Climate education and AI safeguards for children take center stage at UNICEF Innocenti meetings
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“Protecting children and teens in the age of AI requires ensuring they remain connected to the real world,” said Andrea Koehle Jones, Founder, The ChariTree Foundation. “Climate education, including learning outdoors, plays a critical role in grounding young people and equipping them to respond to one of the defining challenges of their generation.”
Vancouver, Canada — Andrea Koehle Jones has returned from the UNICEF Innocenti meetings in Florence, bringing forward key insights on climate education, artificial intelligence and the growing risks facing children worldwide. 
“It’s always meaningful to spend time with the team at UNICEF Office of Strategy and Evidence – Innocenti, which works for and with children and young people to address their most pressing challenges,” said Koehle Jones. “This gathering felt especially important given the current global context and the increasing risks facing children worldwide.”
The meetings brought together global experts, researchers and advocates focused on advancing solutions for children. A central theme was the urgency of climate education and the need to transform how the world responds to the climate crisis.
Climate education and the urgency of now
The climate crisis is already causing profound and far-reaching disruption. Despite slipping down the global agenda amid competing priorities, action is more urgent than ever, especially as more than 1 billion children are already at extremely high risk (UNICEF).
Participants emphasized the importance of working meaningfully with young people, ensuring that climate education is elevated as both a fundamental right and a critical tool in preparing them to respond to environmental challenges.
AI, childhood and the need for safeguards
The discussions also highlighted the urgent need to better protect children and teens in the age of artificial intelligence.
As digital environments become more immersive and influential, risks are escalating, from disinformation and emotional dependency on chatbots to harmful deepfakes and the misuse of AI to generate abusive content using real children’s images. Despite this rapid evolution, children’s rights remain largely underrepresented in AI policy and development, underscoring the need for stronger protections and accountability.
“Protecting children and teens in the age of AI requires ensuring they remain connected to the real world,” said Koehle Jones. “Climate education, including learning outdoors, plays a critical role in grounding young people and equipping them to respond to one of the defining challenges of their generation.”
The insights from the meetings will continue to inform ongoing work through the Charitree Foundation, The FirstLine Foundation and broader collaborations focused on children, climate and education.
#ForEveryChild
About Andrea Koehle Jones
Andrea is an award-winning environmental education advocate, climate journalist, and children’s author, as well as the founder of Canada’s ChariTree Foundation and Co-Founder of The FirstLine Foundation. She serves as an advisor to the UNICEF Leading Minds Fellowship on Climate Education, advancing global efforts to position climate education as both a child’s right and a driver of systemic change. Her forthcoming children’s book on tree planting will be released in Spring 2026.