Regeneration: What’s Next for Youth STEM 2030
Our Founder & CEO, Mhairi, shares an update on where we’ve been and what’s next for our mission of empowering a generation of STEM changemakers for a just and sustainable future 🌍
Dear STEM changemakers,
It’s been just over 5 and a half years since we first shared Youth STEM 2030 and our mission of empowering a generation of STEM changemakers with the world, albeit at the time it was far less well articulated and very much just the beginning of our own journey as STEM changemakers! In that time, our global community of STEM changemakers has driven progress towards the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals, but the world has also faced immense challenges, with a pandemic, genocide and war, famines, wildfires and floods, division within and between communities, and a worsening climate crisis. Only 18% of the SDGs are on track to be achieved by 2030. As UN Secretary-General António Guterres put it: “with just five years to reach the Sustainable Development Goals, we need to shift into overdrive”.
We don’t have all the answers, but we do have hope. That hope comes from the 2,500+ youth in over 80 countries globally who we’ve empowered as STEM changemakers across 3 inclusive, inspiring and impactful programmes. Young people like Mahashri, who since being part of the 2021 Youth STEM Summit Design Team has represented India to influence climate policy and invented a new filtration system for clean water in rural areas. Young people like Vin in Scotland, who is developing ClimateThread to help turn climate anxiety into climate action, supported by our Youth STEM Changemakers programme. Young people like Blessed and Atupele, whose research into low-cost sustainable energy solutions for households in Zimbabwe will soon be published in Youth STEM Matters.
Young people are making change now. And our programmes are helping to catalyse, accelerate and deepen their impact as STEM changemakers.
Over the past year or so, you might have noticed we’ve been quieter. It’s not been because we’ve had less to say about the big challenges in our world, or the need for equipping youth STEM changemakers like Mahashri, Vin, Blessed and Atupele with the tools, opportunities and networks to make impact has gone away, but rather a series of health and personal challenges meant it was necessary for me to take some time away from work to focus on these. I am incredibly grateful to Helena Norman (former Youth STEM Changemakers Programme Officer, who I’m delighted is now pursuing a PhD in how climate change impacts fish sleep!) and the global team of Youth STEM Matters volunteers, who worked hard behind the scenes to continue advancing our mission during that time.
So what’s next? Since gradually returning to work over the past couple of months, it’s been a time of reconnecting with our community, reflecting on the impact we’ve created so far (as well as the many learnings along the way!), and focussing deeply on how we can approach the future regeneratively as an organisation. We’ve been asking some big questions and, naturally, this has been with young people in our community as leaders and co-creators every step of the way. Last month, we brought together some of our Scotland-based community in Glasgow for an in person workshop, exploring themes like what it means to be a STEM changemaker, their diverse journeys, barriers young people can encounter, our superpowers as an organisation, and an especially inspiring visioning activity, asking “wouldn’t it be fantastic if…”. We’re now inviting our global community of alumni to join similar workshops online, ensuring youth across the globe can be meaningfully heard and shape our future of empowering youth as STEM changemakers.
To create space for these new beginnings, we’ll be pausing the programmes for our Youth STEM Matters scientific journal for the time being, with our final research projects and science communication articles (for now, at least!) being published in October 2025. Meanwhile, we’re looking forwards to relaunching our Youth STEM Changemakers programme next month, following the success of our 2024 pilot programme, which young people described as “sensational” and “one of the best things I’ve ever taken part in”, and rated 9.8/10 overall. If you’re a young person who wants to become a STEM changemaker, sign up to our waitlist to be the first to know when applications open.
One thing young people keep telling us is that the way we work with young people - creating spaces which are safe, inclusive, empowering and fun - is our biggest strength and where we truly shine. We believe that diverse young peoples’ voices should be in every room where decisions are made, and that including young people isn’t an act of charity - it makes good business sense. With the support of Innovate UK, we’ll soon be launching our new consultancy and training services to help STEM, sustainability and impact-focussed organisations to meaningfully embed diverse youth voices to grow their impact. If your company or organisation wants to lead the way and advance your mission with fresh perspectives for a sustainable and inclusive world, reach out to me by email.
Overall, after a tough year personally, and a tougher year for the world, when it comes to our mission of empowering a generation of STEM changemakers, there’s a lot we’re optimistic about. We’re regenerating, but we’re not losing our roots - we’ll always be intentionally inclusive, shifting power to young people, collaboratively co-creating with communities most impacted by the problems, and powered by possibility of a better world for people and planet. We are youth STEM changemakers.
With solidarity, care and possibility,
Mhairi - Youth STEM 2030 Founder
Our workshop for members of our community based in Scotland featured many sticky notes, deep conversations, a wonderful community-based venue, vegetarian pizza, and optional (but very enthusiastic!) jazz hands
“The workshop was truly inspiring and full of positive learnings. I really appreciated how feedback and ideas were discussed using such innovative and creative methodologies. It was also great that all of our voices were considered in many top-level decisions, which made me feel personally connected and gave me a strong sense of being an important part of Youth STEM 2030.”
