Climate Justice: A youth guide to legal responsibility, policy action and accountability

Climate justice is increasingly recognized as a matter of rights, equity, and accountability. Yet young people, who are disproportionately affected by climate change, continue to face structural barriers to influencing climate decision‑making and securing remedies for climate‑related harm. Despite growing youth leadership in climate advocacy, policy engagement, and litigation, participation has not consistently translated into meaningful influence, implementation, or accountability.

Climate Justice: A Youth Guide to Legal Responsibility, Policy Action and Accountability responds to this gap by advancing youth legal advocacy as an enabling pathway for climate action. Grounded in climate, human rights, and environmental law, the Guide frames legal empowerment as a tool to complement policy engagement, community mobilization, and institutional reform. Central to the Guide is the Climate Justice Pathway, a practical, rights‑based methodology that supports young people in identifying climate‑related harms, linking them to relevant rights and corresponding duties and obligations, and navigating mechanisms for action and accountability across local, national, and global systems.

Drawing on consultations with more than 600 young people from over 100 countries, the Guide addresses recurring barriers including limited access to decision‑making and resources, weak implementation of commitments, fragmented institutional support, and inaccessible accountability mechanisms. It combines legal foundations with youth‑led case studies and actionable tools. By bridging the gap between grassroots action and formal governance systems, the Guide aims to strengthen youth agency, support enforceable climate action, and contribute to systemic change grounded in equity, human rights, and intergenerational justice.