We are very excited to announce the launch of Synchronicity Earth’s new fund to support the emerging leaders of the youth movement pioneering action for the environment: the Chrysalis Youth Fund.
“Whenever I talk to people who want to support youth, I tell them: We already did all the work. We already organised. We already brought people out. We already changed minds.
“What we need is the support to stay consistent and to be able to do this as part of our lives and who we are and not ever have to choose between protecting the planet or being able to pay rent, being able to fund ourselves, fund our work or help our families.”
Xiye Bastida at the Chrysalis Youth Fund Launch
Xiye Bastida is a 21-year-old climate justice activist based in New York City, born in Mexico and raised as part of the Otomi-Toltec Indigenous community.
She is an organiser with Fridays For Future, a movement inspired by the Swedish school strike which has brought more than 14 million people in 7,500 cities across all continents onto the streets to demand action for the environment. For the first climate strike in March 2019, she mobilised 600 students from her school and has taken a citywide leadership role in organising climate strikes.
Are youth being taken for granted?
Willow Defebaugh (Co-founder and Editor-in-Chief of Atmos), Alice Aedy (Co-founder and CEO of Earthrise), and Xiye Bastida (organiser with Fridays For Future and the co-founder of Re-Earth Initiative). © Leandro Justen / Atmos
The work Xiye has been involved with represents some of the achievements the global youth movement can put to its name. But despite how much momentum young people have brought to action for the environment on the global stage, they are still facing closed doors to funding and opportunities.
“I find myself justifying [youth activism] time and time again,” said Ayisha Siddiqa, a Pakistani American climate justice advocate who is the co-founder of Fossil Free University and Polluters Out.
Despite the power of the youth movement, it is still being overlooked by global philanthropy, and although big events may invite young speakers to borrow the gravitas of these leaders, they are often expected to cover their own costs, and not invited to weigh in on environmental decision-making processes and frameworks.
Intersection between youth and Indigenous advocacy
Ayisha Siddiqa at the launch of the Chrysalis Youth Fund during New York Climate Week © Leandro Justen / Atmos
These issues intersect with those of Indigenous Peoples speaking out about environmental issues, as well. Alexis Joel Grefa, a 26-year-old Kichwa river defender from Ecuador, spoke about this intersection at the Chrysalis Youth Fund Launch:
“We are here because we need to be heard but we also need for our decisions to be respected and understood. We have been defending our territories for hundreds of years. We defend the legacy that our elders and our parents have left us.”
Alexis Joel Grefa (translated)
The Chrysalis Youth Fund
Alexis Joel Grefa, a 26-year-old Kichwa river defender from Ecuador, speaking about the importance of Indigenous voices in the environment movement © Leandro Justen / Atmos
The Chrysalis Youth Fund is a commitment to continue the support Synchronicity Earth has already begun to address the lack of funding for young environmental leaders, and an invitation for other funders to participate.
The fund will support young leaders and youth groups to shape and implement policy, particularly ahead of and during negotiations at global, regional, and local levels. Previous support from Synchronicity Earth includes supporting Terena youth activists Cerizi Francelino and Taily Terena to participate in COP27 (read their account of the experience).
“Our participation at COP27 enabled us to carry the message of our elders, sharing what we have learnt in our village, and thinking about caring for our home, our territory, our planet, and all the biodiversity in it.”
Cerizi Francelino and Taily Terena (translated)
For policy to be effective, implementation is key, so the Fund will support follow up, and engagement in monitoring, advocacy, and on-the-ground activities around international and national commitments and targets. For example, previously Synchronicity Earth has supported Global Youth Biodiversity Network to provide 19 fellowships for follow-up on the youth priorities for the Post-2020 Kunming Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
Taily Terena and Cerizi Francelino standing outside COP27. Image: Taily Terena and Cerizi Francelino
The Chrysalis Youth Fund pools donors together to support a common vision – the potential of the youth movement to create profound positive change. This funding approach enables donors to share knowledge and join forces, while reducing the administrative burden for fund providers and recipients.
“Administrative challenges sound very mundane, but they are probably one of the main obstacles when it comes to supporting youth movements to create concrete change.”
Christian Schwarzer, Global Youth Biodiversity Network
We would like to thank Willow Defebaugh and Atmos magazine for holding space for the launch of the Chrysalis Youth Fund during New York Climate Week.
“I was overjoyed when I heard the name of the Chrysalis Fund, because what could be a better symbol for the transformative moment our world is in? Much like the process of decay that butterflies go through, we are watching systems collapse. And though they didn’t ask for this burden, young activists are ushering in the metamorphosis we urgently need. It’s time that world leaders, corporations, and everyday citizens listened to their call so that humanity can once again find its wings—and pollinate the ecosystems we call home.”
Willow Defebaugh at the Chrysalis Youth Fund Launch
