Three-day Global Youth Climate Summit set to kick off in Bangladesh on 20-23 Oct.

Global Youth Leadership Center, an international nonprofit, will begin its journey from Bangladesh on Oct. 20 with the inauguration of its first program -- the Global Youth Climate Summit, said the organizers here Tuesday. They said the three-day summit will be held at Ava Center in Khulna, one of Bangladesh’s most climate vulnerable regions, bringinging together 650 youth from 70 countries to explore how today’s youth can lead the fight against climate change. 150 people between 18 and 24 years of age will participate directly and 500 will participate virtually. In a press conference held in Dhaka Tuesday, Ejaj Ahmad, the founder and chief executive officer of Global Youth Leadership Center said, “Climate change is the biggest crisis facing humanity today." To address a complex challenge like climate change, he said all have to work globally and at scale. "The mission of GYLC is to expand youth’s knowledge about climate science, equip them with leadership skills to take individual and collective action, and enable them to launch businesses that contribute to climate mitigation or adaptation,” Ahmad said. To empower youth to take climate action, he said 10 delegates at the summit will receive a grant of 1,000 U.S. dollars each to implement their climate mitigation or adaptation project. GYLC Chairman Neal Walker said, “Young people not only demand climate change action, they lead the way. He said leadership, innovation, entrepreneurship all offer avenues of success. "But we need action at a global level. GYLC can transform the idealism, ideas and talents of youth all over the world into results,” he added. Besides, Grameenphone Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Hans Martin Hoeg Henriksen, BYLC Executive Director Tahsinah Ahmed, young climate activist Sohanur Rahman and young climate activist Shakila Islam spoke at the press conference. Speaker Dr. Shirin Sharmin Chowdhury, Prime Minister's International Affairs Adviser. Gauhar Rizvi, Member of Parliament Nahim Razzaq, former Chief Scientific Advisor to the UK Government Sir David King, former Oxford Professor Sir Christopher Ball, former Harvard Leadership Faculty teacher Dr. Dean Williams, ICCAD director. Salemul Haque, British High Commissioner Robert Chatterton Dickson, BRAC Executive Director Asif Saleh and Grameenphone CEO Yasir Azman will speak at this summit.