New Guide Equips Journalists to Place Children’s Rights in the Climate Coverage

In the lead-up to COP 30 in Brazil, a new resource is set to support journalists worldwide: “The Rights of Children and Adolescents in the Climate Agenda: A media coverage guide” is now available in English.

The publication approaches a pressing challenge: the climate emergency disproportionately affects children and adolescents, those least responsible for causing it. Despite this, their rights and specific vulnerabilities are often absent from major international negotiations and local policies about climate change.

The guide addresses this gap by providing journalists with content, context, and practical approaches to ensure that children’s voices and rights are represented in climate coverage.

With COP 30,  the United Nations Climate Change Conference, being hosted for the first time in Brazil, the guide aims to ensure that childhood is not overlooked in the global climate debate.

A Practical Tool for Journalists and Communicators

Structured for ease of use, the guide offers:

• In-depth analysis of how the climate crisis impacts children and adolescents;
• Insights into the vulnerabilities and rights at stake;
• Explanations of the COP process and how child-related issues intersect with climate negotiations;
• Curated story angles and reporting suggestions;
• A comprehensive database of expert sources, organizations, and children and youth collectives active in the climate agenda.

The guide is grounded in international legal frameworks, such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and provides evidence-based arguments for incorporating a child-centered perspective into climate policies and media narratives.

A Tool for COP 30 and Beyond

While the guide was launched ahead of COP 30, its scope extends far beyond the event. It is conceived as a continuous resource to assist journalists in covering the intersection of children’s rights and climate change in a profound, contextualized, and responsible manner.

By connecting the global dynamics of climate negotiations with the daily realities of children, especially in the Global South, the guide empowers communicators to produce stories that highlight the human dimension of the climate crisis.

The guide was originally published in Portuguese earlier this year by ANDI – Communications and Rights, a recognized non-governmental organization with more than 30 years of work in the field of children’s rights, committed to promoting human rights through qualified communication strategies.

The publication was developed in strategic partnership with Act For Early Years and the Van Leer Foundation, organizations committed to promoting children’s rights on a global scale.

Download the Guide