2020 is gearing up to be a “super year” for nature! In October, the world’s governments willset new global goals and an action plan for nature in Kunming, China at the UN BiodiversityConference (CBD COP15). In September, the UN is hosting a Nature Summit to galvanisepolitical support for nature. In June, the International Union for Conservation of Nature(IUCN) and the Government of France will host the World Conservation Congress inMarseille. This meeting of up to 15,000 conservationists is a critical moment to shape theconversation and influence the decisions the world will take at CBD COP15. The unique scope and strategic timing of the IUCN Congress present a golden opportunityto set the world on the right track. This cannot be done without meaningfully engagingyouth and young professionals — the innovative leaders of today and tomorrow. With 1,400member organisations representing governments, non-governmental and Indigenouspeoples’ organisations, 15,000 volunteers across 6 Commissions and over 900 staff based inover 50 countries, IUCN is the community and network that can play a key role in givingyoung people a voice in the process that will determine much about the natural world theyinherit from current generations.

# N A T U R E F O R A L LY O U T H C H A M P I O N S S U M M I T

I U C N W O R L D C O N S E R V A T I O N

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Full integration of youth voices, projects, and experiences into allaspects of the IUCN Congress Forum – four days dedicated todiscussing and developing solutions to the world’s most pressingconservation and sustainability challenges – through youth-ledsessions and panels, and the inclusion of a youth component in allForum sessions;A four-day Youth Pavilion in the IUCN Congress Forum – a gatheringand learning space with a daily program dedicated to youth, run andmanaged by youth; A three-day Youth Champions Summit – an event that will bringtogether 400 youth and young professionals under 35 to consolidatetheir vision for the future of nature conservation and the well-beingof our planet.

IUCN is developing a multi-pronged youth engagement strategy toensure that the vision, wisdom, demands, and energy of youth can drivethe conservation movement through the IUCN Congress and beyond.This strategy includes three points of entry at the pivotal IUCN Congressin Marseille: 1.

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The Youth Champions Summit will bringtogether youth from around the world inMarseille to deliver a strong message fromthe generation with the most at stake to thedecision-makers who will meet in Kunmingjust four months later.  The Youth Champions Summit will be a keyfeature of the IUCN Congress. It will provideyouth delegates the opportunity tocollaborate in person to plan and delivertheir message to the world’s governments: amessage that will relay the ambitions theyexpect of participating governments as theyhelp shape the decades ahead. By holding the Summit at the IUCN Congress,the youth attending will be able to draw onthe expertise and networks of IUCN’s Union.They will also benefit from the addedlegitimacy and profile that comes with sucha prominent event. The Summit will be a vibrant and interactive space where youthcan lay the groundwork to turn their ideasand vision for nature conservation into areality. Youth and young professionals will

connect with each other to analyse the conservation landscape,create opportunities for

engagement, and produce concrete strategies and outcomes. This will include an ask to global leaders on behalf of youth for a

better and more sustainable world that the youth

delegates will communicate to

decision-makers at the IUCN

Members’ Assembly.

A youth-led strategy on how to strengthen theCBD and the post-2020 process and frameworkto be agreed upon in Kunming, China in October2020;A strategy and action plan for how IUCN’scommitment to engage youth more meaningfullyat all levels of the Union will be implemented;A declaration of the Summit participants to beshared with all IUCN Members in the Members’Assembly on June 19th, and to go forward to theConvention on Biological Diversity;A far-reaching and thoughtful youth-led strategyand communications campaign to call for theactivation of an intersectoral and diverse globalmovement for nature, climate, and social justice.

Meaningful youth engagement in natureconservation has been a priority of recent natureconservation events like the Nature ChampionsSummit, the Canadian Parks Conference, theCongress for Protected Areas for Latin America andCaribbean, UN conferences, and in the CBDprocess.  The Youth Champions Summit in Marseille istherefore neither a start nor an endpoint; it is acritical moment on the Youth Champions voyagedesigned to help build on previous engagementsand the incredible work already undertaken byyouth and youth networks around the world togenerate a better, stronger, more linked, andempowered global youth movement. It is envisioned that the Youth Champions Summitwill produce:1.

2.

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4.

In the months preceding the IUCN Congress, YouthChampions, whether they can attend Marseille ornot, will connect virtually to organise their roadmapand work plans towards the above outcomes.  To maximize impact,, and reduce costs, the Summitwill take place in parallel to the Congress Members'Assembly June 16-19, after the Congress Forum.

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The government of France, UNESCO and others are organising delegations of severalhundred youth and young professionals. The #NatureForAll Youth Champions initiative comprises over a dozen organisations thathave agreed to sponsor their own representative, diverse youth delegates to Marseille.IUCN Members and Commissions will identify and sponsor youth delegates to the Congress.If the fundraising goal is reached, a Youth Travel Fund will be set up through the#NatureForAll Youth Champions initiative to which youth from developing countries,including Indigenous youth, can apply to in order to have their trip to Marseille sponsored.Existing youth networks such as the Global Youth Biodiversity Network (GYBN) will helpidentify youth participants for the Summit.

The Youth Champions Summit aims to host 400 youth and young professionals under 35.Participants are being identified in several ways, and you can be a part of it! 1.

2.

3.4.

5.

Youth Champions Summit program and planningYouth Champions Pavilion program and planningCommunications Participation and diversity Advice to IUCN on Youth EngagementA cross-cutting group on policy, partnerships and logistics

The design and management of the Summit is placed in the hands ofyouth themselves. A diverse Steering Group of youth organisationshas been set up that includes representatives from Summit donororganisations and includes leadership support from the conservationeducation sector. A Coordination Team of young people will organizeits work into six working groups, and consult and seek advice fromthe Steering Group as needed. The working groups are:  1.2.3.4.5.6.

Diversity, in all its many forms is critical to success. This Summit aimsto ensure diversity of participating youth across genders, cultures,regions, and abilities in all aspects of design and implementation.

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For more information, visit www.natureforall.global/youth.

Please support youthfrom your organisation ora partner organisation toparticipate in the Summit– and let us know so thatwe can engage them inpre-Summit activities.

We are also actively

raising funds to ensurethe best experience and

outcomes possible. Pleaseconsider how you canhelp make this event a

success through your in-kind or financial support.

For further details,

contact Camila Perez atcamila.perez@iucn.org.

W I T H S P E C I A L T H A N K S T O O U R

G R O W I N G L I S T O F # N A T U R E F O R A L L

Y O U T H C H A M P I O N S P A R T N E R S

PARTNERS AS OF DECEMBER 5, 2019