Research tells us that adolescence and emerging adulthood is a critical period of brain development. During this time, it is important to support young people’s cognitive, behavioural and psychological development. Doing so will have a positive impact on their overall healthy development. This is also a time when young people’s innate capacities for creativity, innovation and collaboration could be engaged to enrich the work of communities or could be engaged to benefit society.

However, organizations that work in the youth and environment space have indicated that there are not enough interventions focused on the healthy development of youth aged 15-25 years and that there is a lack of funding to support innovation and big-picture thinking.

Research also shows the importance of nature connection to healthy development. This link is becoming increasingly important, given rising rates of certain physical and mental health issues and the fact that young people are more sedentary and spending less time outdoors. Studies have shown that youth believe a healthy, sustainable environment should be a top priority for governments. However, this belief does not necessarily translate into action by youth to take on leadership roles on environmental matters.

To address these issues, the Foundation is investing in diverse projects and initiatives that support and amplify the voices of youth. Through this work, the Foundation and our grantee partners are committed to achieving a double bottom line: strengthening youth leadership and civic engagement, and enabling a connection to nature and environmental action.

Our strategic approach in action

Learn more about our approach and the evolution of our strategy below.