We need to follow these activists’ social media feeds filled with nature, social justice, and climate change posts.
They’ve been educating their audiences on how these issues are inextricably linked one post at a time.
Hundreds of thousands of people are rallying around the world to demand more action on climate change.
Founded on the belief that the actions taken — or not taken — by leaders in the next decade will influence the lives and fortunes of future generations.
They are walking out of school onto the streets to demand a revolutionary shift for people, the planet, and our common good.
Rising global temperatures disproportionately affect Black, Brown, Indigenous, and working-class populations.
Social media is a game-changing digital platform. Their posts serve to remind us that climate change isn’t just an environmental problem; it’s also a social one. Here are some of the best young climate enthusiasts on social media.
Table of Contents
1. Xiye Bastida
Xiye Bastida, a Mexican-Chilean climate activist and member of the indigenous Mexican Otomi-Toltec nation, is a teen climate activist.
She is one of the Friday For Future youth climate strike campaign’s key organizers of New York.
She is a member of the People’s Climate Movement’s administration committee, where she represents youth in grassroots and climate organizations.
2. Alexandria Villaseñor
Alexandria Villasenor, a 14-year-old climate justice activist from New York City, is the founder and executive director of EarthUprising.org.
It is a youth-led NGO that encourages coalition-building and supports climate movement organizations.
Villasenor began her own solo weekly school strike for the climate in front of the United Nations Headquarters on December 14, 2018.
After being demoralized by the lack of progress at the 2018 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 24), she was re-inspired by 16-year-old Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg.
Later, she was named a national and international Fridays for Future organizer for the first global youth climate strike, which took place on March 15, 2019.
She organized 1.6 million youth from 123 countries to demand climate action from world leaders. Villaseñor has received numerous awards, including the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival’s “Disruptor.”
The Common Good Foundation Changemaker Scholarship, the Earth Day Network 2019 Youth Climate Leadership Award, and most recently, she was named to Politico’s list of the top 100 people who influence climate change policy.
3. Luisa Neubauer
Luisa Neubauer is a climate activist, author, and the founder of the “Fridays For Future” school strike organization in Germany.
According to the 25-year-old activist, one of the organizers of climate-related school strikes in Germany, more than 80% of people are concerned about extreme weather events.
She supports de-growth and works for a climate strategy that complies with and beyond the outmoded Paris Agreement.
Neubauer is a Green Youth and Alliance 90/The Greens member. Since 2016, Neubauer has served as a youth ambassador for the non-governmental group ONE.
She was also involved with the Foundation for Future Generations’ Rights and established herself as one of the most prominent Fridays For Future activists as of the beginning of 2019. She is referred to as the “German face of the movement” by many media outlets.
4. Molly Cantrell
Molly Cantrell (she/her) is an outdoor industry professional, explorer, and artist. She’s 30 years old and lives in Asheville, North Carolina.
Molly Cantrell-Kraig is an author, media consultant, life coach, and speaker who has been featured in the Christian Science Monitor and the Shriver Report as one of CNN’s Visionary Women.
Cantrell-Kraig has also been on the Women’s Media Center and the BBC, where she spoke on women, independence, gender roles, and life transitions.
Cantrell-Kraig, who started as a single mother on assistance, describes herself as a “work in progress” who wants to help others reach their objectives by sharing her own experiences.
5. Ambika Rajyagor
Ambika Rajyagor (she/her) is an Indian-American writer, climate enthusiast, and digital creative who focuses on Intersectional Feminism, Special Needs Rights, and Environmental Conservation.
She is convinced that environmental justice is a multifaceted issue. The ongoing climate catastrophe continually threatens our public lands, and high-level administrations in charge of making choices for them must keep this in mind.
It was not a priority for the Trump administration, as seen by suggested plans for commercializing public lands and news conferences where states were criticized for not “cleaning up the leaves” properly.
She believes that access to nature and public lands may help solve climate change through exposure and education.
I’m also a strong champion for the handicapped outdoor community. We can have a more public dialogue about climate change with excellent representation and inclusive environmental justice discussions. I agree that access to nature is crucial, but I also believe that feeling safe and part of the outdoor community is essential. While we continue to fight climate change, creating an inclusive outdoor community that prioritizes conservation education and environmental justice is critical.
AMBIKA RAJYAGOR
6. Sarah Scruggs
Sarah Scruggs (she/her) is a Black Queer hiker and outdoor enthusiast 24 years old. She is convinced Climate change and pollution have had direct detrimental consequences on Black people.
We’re more likely to reside in poor air quality due to highway emissions and regularly exposed dangerous chemicals from industrial operations. Have you ever heard of Flint, Michigan?
