First-Ever Youth Climate Summit Engages Next Generation of Innovators
More than 300 local high school students descended on Stony Brook University for the 2025 Long Island Youth Climate Summit on April 4, the first event of its kind to take place on campus.
The summit was hosted by Students for Climate Action and Renewable Energy Long Island, two local non-profit organizations promoting clean, sustainable energy use and generation on Long Island.
“This event was incredible as it gathered key stakeholders and decision makers from government, advocacy, industry, and higher education and called the next generation of climate innovators to action,” said Derek O’Connor, workforce development manager in the Office for Research and Innovation.
After breakfast and welcome remarks, Christopher Gobler, SUNY Distinguished Professor and Endowed Chair of Coastal Ecology and Conservation in the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS), delivered a keynote address that focused on the severe impacts of climate change. Gobler dedicated his presentation to the federal agencies National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency.
“Those agencies have for a very long time been incredible leaders in climate change and understanding what climate change means for this planet,” he said. “Unfortunately, since last month, they have been under siege.”
Gobler addressed common misconceptions about climate change.
“When people think about climate change, I think they mostly think about temperature,” he said. “To that point, 2024 was the warmest year ever on planet Earth. Almost everywhere was well above the normal temperatures that we had. When you think back to January and what the weather was like, it was cold. But it was still the warmest January our planet ever had, and that despite the fact we’re in something called a La Nina season in the Pacific Ocean, which should be making it much cooler. Our climate is changing.”
Mirza Beg, an adjunct lecturer in SoMAS, led an educational session, “Climate Change & Solutions: Renewable Energy on LI,” discussing climate change and highlighting the rapid changes over the centuries.
“400 years ago we were still a farming society with only small bits of businesses here and there, and the world population was 1/10 of what it is today,” he said. “With the industrialization that has happened since then, the climate has started to change rapidly.”
Emphasizing the impact of human activities since the Industrial Revolution, Beg noted the rise in greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane, which have increased 50 percent since 1950, contributing to a 1.1°C rise in global temperatures. He also covered the severe consequences of these changes, such as ocean acidification, sea level rise and increased health risks.
“Human interaction with climate is the major contributor to climate change that we’re talking about today,” Beg said. “We had the industrial revolution in the 18th and 19th centuries, and in the last 50-60 years developing countries like India and China are trying to catch up, and all those greenhouse gasses are being emitted. We are responsible for that.”
Adrienne Esposito, executive director of Citizens Campaign for the Environment, a non-profit organization working in New York and Connecticut to protect natural resources and public health, spoke about the importance of activism in addressing climate change in a briefing titled, “Youth Truth to Misinformation.”
“I always hear ‘climate change is a hoax, it’s a misunderstanding,’” she said. “People tell me they don’t believe in climate change, but it’s not a faith-based system. It’s like saying you don’t believe in gravity.”
Esposito said that activism is about invoking change, and that everyone in the room had the potential to make an impact. “You don’t have to be a professional activist to invoke change, you just have to care about the planet, care about the Earth, and care about the world around you. One of the greatest challenges we’re facing right now is misinformation.”
She urged attendees to educate themselves and to be a voice for good, proposing a three-step formula for change: get up, think and speak up.
“If you can do nothing else but raise your voice and show up to a rally, words sometimes are the most powerful tool we have,” she said. “Your words can inspire others. They can educate others. They can uplift, and the opposite is also true. Words can bring people down. They can spread misinformation. They can cause negativity. Words can change the future, and so I want you to understand that your words have power.”
Four local representatives took part in a session titled, “The Power of Youth Engagement in Climate Policy,” including Southold Town Supervisor Al Krupski, New York State Senator Monica Martinez ’08 and Suffolk Legislator Rebecca Sanin.
“Climate change is real and we are experiencing more significant storm damage in our communities,” said Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine. “We must do everything we can to prepare and educate our future leaders on the importance of alternative energy solutions and climate policies.”
“As a proud member of the Legislature’s Environment, Planning and Agriculture Committee, I will always work alongside our young people to protect, defend, and uplift our Island, and our planet,” added Sanin.
“The 2025 Long Island Youth Climate Summit was a unique opportunity to bring together middle and high school students from all over Long Island to introduce them to climate, environment and sustainability-related solutions, policies, advocacy, possible employment opportunities, and a great deal more,” said Jennifer Gilday, program manager, Collaborative for the Earth. “Stony Brook University is proud to be a co-sponsor in training up the next generation of eco leaders and climate scientists and advocates.”
Gobler reminded the young attendees that change will come from them.
“It’s people like you who will be trained to do these things and apply them in a way that makes a difference in this world,” he said. “Climate change is accelerating and it’s having a compounding negative effect on coastal animals, ecosystems and economies, and in a time of drastic change. Learners like you will inherit this future, so I’ll leave you with the question: What will you do now that you know?”
— Robert Emproto