Jordan’s Jordan youth climate conference opened in Amman on 1 November 2026, bringing young people from across the country together to set their climate priorities and prepare a national youth statement for the COP31 climate summit in Antalya. The two-day Local Youth Conference on Climate Change Jordan 2026 was inaugurated at Al-Hussein Youth City by Youth Minister Dr. Raed Al-Adwan and Environment Minister Dr. Ayman Suleiman.
The conference is organised by the Ministries of Youth and Environment together with Generations For Peace, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Sanoubar Foundation for Environment and Development. It is being held in partnership with UNICEF, Generations For Peace, UNESCO, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and Plan International, to support dialogue between youth and decision-makers on climate policy and solutions.
Jordan youth climate conference: what the two days aim to deliver
The conference aims to promote youth participation in climate action, identify young people’s environmental and climate priorities, and formulate practical recommendations that align with national priorities and strategies. Its central output is the Jordanian Youth National Climate Statement for 2026, prepared ahead of the 31st Conference of the Parties (COP31), which takes place in Antalya, Türkiye, from 9 to 20 November 2026.
The programme combines high-level dialogue sessions on the role of youth in national strategies with skills development and innovation to support the transition to a green economy. Climate policy labs cover water, agriculture, education, health, climate finance, climate justice and the role of youth in peacebuilding. An interactive workshop for developing youth initiatives, the Jordanian Climate Village, and a simulation of COP31 negotiations run alongside meetings of the national statement drafting team, so that young participants practise negotiation and decision-making while their statement takes shape.
From learning to green jobs
Dr. Al-Adwan said the Ministry of Youth has developed an integrated approach to environmental and climate issues through the National Youth Strategy 2026-2030, which includes environment and climate as a field across its five axes: active citizenship, learning and readiness for the future, economic empowerment, health and well-being, and sports and physical activity. The aim, he said, is to enable young people to face climate challenges and benefit from emerging economic opportunities.
Through its centres in the governorates, the ministry is working to give young people spaces and opportunities to develop their ideas into practical initiatives and to build skills in planning, implementation and partnership-building, in cooperation with national institutions and the private sector. Young people can also use the ministry’s centres, the National Guidance Directorate and its initiatives to support environmental and climate initiatives, including through the King Hussein Bin Abdullah II Award for Voluntary Work, which encourages protecting natural resources, using water wisely, reducing waste, recycling and tree planting.
Dr. Suleiman stressed the importance of investing in green skills and helping young people move from acquiring knowledge to creating workable solutions and projects. He said about 1,700 people have been trained in green business skills, including the installation and maintenance of photovoltaic systems, heat pumps, energy efficiency, maintenance of electric and hybrid vehicles, climate-smart agriculture, greywater treatment, environmental awareness and sustainability. Women made up 60 percent of participants in these programmes, while young people accounted for 52 percent, according to the minister.
Green entrepreneurship programmes also included business incubators and accelerators, from which 278 participants benefited in developing ideas and workable prototypes, while 140 entrepreneurs received financial support and five received awards for their work in environmental sustainability.
What partners told young people
UNICEF Deputy Representative in Jordan Dorina Andreev-Jitaru said climate change affects the lives of children and young people and their access to water, health services and education, which makes their active participation in shaping solutions and decisions about their future essential. She said UNICEF is working with the Ministry of Youth and its partners to support young people with knowledge, skills and opportunities, turning their ideas into practical initiatives and ensuring their priorities are taken into account in climate work.
Generations For Peace chief executive Lama Al-Hattab said young people are key partners in finding climate solutions and leading change in their communities. She said the organisation works through its Saoun programme to develop young people’s skills in leadership, dialogue and teamwork, and to help them turn their ideas into initiatives they lead themselves. Climate change, she added, reaches beyond environmental questions into social cohesion and relations within society, especially where water scarcity and natural resources are under strain, making peacebuilding tools for dialogue, cooperation and shared solutions important.
UNFPA Representative in Jordan Hameer Abdul-Mughni said youth participation in climate action must move beyond attendance and traditional participation towards active and influential participation that produces practical initiatives and tangible results. UNESCO Representative in Jordan Nuha Bawazir said understanding climate change is different from knowing how to address it, and that UNESCO supports the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Human Resources Development in applying a whole-school approach in six schools, enabling students to apply their knowledge to real-world challenges.
Sanoubar Foundation chief executive Malak Al-Amar said the conference gives Jordanian youth a space to move from raising awareness of climate challenges to active participation in shaping national solutions and policies. Confronting water scarcity, food security and climate change, she said, requires involving young people as partners in decision-making and giving them the chance to present ideas and initiatives that respond to Jordan’s environmental and climate needs.
Why this matters ahead of COP31
The Amman conference comes just days before COP31, where countries will negotiate climate action in Antalya. By drafting a national youth statement in advance, Jordan’s young participants aim to carry shared, practical priorities — on water, food, health, education, finance and justice — into the global talks, rather than arriving only as observers. Readers following the run-up to COP31 can also read Watan News coverage of India’s climate finance priorities for COP31.
The opening was attended by Youth Ministry Secretary General Dr. Mazen Abu Baqer, Youth Minister’s Adviser Bassam Al-Khalaileh, Al-Hussein Youth City Director Raed Mirza, Australian Deputy Head of Mission James Bryan, Plan International Country Director Hamida Jahama, and young men and women active in environmental and climate work from all governorates.
Source: UNICEF Jordan press release, 1 November 2026.
Key facts
- Event: Local Youth Conference on Climate Change Jordan 2026, a two-day conference at Al-Hussein Youth City, Amman, opened 1 November 2026.
- Opened by: Youth Minister Dr. Raed Al-Adwan and Environment Minister Dr. Ayman Suleiman.
- Organisers: Ministries of Youth and Environment, Generations For Peace, UNICEF and the Sanoubar Foundation for Environment and Development; partners include UNESCO, UNFPA and Plan International.
- Main output: the Jordanian Youth National Climate Statement for 2026, prepared for COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye, 9 to 20 November 2026.
- Green skills figures: about 1,700 people trained; 60 percent women and 52 percent young people among participants; 278 people in incubators and accelerators; 140 entrepreneurs financially supported; five awards for environmental sustainability.
- Policy frame: National Youth Strategy 2026-2030, with environment and climate as a field across five axes.
