A summer internship for young climate activists in the church.

The General Council Office, in partnership with The GO Project, is pleased to announce the 2026 Climate Motivator Program.

Now entering its fourth year, the program continues to nurture hope-filled, adaptive, and effective young leaders responding to the climate crisis. In 2026, we are shifting our focus to work more closely with communities of faith, fostering multigenerational engagement that inspires local climate action and strengthens community resilience.

We invite your community to apply to host a Climate Motivator this summer.

Project Ideas

Need ideas for a local project? Here are a few suggestions:

Host an event that educates your local community about climate/sustainable actions, and how it connects to our faith
Prepare and/or preform an energy audit or retrofit project(s) with your local community of faith
Plant a pollinator, veggie garden, or native trees on your local church property.
Establish a “green team” within your community (with adults and/or youth!)

Here are a few resources:

Faithful Footprints: https://www.faithfulfootprints.org
United Church of Canada Sustainability Report: https://united-church.ca/sites/default/files/2023-04/2021-2022-sustainability-report.pdf
Concerned for Climate Justice Newsletter: https://us3.campaign-archive.com/home/?u=ff2087d5fde243a770ed893a8&id=0d61dbd548
Youth Climate Corps: https://www.climateemergencyunit.ca/climatecorps
Citizens for Public Justice – Climate Justice: https://cpj.ca/climate-justice/

MORE INFORMATION

The Four Pillars



Raising our Spirited Voices: advocacy and education



Getting our House in Order: reducing our carbon emissions



Connecting with Creation: individually and collectively reconnecting witht the earth



Responding to Climate Impact: emergency and disaster relief

Role of the Mentor

Check in with Motivator for a minimum of a 30-minute period every two weeks
Contact coordinators with any concerns about Motivator
Offer space as possible to Motivator (working from church…)
Plan with Motivator a way to present their project with their sponsoring COF at the end of the summer
Support Motivator in connecting with local communities
Promote and share news of the program on local social and web accounts

Role of the Community of Faith Sponsor

Provide a project for the Motivator to work on that fit into one of the four climate response buckets named above
Provide space for the Motivator to work for the summer (if there is space and it is accessible)
Promote Motivator’s work and events
Provide time for Motivator to present their work in worship, a lunch and learn, or other public event