Youth Climate Action Fund

The City and County of Honolulu Office of Climate Change, Sustainability and Resiliency is implementing the Youth Climate Action Fund to support youth-led climate projects across Oahu. The program is supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies and the City's Climate Resiliency Fund and is intended to empower young residents ages 15 through 24 to design, develop, and implement solutions to pressing local needs that align with City climate goals and plans. Honolulu is participating in a broader Bloomberg Philanthropies Youth Climate Action Fund network of cities. The City describes the opportunity as an innovation competition through which strong youth-led proposals can receive project funding and City staff support to turn climate ideas into implemented projects. Projects must take the form of an event, campaign, or education effort and must be new, standalone projects rather than requests for supplemental funding for an ongoing program. Each project must select one of three themes and one category nested under that theme. Environmental Resiliency includes trees, plants, and invasive species; wetlands and streams; ocean and coastal protection; storms and flooding; increasing temperatures and drought; and wildfires. Sustainable Arts and Technology includes communications, media, and technology; arts and music; renewable energy; mobility and clean transportation; and buildings and the built environment. Indigenous and Community Resources includes food; potable/non-potable water; waste and recycling; equity and environmental justice; and Indigenous knowledge-informed solutions. Proposed activities and implementation must be completed by March 31, 2027. Each project must be led by at least two youth leaders who are 15 through 24 years old together with an eligible mentor organization. Eligible mentor organizations include youth-led organizations such as youth clubs or groups, youth-serving organizations that support young people, schools including public, private, and charter schools, universities, and other educational institutions serving youth ages 15 through 24. Organizations must be legally registered entities, must be recognized as nonprofit or charitable organizations under applicable local laws unless they are public entities, and must maintain a bank account in the organization's name. Funding cannot be issued directly to individuals. Applicants may request a specific amount from $1,000 through $4,999. Tier 1 covers $1,000 through $2,499 for eligible organizations that accept credit card transactions, with no further payment conditions stated. Tier 2 covers $1,000 through $2,499 for organizations that do not accept credit card transactions and require payment by check; Vendor Self Service registration is required for that payment method. Tier 3 covers $2,500 through $4,999. Organizations proposing projects that will invoice more than $2,499 can receive payment only by check and must be registered with Vendor Self Service and Hawaii Compliance Express. The application warns that an organization that is not already HCE compliant is highly unlikely to obtain approval with enough time to complete services by March 31, 2027. No applicant cost share or matching contribution is stated. Applicants must provide a budget explaining how the requested microgrant funds will be used and indicate whether they would accept an amended project amount if the full request cannot be fulfilled. The application requires the project name; applicant organization or group; EIN if applicable; names and ages of at least two youth project leads; authorized signatory and contact information; youth lead contact information; selected climate theme and category; project description; activities and timeline; role of young people; estimated number of young people involved; measurable project results; project impact; project support request; budget; funding flexibility response; and required signatures. The project description must identify the project type, provide a description of up to five sentences, state one goal, identify one output with a numerical target and one outcome with a numerical target, explain current issues or challenges and why intervention is important now, identify the specific location, and identify project stakeholders. Applicants must also explain youth roles, responsibilities, and leadership opportunities and describe how project impacts will be sustained after March 31, 2027. Applications must be submitted using the fillable application form by email to ycaf@honolulu.gov. The final application deadline is September 7, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. The source does not establish a separate mandatory letter of intent, concept paper, pre-proposal, or other pre-application gating deadline. The City's webpage also corrects an error in the application: the Project Result(s) section is shown in the form as having a maximum of 10 words, but the City states that it should read a maximum of 100 words. Applicants may direct program questions to ycaf@honolulu.gov. The Resilience Office's general contact number is (808) 768-2277. The sources do not provide a formal point-based evaluation rubric or a specific award notification date. The City states that the strongest proposals will receive funding and frames the program around youth-led climate solutions that complement City climate plans and address pressing local needs. Applicants should therefore demonstrate concrete youth leadership, clear alignment with a listed theme and its corresponding category, measurable outputs and outcomes, a specific implementation plan, and feasibility within the required completion period. All funded activities and implementation must be completed by March 31, 2027. No language in the supplied materials establishes an annual, biennial, quarterly, or other recurring application cycle, so no future recurring deadline is established from the available sources.

Propose a new standalone project rather than supplemental funding for an ongoing program; select exactly one theme and one category nested under that theme; demonstrate meaningful leadership by at least two youth ages 15-24; provide numerical output and outcome targets; explain the current local challenge and why intervention is needed now; identify a specific location and stakeholders; provide a feasible implementation timeline ending by March 31, 2027; ensure the mentor organization satisfies applicable VSS/HCE payment requirements; use the corrected Max 100 words limit for Project Result(s).