Pittsburgh Youth Climate Action Summit

Youth Climate Action Summits provide a collective space to uplift and center the voices and ideas of regional youth leaders
and their fight for climate justice.

2024 Summit Registration Closed

Registration closed

Saturday, April 13th, 10 - 4

David L. Lawrence Convention Center, downtown Pittsburgh

Come to the Summit to see the winners!

2023 First Prize
Weeping Willow by Kendall Smith

Calling all artists! We are looking for art from youth artists in the Pittsburgh area that centers around the themes of climate change, environmental justice, or sustainability. The deadline to submit your art is
April 1, 2024 by 11:59 p.m. Artwork will be voted on by a panel of judges. Winning artwork will be announced at the Pittsburgh Youth Climate Action Summit; artists must attend the Summit on April 13 in order to have their artwork displayed.

Thank you to our sponsors!

Presenting Sponsor

EPIC Metals

Youth Advocate Level

3R Sustainability

Duolingo

Pittsburgh Regional Transit (PRT)

Friends of Communitopia Level

Action for the Climate Emergency

Highland Fleets

See how your company can cultivate climate action for years to come…..

Become a Sponsor!

Learn about EPIC Metal's commitment to sustainability

Meet Our Speakers

Keynote Speaker
Joylette was a founding member of Communitopia and the creative force behind a series of videos urging the public to act on climate change. She is currently the Executive Director of Sustainable Pittsburgh.
Breakout Speaker
In this session, Moses will help us make the connections between climate change and other social justice issues. Everyone will participate to chop down the "tree of oppression" and envision a better future.
Breakout Speaker
Join Communitopia’s Education Director in an interactive session on bringing climate action into your school or community.

Meet our 2024 Summit Organizers

Avery, Sophomore, Woodland Hills HIgh School

Hello! My name is Avery (They/Them pronouns). I am in 10th grade at Woodland Hills High School. I am a junior firefighter with the Edgewood VFD. I am involved in many other activities that include: musicals, marching band, international studies club, and more! In my community, there are not many community bonding activities, so I am looking into having a day for tree planting in my community soon. I do not have much experience in this specific summit, but I have been to other summits held. For example, I was an attendee at a summit talking about the history of African Americans. Though I do not have much experience, I know that I will learn lots from this experience. I hope I can bring fun and excitement to our group, but at the same time, I want to bring a work ethic and be able to present the point we want to get across clearly. I hope to receive more knowledge than I started out this program with, not just for myself, but so that I can spread this knowledge among others. I also hope that I can leave this program with new bonds and friendships, so that we can keep each other accountable in the future. I look forward to the summit!!!

Claire, Junior, Taylor Allderdice High School

Hello! My name is Claire Bertolet (she/her) and I am an 11th grader at Taylor Allderdice High School. In my free time I enjoy going on walks in Frick Park, playing tennis, and escaping reality through books and music. I’ve been involved with Communitopia programming for about four years now, and have lots of experience participating in the Pittsburgh climate action scene. This will be my third year actively participating in Communitopia’s Pittsburgh Youth Climate Action Summit, and I’m really excited to see what new ideas we can bring to the table. I helped plan the Summit last year, along with presenting at the Summit in 2023 and 2022, so I like to think I bring the skill of past experience to the table. I also have experience public speaking and networking, which I think will be very helpful when planning this summit. I’m hoping this summit will help bring together the youth climate action movement in Pittsburgh, and inspire others wanting to get involved. I’m really excited to get started planning this summit and bring the community together!

Mathilda, Junior, CAPA

Hi! I’m Mathilda (any pronouns). I am an 11th grader at Pittsburgh CAPA. Most of the climate action I’ve taken has been on a more personal level (trash pick-ups with family, composting, gardening, etc.) but this year I also participated in the United States Local Conference of Youth (LCOY) to formulate and write a list of climate justice demands that will be combined with demands from other regions and sent to COP 28. I am looking towards bigger projects in my community since I’ve joined action groups, like PYCA and the Phipp’s Youth Climate Advocacy Comittee (also with Claire and Vanessa). I, like Vanessa, infamously do too many activities. (My last name is Turich, pronounced like tur-ick, and one of my best friends has taken to calling said activities my extra-turich-ulars.) These include but are not limited to martial arts, drums, and running my school newspaper. I can bring skills in writing, video editing, and theatrical development + game making to the group. I also enjoy public speaking. I can’t wait to plan the summit with y’all! I hope to learn more about planning and networking, and to make new friends along the way.

Vanessa, Senior, Winchester Thurston School

I’m Vanessa (she/her). I’m a senior at Winchester Thurston School, and this is my second year helping plan the summit. Outside of Communitopia, I’m part of the Citizens’ Climate Lobby Intergenerational Climate Conversation Action Team and Phipps Youth Climate Advocacy Committee, but the environmental project I’m most involved with is my school environmental club. I try to work on climate action on a number of levels – from direct actions like trash cleanups to indirect actions like calling members of congress. I look forward to bringing my experience from these various pursuits to summit planning. I also love graphic design and gamifying climate action, so I’m excited to get to do some of that too! When I’m not doing climate work, I infamously do tooooo many activities. I play the cello and I’m on my school’s Science Olympiad and soccer teams to name a few. I’m excited to start working with and learning from all the awesome people that the summit team is made of!