Klimadelegation e.V.
Klimadelegation e.V.
ID: 850223147083-79
Lobbying Activity
Response to EU vision for enhancing global climate and energy transition
10 Sept 2025
We thank the European Commission for the opportunity to provide evidence for the forthcoming EU strategy to boost the global climate and energy transition using alignment with the three pillars of the strategy: diplomacy, technical assistance, and economics. We are Klimadelegation e.V., a voluntary youth association from Germany working on international climate policy. We are active in youth networks at national, European, and international levels, notably through YOUNGO, the official children and youth constituency of the UNFCCC. With about 60% of the worlds population under 35, engaging youth is essential to strengthen multilateralism and ensure legitimacy in global climate governance. PILLAR 1: DIPLOMACY AND SUSTAINING MULTILATERALISM Our experience in international youth networks highlights the importance of listening. Dialogue with young people from the Global South has helped us recognise our own privileges and bridge divides. Recommendation: We recommend that EU delegations engage meaningfully with youth networks worldwide, not only through surveys but via structured dialogue formats where listening is central. This prevents the perception that the EU instrumentalises youth and instead builds trust. Also, we recommend to expand access to negotiation badges for youth representatives. Currently, too many badges are allocated to business actors while many committed young people are excluded. Ensuring youth presence would strengthen multilateralism and inclusivity. PILLAR 2. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND CAPACITY BUILDING: As evidence, we would like to highlight the ISLA programme (International Support for Local Activists), which we implement together with the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) under the Climate Diplomacy Action Programme of the Federal Foreign Office. ISLA funds the participation of young international activists at climate conferences and ensures thorough preparation and follow-up. The programme is unique because it is fully designed and led by consultants from the Global South. Participants are selected through an independent process, with administrative tasks carried out jointly by GIZ, our board, and Global South consultants, who are compensated equally. ISLA has already been implemented at SB60, COP29, and SB62, and will continue towards COP30. For example in their events such as the Youth & Negotiators World Café, has created unique, personal spaces for exchange between youth and negotiators. Recommendation: scale up ISLA across other EU Member States, embedding it as a model for inclusive diplomacy and technical support. We also note our experience in the German Youth Council towards the German foreign ministry. An EU-level youth council on external climate and energy policy could institutionalise this engagement. PILLAR 3. ECONOMICS AND CLIMATE FINANCE: The Commission rightly notes the implementation gap in global finance. While the EU contributes only around 6% of global emissions today, it bears historical responsibility (~13%) and remains among 3rd highest emitters per capita. Fair and adequate climate finance is therefore critical. We stress that current financial flows often fail to reach the communities most in need. For example, in agriculture, smallholders receive only 0.8% of climate finance. Centralised, large-scale, top-down disbursements rarely impact real lives. Recommendation: allocate finance not only through national governments but also through organisations directly engaged with local communities. International-local partnerships are essential to bridge the gap between large-scale EU commitments and grassroots needs. This echoes the COP30 Presidencys emphasis that implementation must connect to peoples real lives. CONCLUSION AND PRIORITIES: We encourage the Commission to integrate youth and civil society voices into all three pillars of its new strategy.
Read full responseMeeting with Peter Liese (Member of the European Parliament)
20 Mar 2024 · Austausch
Meeting with Frans Timmermans (Executive Vice-President) and Climate Action Network Europe and
15 Nov 2022 · Progress of COP27 negotiations
Meeting with Delara Burkhardt (Member of the European Parliament)
21 Oct 2022 · Climate Policy