Understanding Youth Engagement in Climate Change Action: A survey

Dr. Cox received a Research and Professional Development grant for a project through the ResiliencebyDesign Research Innovation Lab to survey youth engagement on climate action.

In a landscape of interrelated and pressing challenges that include climate change, economic uncertainty, food security and many others, post-Millennial youth face what has been described as a growing “civic empowerment gap”; youth are both directly affected by complex challenges like climate change and also stand poised to innovate and lead initiatives to address these issues, but are infrequently engaged directly in the decisions and policies designed to address these issues. Working with a team of youth co-researchers, the ResiliencebyDesign Research Innovation Lab (RbD) will design and implement a survey with youth from across Canada to explore what motivates and sustains youth engagement in climate action and related complex issues (e.g., food security, disasters, economic inequality). This research will contribute to the limited empirical and theoretical literature on youth engagement in these spheres of concern by exploring youth perspectives and examining the opportunities, barriers, and drivers that influence their capacity to contribute in these spheres.