Shamma bint Suhail Al Mazrui, Minister of Community Development, and UAE’s first Youth Climate Champion (YCC), emphasised that the COP28 hosted by the UAE laid a strong foundation for the future, and is currently working closely with the COP29 and COP30 Youth Climate Champions to broaden the role and deepen its impact.

In statements to the Emirates News Agency (WAM), Shamma Al Mazrui reflected on the importance of youth engagement in the climate agenda, the transformative initiatives launched under COP28, and the path ahead for young people to continue shaping climate policy.

"Through COP28, we worked to institutionalise this role, ensuring that the Youth Climate Champion becomes a permanent feature within the COP and UN framework. This institutionalisation guarantees future COPs will integrate the ideas and priorities of young people, and it gives youth a platform to actively participate in shaping international climate negotiations,” she said.

Shamma Al Mazrui has been a driving force behind elevating youth voices in climate action. Her role at COP28 helped establish a framework for permanent youth inclusion in climate policy discussions through institutionalising the Presidency Youth Climate Champion role within the UN Climate system, a landmark achievement under COP28’s UAE Consensus. Through her leadership, COP28 has set a new standard for youth participation in high-level climate decision-making.

She emphasised that COP28 has truly set a new standard for meaningful youth inclusion. "Under the UAE Consensus, the Youth Climate Champion role is now institutionalised in the COP structure, meaning every future COP Presidency is mandated to appoint a Youth Climate Champion as part of its leadership. This monumental step guarantees that youth will be central to the climate action agenda, with a formal role to represent their views and advocate for their priorities within global climate action and the UN climate framework."

She highlighted the importance of having a supportive team and infrastructure for effective role delivery, particularly in the context of youth climate action. “We always knew that a role is never enough in itself – it needs the team, resources and infrastructure around it to enable it to deliver effectively. This is why we worked with fellow nations at COP for the decision text to also lay the foundation for the establishment of a permanent Presidency Youth Climate Champion (PYCC) Secretariat team within the UNFCCC.”

“Over the past two years, we have managed to bring this new team into reality, and so we now have the first high-level office on youth and climate within the UN system along with a fully resourced team to ensure the role brings maximum impact for youth on the ground for all future years. This permanent infrastructure is a groundbreaking development for youth climate action, enabling future Youth Climate Champions to build on COP28’s legacy while creating new pathways for young voices to further impact climate decisions,” she added.

Regarding the initiative led by the youth climate action, Al Mazrui indicated, ‘’The Youth Climate Champion's initiatives have been structured around a strategy we call PAVE, which emphasises Participation, Action, Voice, and Education to drive meaningful impact across the Arab region and beyond. Participation has been a cornerstone, highlighted by our flagship COP28 Youth Climate Delegate Programme.

"This initiative brought together 100 young climate leaders globally, emphasising representation from Least Developed Countries, Small Island Developing States, Indigenous Peoples, and other minority groups. The programme provided comprehensive capacity-building and full sponsorship to COP28, setting a pioneering standard for youth inclusion in the COP process. Additionally, we launched the UAE Youth Climate Delegates Programme, a cohort of 10 local delegates, to deepen climate change awareness among Emirati youth and nurture local advocacy.''

The Minister stressed that in Action, COP28 was historic for youth engagement, "We supported multiple dedicated youth spaces, including the Children and Youth Pavilion, the YCC Pavilion in the Blue Zone, and the first-ever Youth Hub in the Green Zone, in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and Youth. These spaces amplified youth voices and empowered young leaders to shape climate discourse directly in the negotiations as never before.''

‘’Amplifying Voice has been equally critical, as this pillar addresses mobilising the voices of youth to drive global climate ambition. We conducted over 30 global consultations, engaging more than 400 young people across 11 countries and 4 continents, allowing youth to bring their policy proposals directly to government negotiators. For the first time, youth were invited to consult directly with the incoming COP Presidency leadership, enabling youth policy priorities to be fully integrated in the deliberations SB58 and COP, including being showcased for the first-time at the highest-level fora such as the COP World Leaders Summit.''

Finally, Education has been central to equipping young leaders. “We collaborated with partners like Coursera, the UNFCCC, UNITAR, and the Arab Youth Center to deliver targeted online capacity-building programmes. These initiatives ensure that youth are not only informed and included, but also equipped to lead climate advocacy effectively for their communities,” she noted.

Al Mazrui said, “We have also focused on strengthening regional engagement within the Arab States, through initiatives such as our report on “Empowering Youth Voices in Arab Climate Policy” in partnership with the Arab Youth Center. This report was developed to systematically incorporate the views of Arab youth in climate policy, empowering them to take an active role in shaping decisions that will impact their future. The report also contributes to greater cohesion in Arab youth perspectives on climate issues, which is essential as we build a unified voice in the region’s climate dialogue.”

Regarding the youth Climate Champions role, the Minister stated, “Youth engagement extends beyond policy discussions; it’s about equipping young people with the resources and opportunities necessary to take meaningful actions that have impact on ground. At COP28, we hosted the Green Jobs Fair, which provided over 3,000 young people with connections to leaders in sustainability, helping open doors for meaningful careers in green sectors. This fair highlighted the diversity of opportunities within the climate field and encouraged youth to pursue careers where they can make a lasting impact.”

Shamma Al Mazrui said that the Dubai Youth Climate Dialogue at COP provided an open platform for young people to engage directly with government representatives, ensuring that youth voices influenced climate policy decisions. "We used the Youth Champion platform to expand this Dialogue to go into sector specific subjects such as health, education and sustainable cities, beyond just the typical policy deliberations at COP. These initiatives have changed the game for the ambition of COP, setting a bar for it to ensure it will bring about practical benefits to young people’s daily lives as well as setting broad policy targets.

“Our most recent initiative, a climate diplomacy e-learning course we launched with UNITAR, empowers youth with the skills and knowledge needed to actively participate in and understand the climate policy landscape – so we are leaving a legacy for youth to be able to self-educate extensively ahead of future COPs, and so keep the UAE’s ambition moving forward,” she noted.

The Minister said, ‘’COP28 laid a strong foundation for the future, we are working closely with the COP29 and COP30 Youth Climate Champions, aiming to expand the role’s reach and deepen its impact. The new PYCC Secretariat team within the UNFCCC will also provide a consistent and sustainable infrastructure, ensuring that future Youth Climate Champions have the resources they need. We are also working to secure sustainable external funding to support this role long-term, so that the UAE’s legacy of youth empowerment can be upheld and built upon.''

Shamma Al Mazrui concluded, “The UAE Consensus has set a strong course for the future of youth climate action for good. As we approach COP29, it’s vital that we continue pushing the boundaries of youth inclusion through the new Youth Climate Champion platforms and beyond, ensuring that young people have a meaningful place at the table as we work together to shape a sustainable future.”