Why the climate crisis is a child rights crisis — and what we can do about it.
Around the world, everyone is grappling with the uncertainty of a world affected by climate change and children are bearing the brunt of the impact. Extreme weather, rising seas, droughts, and disasters are not distant possibilities, they are happening now, and they are reshaping the way children live, learn, and grow.
From health and education to basic survival, the environmental impact on children is already profound, and the most vulnerable are being hit first and hardest.
The climate crisis through a child’s eyes
Children in the Pacific are among the most exposed to climate-related risks. In countries like Vanuatu, Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea, rising temperatures and increasingly severe weather events threaten homes, infrastructure, public health – and even children’s rights, as they are now growing up with disrupted routines, constant uncertainty, and heightened risks.
Yet these same children are deeply engaged and aware. Save the Children supports youth-focused climate projects that enable young people to understand the crisis and help shape local responses. In Vanuatu, for example, we are supporting young people to identify climate threats and develop community-led solutions.
How disasters are displacing children from home and school
Climate-induced disasters are displacing families and closing schools. Across the Pacific, natural hazards like cyclones, floods and droughts are becoming more frequent and more intense — and they are disproportionately affecting children.
When schools are destroyed or damaged, education halts. When families are forced to relocate, children lose not just their homes but also their communities and sense of safety. For children in places already facing high rates of poverty and geographic isolation, the impact is even more severe. This disruption affects academic outcomes, as well as compromising long-term wellbeing and protection.
The hidden cost: Malnutrition and disease linked to climate change
Climate change is threatening food security and public health across the region. In the Pacific, changing weather patterns are disrupting agriculture and reducing access to fresh water. The consequences for children are serious: increased rates of malnutrition, stunting, and illness.
Save the Children has identified malnutrition as one of the key development challenges facing the Pacific. In communities already grappling with health inequities, climate change and children’s nutritional needs intersect with devastating results. Children’s development depends on a stable environment, and climate change is making that harder to guarantee.
Psychological impact: What eco-anxiety means for young people
Beyond physical health, the emotional toll of climate change on children is increasingly recognised. As children grow up in environments marked by disaster, uncertainty, and instability, many are experiencing forms of “eco-anxiety” — a deep worry about the future of their planet. Children in the Pacific and other climate-vulnerable regions live with this fear in immediate, tangible ways. It’s not just a future problem, it’s a daily reality. That’s why supporting children’s mental health must be a part of any meaningful climate response.
Children taking charge: The youth movement for climate justice
Despite the challenges, children are not passive in this crisis. Around the world and across the Pacific, young people are stepping up as leaders and advocates for climate justice.
In Vanuatu, Save the Children supports a group of young people known as the NextGen Youth Ambassadors, who are taking action on climate change and children’s rights. These young leaders are building knowledge, engaging their communities, and shaping policy conversations. Child-led initiatives like these demonstrate the importance of recognising children not just as recipients of aid, but as agents of change.
How Save the Children is helping build climate resilience
Save the Children works across the Pacific to support governments, communities and children to prepare for and adapt to climate change. This includes disaster preparedness programs, education system strengthening, food security initiatives, and the development of local climate adaptation plans.
We partner with governments in Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu to deliver resilience-building projects that centre the needs and voices of children. Our approach combines technical expertise with community-led planning to ensure solutions are sustainable, locally driven, and will reduce the climate crisis’s environmental impact on children.
This work is grounded in the belief that protecting children’s rights includes protecting the environment they depend on.
What you can do to protect children’s futures
Climate change is not a distant threat — it is a lived crisis for millions of children today. But we all have a role to play in creating a safer future. You can support organisations like Save the Children working on climate resilience and child protection, seek out and amplify children’s voices and advocate for policies that prioritise climate change and children, research ways to reduce your own environmental footprint, and share information and build awareness about the environmental impact on children.
Children have the most to lose from climate inaction, and the most to gain from bold solutions. The time to act is now.