Island Youth Network
Connecting Young Island Leaders with each other, and with the decisions shaping their future.
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A world where island youth are recognised as important leaders in shaping resilient and sustainable futures for island communities.
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To connect, equip, and amplify young people from island communities so they can engage more effectively in environmental leadership and international decision-making.
A Global Network of
Young Island Leaders
The Island Youth Network creates connections between young people living and working on islands across different regions of the world.
Our work focuses on three things:
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Create relationships between Young Island Leaders who would otherwise rarely have the opportunity to meet.
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Make international processes such as the UN climate and biodiversity negotiations more understandable and accessible.
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Create practical pathways for Young Island Leaders to engage with international negotiations, organisations and decision-makers.
The objective is not simply to invite young islanders into international spaces.
It is to give Young Island Leaders the knowledge, networks and confidence to participate meaningfully once they are there.
A Global Initiative
Our Growing Network
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Major UN processes engaged with:
UN Framework Convention on Climate Change
Convention on Biological Diversity
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Young Island Leaders participating in our 2026 capacity-building and international engagement programmes
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Young Island Leaders in the Network
UNFCCC SB64
Virtual Delegation
In June 2026, the Island Youth Network supported its first delegation of Young Island Leaders to engage with the UNFCCC SB64 climate negotiations in Bonn.
The programme was created to make the UN climate process more accessible to Young Island Leaders and give them direct exposure to the international negotiations shaping global climate policy.
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We received 54 applications from Young Island Leaders representing 22 islands and island regions around the world.
Four Young Island Leaders were selected for the first delegation, representing:
Montserrat
Fiji
Gran Canaria
Mohéli, Comoros
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With accreditation supported by the Small Islands Organisation (SMILO), delegates received official access to the UNFCCC process.
Across SB64, the delegation followed more than 25 sessions, covering areas including:
Climate finance
Oceans
Gender
Youth
Nature-based solutions
Transparency
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100% of delegates reported a significant increase in their confidence to engage in policy processes.
Average understanding of the UNFCCC process increased from approximately 1 out of 5 before the programme to between 3 and 4 out of 5 afterwards.