City of Kitchener announces projects for second round of Bloomberg's Youth Climate Action Fund
Kitchener, Ontario – The 23 successful projects for the Bloomberg Youth Climate Action Fund’s second round in Kitchener have been selected. The fund provides technical assistance and funding for mayors to activate tens of thousands of youth aged 15 – 24 years to design, produce and govern urgent climate solutions in cities across the globe. This round of funding is comprised of $100,000 USD that will be distributed in the form of microgrants between $1,500-6,500 CAD to each successful project.
“Thanks to the Bloomberg Youth Climate Action Fund, the 23 projects selected for the second round of funding represent the passion and commitment I love to see from young people in addressing climate change,” said Kitchener Mayor and United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) Co-President Berry Vrbanovic. “The response we’ve seen from young people in our community is inspiring, building on the momentum that started with our first round of successful projects in 2024.”
Many of the successful project teams were supported in their applications by the University of Waterloo’s social impact incubator GreenHouse, which will continue to provide administrative and mentoring support to participants they complete their projects.
"GreenHouse is committed to support the City of Kitchener’s Youth Climate Action Fund, which provides vital resources and mentorship to empower young changemakers,” said Lily Viggiano, Senior Project Manager at GreenHouse. “Investing in youth-led innovation is essential for building a resilient, sustainable future. When adults actively support and collaborate with young people, it creates powerful intergenerational partnerships that strengthen our collective response to the climate crisis.”
There were 31 applications for funding, and the successful projects follow the 16 projects supported through the first round of the Bloomberg Youth Climate Action Fund (YCAF) in 2024, which provided $50,000 USD in funding.
“The YCAF program has empowered youth to take meaningful action and create lasting change that reflects their passion, drive, and the sense of fulfillment that comes from this work,” said Darren Harry Baine, round one recipient. “By fostering a strong relationship between youth and local government, this funding has become a cornerstone of societal transformation — showing what is possible when we are all involved and included.”
More information about the Bloomberg Youth Climate Action Fund can be found at kitchener.ca/YCAF.
For more information
Philip Price
Communications and Marketing Associate
City of Kitchener
philip.price@kitchener.ca
Bloomberg Youth Climate Action Fund - Round one project examples:
Young & Restless Envirothon
YCAF Award: $4,400
Youth leads: Darren Harry Baine, Samantha Kremer, Justin Tsai, Savraj Sahota
Young & Restless is a youth-led organization that used their YCAF grant to run Envirothon, a climate-focused hackathon for youth in Kitchener. The hackathon challenged youth to approach the threat of climate-related flooding from an education, mitigation, and adaptation lens. Over the course of two days, 40 youth brainstormed, collaborated, and developed solutions to address each facet of the challenge. Participants developed unique solutions ranging from app-based early alert systems to infrastructure plans for post-flood recovery. They awarded three $500 prizes to the top teams to assist in bringing their ideas into the real world, scaling the impact of their YCAF project.
Community Composting Project
YCAF Award: $4,310
Youth leads: Spenser Morouney, Ethan Gosnell
Spenser and Ethan used their micro-grant to work with local organizations Reep Green Solutions and the Waterloo Region Community Garden Network to develop a circular waste program for local food systems. They used their funds to aid 3 community gardens in obtaining Hotbin composter units for their spaces, along with the necessary tools, resources, and trainings to use the bins. All the gardens that benefited from the composting units were located next to high-density housing units, giving new waste management options to city residents without existing access to composting services.
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