The YNA Story
The social and environmental crises we are facing are intergenerational. They cannot be solved by one individual, one institution, or one generation alone, and they affect all beings and the futures of those who are young now, as well as those who are yet to be born. This gives us the immense opportunity and responsibility to be part of the stewardship of our only home, mother earth. And to do this respectfully, meaningfully and effectively we need to have a seat at the decision-making tables
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"Young people must also be at the table - as designers of their own future, not as recipients of decisions of elders who have, let’s be honest, failed them in so many key respects."
... António Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations, 2021​
April 2022
With these aspirations in mind, Heeta Lakhani, Sophie Daud, Veena Balakrishnan and Marie-Claire Graf, four young women from Asia and Europe, co-founded YNA on Mother Earth Day, April 22, 2022.
Vision
While they were all differently impacted by the social and environmental crises, they were all eager to be part of the urgently needed change and the plurality of solutions. Little did they know about each other and the vastness of the multilateral world, yet they were driven by their curiosity to explore the mystery of the multilateral environmental negotiations.
April 2026
Four years later, YNA continues to build a strong and diverse pipeline of effective negotiators to co-lead the world’s most important processes, while also working to redress the systemic inequality of young people’s representation in decision-making. It has grown into a global, intergenerational initiative with the ambition of driving systems change to ensure long-term meaningful youth leadership in multilateralism and diplomacy.
​Our vision is one of justice, inclusivity and ambition, where the voices of all citizens, present and future, are considered in global governance to deliver solutions that safeguard the collective well-being of our planet and its inhabitants.
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Our mission is to systemically transform multilateral decision-making and create a culture of inter- and intra-generational cooperation and solidarity. We achieve this by nurturing a global community of compassionate, trusted and effective young negotiators to successfully deliver inclusive, innovative and impactful outcomes.
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We achieve this by:
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Empowering and equipping young people to become impactful and effective negotiators by:
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Developing their negotiation and leadership knowledge, skills and understanding through an intense, tailored capacity-building training, recognizing that investing in youth professional capabilities is essential
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Creating a supportive safe space and connecting them through community building and embedding into the wider ecosystem, recognizing that global networks and productive professional relationships are essential
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A transformative approach for: ​
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Environmental Justice
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Youth Leadership
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Intergenerational Collaboration
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Trust In Democratic Multilateral
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Institutions Future-Proof Outcomes And Actions for People and Planet
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in the Multilateral Environmental Agreements
​The YNA delivers three programmes in-line with the organisation's mission. All work by equipping young leaders aged 18 - 35 who are nominated by their Country Focal Point (and who are guaranteed a meaningful role in their Party’s delegation) with the skills, knowledge, networks and resources they need to participate effectively on behalf of their country in environmental negotiations.
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Climate Youth Negotiator Programme (CYNP)
The CYNP is the YNA’s first programme, launched in and delivered for the first time in 2022 within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) processes. In 2022 we trained 59 young negotiators from 26 countries and supported 53 of them to take part in COP27. In 2023, we trained 175 negotiators from 54 countries and funded more than 60 negotiators to attend COP28 while supporting 125 young negotiators during COP28 in the United Arab Emirates. In 2024, the CYNP trained 303 negotiators from 63 countries, with around 140 attending COP29. In 2025, CYNP welcomed 75 countries, with 183 youth negotiators following the Fundamental track and 125 for the Advanced track and 54 Alumni.
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Land Youth Negotiator Programme (LYNP)
Launched in 2023 and for the first time delivered in 2024, the Land Youth Negotiator Programme (LYNP) is the YNA’s second programme. It enables the future generation of land negotiators within the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). In 2024 and 2025 the LYNP trained 100 young negotiators from 35 countries, 50 of whom participated in COP16 in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
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Biodiversity Youth Negotiator Programme (BYNP)
YNA is currently developing the Biodiversity Youth Negotiator Programme (BYNP) to ensure young people’s representation in the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), starting in 2026.​
Fiscal Hosting
The Youth Negotiators Academy is fiscally hosted by interalia. interalia is a female-led not-for-profit organisation based in Germany aimed at breaking down barriers for civil society and empowering members of civil society working at the intersection of tech and social justice, by taking care of their operations and finances as they evolve.