Make youth the climate gamechangers of today

The Goal of the Gamechanger Challenge is to develop an innovative and implementable idea that takes on global water challenges and ensures a climate resilient future. Who is the Challenge’s target group? Students with a passion for water. The UN2023 Gamechanger Challenge is all about the connection between youth and water, and looking for out-of-the-box ideas, inventions, and innovations. The Challenge is a collaboration between Wavemakers United and NWP member IHE Delft Institute for Water Education that works to create a united global movement related to the Sustainable Development Goals involving youth, students and young water awareness experts.

In early 2022, NWP signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Wavemakers United to create an international youth platform to inspire, enthuse, and activate young people, and make water, food and energy innovations visible, thereby creating awareness around the various global challenges we are facing. 

• What do you need from the global water community to make sure youth engagement is part of their daily work?

We need them to share our initiative and mission, and to step outside their comfortable and valuable water bubble. We all know how critical water is, but outside the water bubble it is much lower on the agenda. Our knowledge and passion must be shared to increase our impact and contribute to the Paris Climate Goals. The creativity and energy of the next generation is the perfect accelerator for this. To enthuse them for a career in sustainability, we need to embrace their knowledge, trust their dreams, and give value to their vision. We need to help them think in terms of solutions, instead of threats, and take a positive approach.

• The name of the Challenge already states it, you are working towards the UN2023 Water Conference. What lies beyond New York in relation to this challenge?

We believe that this Challenge is the catalyst for a global community of changemakers that will help achieve the SDGs by 2030. Every participant is a winner who can join us in going beyond New York. We must not stop collaborating after the UN2023 Water Conference; we want to keep the community engaged and youth at the centre of sustainability. All the ideas that are being developed in the run-up to New York deserve a next step, and being turned into concrete water and climate solutions. We are committed to creating a platform that facilitates this, and to do so with positive energy.