Arctic Youth Ambassadors Program

“We don’t have a choice: we have to adapt. But we don’t want to adapt more than we have to. We want to slow or stop climate change so we can keep our way of life, and so that people in Lower 48 don’t have to go through the changes we are going through now.” – Kotzebue LCC Workshop Participant

The Arctic Youth Ambassadors Program brings together youth from across Alaska to serve as ambassadors for their communities and country in building awareness at home and abroad about life in the Arctic. Alaska Youth Ambassadors travel in Alaska, the Lower 48, and internationally to share their different perspectives and experiences, listen to others’ stories and take them back to Alaska.

The program is a collaboration between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. State Department and Alaska Geographic. It provides a platform for youth as decision-makers and policy-makers. Ambassadors have met with state, national and international leadership and participated in global environmental leadership conferences, such as the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP 21 in Paris.