Youth Climate Conference
Every year, RIEEA hosts an event for Rhode Island youth ages 14–18, where connection, learning, and action come together in a powerful experience.
Registration is now open for the Rhode Island Youth Climate Conference! This event is for teams of 3-6 youth (ages 14-18) and an adult mentor and will take place on Saturday, November 7, 2026, at the Roger Williams Park Zoo. This is a free event; lunch will be provided and transportation costs will be covered.
Registration closes at 5:30PM on Thursday, October 29, 2026.
2026 Rhode Island Youth Climate Conference
WHEN: Saturday, November 7, from 9:15 am – 3:30 pm
WHERE: Roger Williams Park Zoo Conservation Learning Center
Get ready to connect, create, share ideas, and turn your climate passion into action! The 2026 Rhode Island Youth Climate Conference brings Rhode Island high school students together for a day of creativity, collaboration, and inspiration with other young people working to make a difference.
We’ll kick things off with check-in, introductions, and a fun icebreaker before jumping into a hands-on art experience led by Eli Nixon. Together, we’ll explore climate emotions, imagination, and community while creating new holidays that celebrate the amazing organisms, landscapes, and natural places that make Rhode Island special.
Then it’s time to split up! Mentors will work with SJ Jennings on ways to support and empower young people as they turn ideas into action. Meanwhile, youth will hear directly from young panelists about their experiences leading projects that connect climate change, resilience, and their communities. You’ll have plenty of time to ask questions, swap ideas, and connect with other participants during small-group conversations.
After lunch, students and mentors will team up to dig into the how-to of climate action. You’ll learn how to plan a climate action project, explore funding opportunities, and start thinking about how your own ideas could create real change in your community.
Next up: communications! Ocean State Media will give you tools to navigate media and tell your story with confidence through understanding the media landscape to sharing your work and getting your message out there.
We’ll then hear from Ayana Melvan, who will share her journey from a childhood fascination with the ocean to becoming a marine scientist and advocate. Ayana’s story will inspire you to think about where your own interests could take you and how you can use your voice to make an impact.
We’ll wrap up with a quick concluding activity before giving everyone some time to hang out, connect with fellow participants, and enjoy the Zoo together.
Come ready to meet new people, get creative, ask big questions, and leave with ideas you can actually put into action.
Please share widely!
Scroll down to learn more about featured presenters, sponsors, and last year’s conference.
FEATURED PRESENTERS
Ayana Melvan
Ayana Melvan is the Aquarium Conservation Partnership’s Executive Vice President. Ayana has led work with a racial equity lens using the collective impact approach locally and nationally for more than a decade. She has worked across sectors, including youth development, to address social, environmental, and ocean justice, especially in the fields of youth development, aquariums, and zoos. She was one of the founders and co-chairs of the ACP Equity Work Group. Ayana graduated cumlaude from the University of Massachusetts – Amherst with a B.A. in communications with a film certification. When Ayana isn’t at work, she’s enjoying the beautiful shoreline of Rhode Island at Misquamicut Beach with her family during all seasons!
Eli Nixon
Eli Nixon concocts low-tech public spectaculah. They are a settler-descended transqueer clown, a cardboard constructionist, and a maker of plays, puppets, pageants, parades, drawings, suitcase theaters, and primordial interventions in Modern Human time. Eli collaborates with artists, scientists, schools, mental health and recovery centers, libraries and the more-than-human world to expand imaginative capacity and build muscles for collective liberation. They believe in the transformative power of snacks, tide pools, costumes, friendship and “free time.” Eli was named RIEEA’s ‘Environmental Educator of the Year’ in 2025. They are a Rhode Islander living on Pokanoket, Nipmuc and Narragansett land.
Ocean State Media
Fueled by fearless local journalism, community-centered storytelling and multi-platform innovation, Ocean State Media connects with audiences where they are. We listen deeply, partner with our neighbors and create space for dynamic conversations and meaningful connections.
SJ Jennings
SJ Jennings (she/they) is an educator, facilitator, and community connector dedicated to transforming how young people and adults work together for climate justice. As the founder of Halcyon ELIT Consulting, SJ partners with schools, nonprofits, and community organizations to build capacity for liberatory, intersectional, and inquiry-driven environmental learning. She is also an adjunct professor at URI, teaching topics that span from foundations of environmental education and program equity in evaluation. Their work centers youth leadership, collective care, and the belief that meaningful action grows from authentic relationships. SJ supports adults in shifting power back to young people, as thoughtful partners in climate planning to action.
Thank you to our 2026 funders and partners!
2025 Rhode Island Youth Climate Conference
On Saturday, November 8, 2025, teams of teens and adult mentors from across Rhode Island gathered for the first Rhode Island Youth Climate Conference, a day of climate learning, collaboration, and action planning.
The day started off with an energizing collaborative art project led by Agonza. Then teams learned how to talk about climate change with Kait Birghenthal from NNOCCI. After an inspiring keynote presentation with Chris Gaynor of RI DEM, youth panelists James Tzul, Frank Jolifier, Abby Paull, and Ethan Paiva shared stories of creativity, community, and leadership while SJ Jennings helped adult mentors explore youth-adult partnerships.
Finally, teams learned how to create a climate action plan and ways to get support and funding to bring their projects to life.
This event was more than just a conference, it was a space for bringing together the next generation of Rhode Island leaders and building community.