Lacking access to safe drinking water is both an environmental and a racial concern. We had a record-breaking number of hurricanes this year, with several of them hitting the Gulf Coast and wreaking havoc on parts of the South with a higher Black population.
The drive to acquire and exploit our planet’s nonrenewable resources frequently puts protected public areas in jeopardy. Mining, fracking, and modifying the terrain all contribute to climate change, which has resulted in terrible catastrophes such as fires and flooding. Regardless of ethnicity, money is required for individuals to reside outside of locations that are more vulnerable to climate change and the means to recover from such occurrences. This country was not built for Black, Indigenous, and other people of color to enjoy such wealth.
SARAH SCRUGGS
7. Nadia Nazar
Nadia Nazar is an 18-year-old Baltimore-based artist and climate justice activist. Nadia is the Founder, Co-Executive Director, and Art Director of Zero Hour, a youth-led environmental organization.
Although She is currently a senior in high school, she is trying to implement climate action in her school district and community.
She was a key organizer for the DC Climate Strike on March 15 and the DC Climate Strike on September 20. Nadia utilizes art to express herself and raise awareness about the climate problem.
She created the Zero Hour logo and many artworks for activities, and she continues to oversee the Youth Climate Movement’s creative spaces.
Nadia spoke at the United Nations Headquarters in October 2018 about the impact the climate catastrophe is having on girls throughout the world.
She testified before Congress for the first time in the 116th Congress in February 2019, during the House Natural Resources Committee’s inaugural hearing on climate change. People Magazine named Nadia one of the Top 25 Women Changing the World in 2018.
Nadia intends to keep up her artistic climate activism to make unethical companies and government politicians accountable for their actions towards her generation.
8. Holly Gillibrand
Holly Gillibrand is a 13-year-old working to develop a UK movement of children demanding more action on climate change from her small community in the remote, hilly Scottish Highlands.
As part of the school strike for climate change, she skipped school for one hour every Friday. She was selected Young Scotswoman of the Year by the Glasgow Times in 2019.
She was also included in the BBC’s Woman’s Hour Power List 2020 as one of 30 remarkable women.
9. Tim Silverwood
Tim Silverwood is an outspoken proponent of safeguarding our seas and ecosystem from human interference.
Tim, an avid surfer, grew concerned about the growing threat of plastic waste to our oceans and animals and co-founded the non-profit organization ‘Take 3’ in 2009.
Tim traveled 5000 kilometers across the North Pacific Ocean in 2011 to research the famed Great Pacific Garbage Patch, and upon his return, he gave a successful TEDx presentation about his experiences.
Tim’s accomplishments include winning the 2014 Green Globe for ‘Sustainability Champion,’ appearing in the massively successful ABC series ‘War on Waste,’ and starring in the 2017 feature documentary ‘Blue’ as an ‘Ocean Guardian.’
Tim is a competent presenter and facilitator who has given over 200 speeches and workshops to schools, communities, companies, government organizations, and conferences, including the prestigious Our Ocean conference in Washington, DC and South by Southwest Eco in Austin, Texas.
Tim makes a compelling argument for reducing waste, eliminating pollution, and transitioning to a circular economy to rescue our seas and achieve genuine sustainability.
10. Isra Hirsi
Isra Hirsi is an environmental activist from the United States. She was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on February 22, 2003, to US Congresswoman Ilhan Omar and Ahmed Abdisalan Hirsi.
She participated in the Mall of America’s rally for justice for Jamar Clark when she was 12 years old. Hirsi graduated from Minneapolis South High School in the year 2021.
She started acting in climate action after joining the environmental club at her high school during her first year.
On March 15 and 3, 2019, Hirsi supervised hundreds of student-led strikes around the United States. She was also a co-founder and co-executive director of the United States Youth Climate Network.
She is the Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director of the US Youth Climate Strike, a climate and racial justice organization.
On March 15 and May 3, she organized hundreds of strikes. Hirsi began her climate advocacy during her first year of high school by joining the environmental club at her school.
Hirsi has long advocated for intersectionality and diversity in the climate justice movement and her daily life, driven by her identity as a Black Muslim woman.
Hirsi is a junior who also engages in debate and drama at her high school and her work with environmental justice. She utilizes her activism not just to comprehend but also to navigate the world around her.
As the daughter of immigrants, Hirsi is passionate about various issues affecting her family and community.
Hirsi has made it her mission to help alter the world from an early age. She’s always tried to serve people and make every environment inviting. She channels her activism to help improve the world by creating enthusiasm for topics.
Conclusion
These climate enthusiasts sure are leaving a tremendous impact. More than ever, youthful people use their platforms to fight climate change.
And they’re doing it more and more on social media, from Instagram reels to Tiktok videos, all while showing concern for the environment.
(Last Updated on February 4, 2022 by Sadrish Dabadi)
