Mongolia: Youth for Climate and Clean Air Network

Challenge

Mongolia is one of the most polluted countries globally. Air pollution levels in Mongolia have been recorded at 20-40 times higher than the levels deemed safe by the WHO. Children are amongst the most vulnerable to health defects caused by air pollution. 

Solution

Supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, the Youth for Climate and Clean Air Network (YouCCAN) is a collaboration between the Scout Association of Mongolia, the Mongolian government, and UNICEF, that engages young people in climate change issues and in tackling poor air quality in Mongolia. Through YouCCAN, children and young people monitor, collect, and analyse data on air pollution levels in districts such as Ulaanbaatar and Bayankhongor, and conduct advocacy for a healthier climate.

In 2019, YouCCAN established the ‘Air Pollution Mappers Programme’ involving 75 children from 25 secondary schools in Ulaanbaatar who would research and simultaneously learn about the sources of Mongolia’s air pollution, how to measure air pollution levels, and how to use digital mapping, photography, and blogging to raise awareness of the findings of the study. The children campaigned and advocated through various events in order to influence change and to encourage other young people to join the project. The YouCCAN project is led by young people, with adults merely facilitating the learning and research which the children conduct. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the project seamlessly moved online.

Impact

The Air Pollution Mappers programme educated more than 1,000 children about Mongolia’s air pollution problems. Ultimately, the young people involved in the YouCCAN campaign were able to engage with policymakers and politicians in order to enact change on decisions affecting them at the highest levels.

Today, the YouCCAN project comprises thousands of young people across several regions of Mongolia. 2021 also saw the introduction of YouCCAN’s ‘Teen Parliament’, which was set up alongside the Mongolian Parliament’s ‘Sub-Committee on Sustainable Development Goals’. The Teen Parliament engages young people with members of Parliament on a range of issues, including the right to a safe, clean, healthy, and sustainable environment.