the Energy Transition

Vaughn speaking

We Mean Business Pavilion, hosted by the National Grid/WMB

Student Energy Summit 2023 Abu Dhabi: Uniting the Energy Transition

Grace speaking, Benji speaking

UEA Pavilion, hosted by SES 2023 Team

COP27 Energy Day Implementation Lab “A cleaner power sector by 2030: Scaling renewable and storage-based systems.”

Eduarda speaking

Lotus Room (Action Room 2), hosted by GWEC, IRENA, Renew Power, WBCSD

Indigenous & Youth Leadership in Canada’s Road to Net-zero

SE as Lead Organizer

Canada Pavilion, hosted by Student Energy & SevenGen

November 16

Orsted Energy Transition Skills Launch

SE as Lead Organizer

Danish Pavilion, hosted by SEforALL and Orsted

Meeting with Fiona Bezos Earth Fund

Shakti and Dabira

Canada Pavilion

Meeting with Nicolo at Enel

Shakti and Helen

Global Covenant of Mayors Interview

Helen

November 17

Meeting with Global Affairs Canada

Dabira, Helen, Akil, Irena pitching

SDG 7 Pavilion, hosted by Student Energy and SEforALL

Youthtopia Instagram Takeover

Shakti hosting on Instagram

Hosted by Youthtopia/Melati Wijsen

It was another rollercoaster of a year for the world, and we are grateful to have experienced it together as an organization and with our global youth community. Throughout the year, we are energized by the many young people who are striving to make an impact and keep climate action at the forefront. This past year, as we continued to grow our staff and Board of Directors teams internationally, we also aligned our various program offerings into one cohesive Programs Ecosystem that provides multiple pathways for young people to engage with Student Energy. Whether young people are considering a future in energy for the very first time, or whether they are ready to launch their own energy project, there is a Student Energy program that is designed to provide youth with the tangible skills, networks, and resources needed to reach the next level. We also put into motion our most ambitious initiative yet, the Student Energy Solutions Movement, which aims to deliver on our goal of empowering young people to take action by raising $150 million by 2030 to launch 10,000 youth-led clean energy projects.

Here are some of the things we accomplished in 2021:

• We launched the Student Energy Solutions Movement, as a youth-led UN Energy Compact, in partnership with the Government of Denmark as our first funder and New Energy Nexus as our project implementation partner. The announcement was made at the UN High Level Dialogue on Energy in June, and we held an in-person launch during New York Climate Week.
• We launched the initial findings from the Global Youth Energy Outlook at COP26, with several of our Regional Coordinators attending in person to present their work.
• Student Energy’s 40 global Chapters engaged 43, 579 people in 2021 through in-person and virtual community engagements.
• Our Energy System Map web and video views have continued to rise, reaching a total of 14 million+ lifetime views, with 2.5 million of those just in 2021.
• For COP 26 in Glasgow, we brought together our largest youth delegation yet, supporting 8 of our team members to attend and speak at over 10 events, and collaborated with many other Student Energy alumni in attendance.
• We continued expanding our core programs, including the second cohort of the Student Energy Fellowship (formerly known as the Leaders Fellowship), and the fourth annual cohort of the Greenpreneurs virtual startup incubator.
• The Intersectional Equity Taskforce completed their term, and put together a set of ambitious recommendations to be implemented in coming years.
• Led by SevenGen and powered by Student Energy and Indigenous Clean Energy, we supported the launch of the ImaGENation Indigenous Youth Mentorship Program in 2021, and continued the planning process for the second SevenGen Indigenous Youth Energy Summit, rescheduled to be held in 2022.
• Student Energy’s team grew from 25 staff members to 29 staff and 7 international Associates.
• We provided $133,000 in funding directly to young people to support them with honorariums and awards to help them take action on energy, and are gearing up to launch our direct-to-youth funding model, Student Energy Ventures, in 2022.