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What We Do

We are young evangelicals in the United States who are coming together and taking action to overcome the climate crisis as part of our Christian discipleship and witness.

Our Strategy

Young Evangelicals for Climate Action is both community-oriented and action-focused. We’re about coming together to unite our voices and act collectively to make a greater difference than what we would make on our own. Our diverse and creative actions are focused on three overarching goals integral to overcoming the climate crisis:

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Mobilizing our generation of evangelicals

to act and advocate together. We are building a movement of young evangelicals to overcome the adverse impacts of climate change and pursue sustainable lives that reduce our own carbon impact.

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Influencing our senior evangelical leaders

to set an example and support climate action. We are reaching out to our faith leaders and churches in an effort to cultivate real change in perceptions and lifestyles within our own faith community. We support our evangelical leaders who take action on the climate crisis and hold accountable those leaders who continue to oppose our efforts.

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Holding our political leaders accountable

to enact responsible and comprehensive climate policies. We advocate for meaningful policy change at the national and international levels. We support our political leaders when they take courageous and responsible steps to overcome the climate crisis.

Our History

Young Evangelicals for Climate Action (Y.E.C.A.) was founded by a core group of evangelical students and young professionals at a planning retreat convened by the Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN) in Washington, DC, on February 3, 2012. We quickly grew into a national initiative with activists and supporters across the United States. In sharing our personal stories of life, faith, and social concern, we have come to realize the interconnectedness of our past, the urgency of this current moment, and our calling to secure our future from the ever-worsening impacts of global warming.

Here are some of our key milestones so far:

  • February 3, 2012 | Y.E.C.A. envisioned at DC Planning Retreat 
  • April 26, 2012 | Participation in EEN’s Global Day of Prayer for Creation Care
  • April & May 2012 | Website and social media presence launched
  • October 16, 2012 | Prayer Rally outside 2nd Presidential Debate, NY
  • Spring 2013 | 1st Campus Speaking Tour
  • May 2013 | Evangelical Leaders Trip to Malawi
  • October & November 2013 | Participation in EPA Public Listening Sessions
  • February 2013 | Climate Prayer U.S. launched, “Forward on Climate” Rally in DC
  • April 3rd, 2014 | National Day of Prayer for Climate Action
  • May 2014 | Partnership Trip to the DR Congo
  • August 2014 | Climate Fellows Program & Regional Organizers launched
  • September 2014 | Testifying at EPA Hearings for the Clean Power Plan, People’s Climate March, NYC
  • September & November 2014 | Letter/Petition to the National Association of Evangelicals
  • October – December 2014 | Campus Tour PA-OH
  • March 2015 |  Regional Summit at Malone University, OH
  • May – June 2015 | Second Partnership Trip to the DR Congo & Kenya
  • September 2015 | Project Leaders Program launched, "Moral Action for Climate Justice" Rally in DC
  • October 2015 – January 2016 | Direct Questions to the Presidential Candidates on Climate, IA
  • October 2015 | Faith Leaders Luncheon, Sioux Center, IA
  • November 2015 | Acting in Faith on Climate Event, Ohio State University
  • December 2015 | Presence at and Webinar from the COP 21 Climate Negotiations, Paris
  • April 4, 2016 | Global Day of Prayer for Climate Action, Prayer Breakfast at Billy Graham Library, NC
  • April 2016 | Acting in Faith on Climate Event, Duke Divinity, Climate & Faith event with Dr. Katharine Hayhoe, Duke University, and Faith, Climate and Agriculture Forum, Northwestern College, IA 
  • June 2016 | Joined U.S. Climate Action Network 
  • September-October 2016 | Public presence at all three 2016 Presidential debates- Hofstra University in NY, Washington University in Missouri, and University of Nevada in Las Vegas.
  • February 2017 | Featured on National Public Radio (NPR) program 1A
  • February 2017 | Celebrated 5th anniversary as an organization
  • March 2017 | Creation Care, Climate, and the Gospel Event at Eastern University
  • April-May 2017 | Participated in People's Climate March and organized Evangelical Climate Advocacy Days in Washington, D.C.
  • May 2017 | Profiled on PBS NewsHour for climate advocacy work with conservative evangelicals.
  • November 2017 | Presence and advocacy at the COP 23 Climate Negotiations in Bonn, Germany
  • November 2017 | Presentation at WGBH Boston Innovation IdeaLab to national public media producers and journalists
  • August 2018 | Welcomed and trained our largest Climate Leadership Fellows cohort to date
  • September 2018 | National Day of Prayer for Climate Action
  • September 2018 | RepublicEN "Christian Climate Courage" Tour (Chicago and Western Michigan)
  • November 2018 | Presentation at Christian Community Development Conference