My initiative is designed for and delivered in London
Yes
I am 18 years of age or above, by the application deadline.
Yes
My organisation is a registered UK entity and has a London-based address.
Yes
My organisation is a non-profit (e.g. school, university, or local authority) — not a for-profit, which can only join as a partner.
Yes
If there is a for-profit organisation as a partner in my initiative, they work on a cost-recovery basis only.
Yes
My solution is implemented at scale, or if not, I have a clear business plan, a minimum viable solution (prototype, pilot, or proof of concept), and evidence of work or impact in London within your coalition.
Yes
I am aware that, if I am submitting more than one application to a Challenge run by Ashoka and Go! London, only one of them is able to progress through the stages.
Yes
Are you an employee (and their children and grandchildren) of Ashoka or any of its respective affiliates and participating advertising and promotion agencies?
No
I have read and accepted the Challenge Terms & Conditions
1
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Are you applying from an organization founded by an Ashoka Fellow?
If you are applying from an organization founded by an Ashoka Fellow, please specify the name and organisation of the fellow below.
Initiative Title
Green Moves Hackney: Youth-Led Climate & Sport Action
Lead Organization Name
Ozer Umagen
My initiative is designed for and delivered in London
1
Year that you started/ registered your organisation
2018
Website URL(s) or Social Media Handles
https://gezint.org.uk/news/
Initiative Stage
Idea (You have a solid concept and are hoping to get started in the future)
Sectors/Themes: What topic does your project most directly relate to?
Children & Youth
Initiative Summary: Describe your initiative in one sentence
Green Moves Hackney is a youth-led programme that uses sport and physical activity to build climate awareness, inspire environmental action, and equip underserved young people in Hackney to create low-carbon, resilient play spaces in their communities.
Challenge Focus: What topic does your initiative most directly relate to?
Climate action through awareness and engagement
The Problem: What problem are you helping to solve and who will benefit the most from your solution? How close are you to the problem and/or community impacted?
Young people in Hackney, particularly those from low income, BAME, and learning disabled communities, are already experiencing the effects of climate change through extreme heat, poor air quality, limited safe green spaces, and rising costs that restrict access to sport and physical activity. These environmental pressures disproportionately affect underserved communities, reducing safe opportunities for play, increasing health risks, and limiting spaces where young people can gather, move, and connect. At the same time, many young people lack climate education that feels relevant to their daily lives. Climate conversations often feel abstract and disconnected from lived experience, and sport providers are not always equipped to adapt activities in environmentally responsible or climate resilient ways. As a result, those most affected by environmental inequality are rarely included in shaping solutions. Ozer Umagen works directly with underserved families and differently abled young people in Hackney through trusted community programmes. We see firsthand how heatwaves, unsafe conditions, and financial pressures disrupt participation. Through Green Moves Hackney, we will bridge climate awareness and action, empowering young people most affected to lead and shape sustainable, resilient sport in their neighbourhoods.
Your approach: How are you addressing the problem outlined above? How are you using the power of sport and physical activity to build awareness, shift behavior, and enable sustainable participation for all in response to the climate crisis? We'd love to know about the origin of your idea, and what was your "aha" moment" that led you to take action?
Green Moves Hackney will address climate inequality by embedding climate awareness into sport and physical activity programmes trusted by underserved young people. Climate education will be integrated into movement, play, and youth leadership to make learning practical, engaging, and relevant. The programme will run through three strands. Weekly sport sessions will adopt sustainable practices, including using local parks instead of energy-intensive venues, replacing single-use plastics, and scheduling sessions safely during extreme heat. Short interactive climate workshops will follow activities, linking experiences such as unsafe temperatures, poor air quality, and limited green spaces to practical actions. We will train a cohort of Youth Climate and Sport Leaders who will co-design sustainable play activities, lead peer discussions, and deliver community projects such as green space clean-ups, tree planting, and awareness campaigns. Sport will build belonging, trust, and teamwork. Embedding climate conversations within active, social environments will shift attitudes from fear or distance to agency and collective responsibility. Young people will move from passive recipients to visible leaders in their families, faith spaces, and communities. Our “aha” moment inspired the programme. During heatwaves, outdoor sessions are often shortened, participants struggle with high temperatures, and parents worry about safety. There is no framework to adapt activities sustainably, so we will create one. Green Moves Hackney will make sport safe, accessible, and climate-resilient, with young people actively leading change.
Collaboration with young people and the community: In what ways does your initiative engage young people and community members closest to the problem? What role do they play in building the solution you deliver?
Green Moves Hackney will be co-designed and led by the young people and communities most affected by climate inequality. From the outset, participants will help shape the programme, choosing which sports, play activities, and sustainable practices resonate with them and their neighbourhoods. Youth Climate and Sport Leaders will be selected from programme participants to lead peer workshops, mentor others, and coordinate small community projects such as green space clean-ups, tree planting, and local climate awareness campaigns. Community members, families, and local organisations will be actively involved in planning and supporting activities, providing insight into cultural, accessibility, and safety considerations. Regular feedback sessions will ensure the programme adapts to the needs and experiences of participants, giving young people a genuine voice in decision-making. Through this collaborative approach, young people will not only participate but also take ownership, building confidence, leadership skills, and environmental literacy. Their input will shape both day-to-day sessions and long-term programme development, ensuring solutions are relevant, practical, and sustainable. By involving the community directly in design and delivery, Green Moves Hackney will foster stronger connections, collective responsibility, and lasting climate action at a local level.
Potential for/Evidence of Impact: How do you imagine your initiative will make a difference in raising climate awareness, shifting behaviors, or reducing environmental impact or harm? If you have already implemented it, what difference have you made so far? What is the impact your initiative has had¡, and/or what impact do you envision having in the future?
Green Moves Hackney will make a tangible difference by equipping young people with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to act on climate change within their communities. By embedding climate awareness into sport and physical activity, participants will experience firsthand the connection between their daily choices, the environment, and community wellbeing. We anticipate that young people will adopt more sustainable habits, such as reducing single-use plastics, supporting local green initiatives, and advocating for climate-safe spaces in their neighbourhoods. Through the Youth Climate and Sport Leaders programme, participants will influence their peers and families, multiplying the reach of environmental messaging and creating a culture of collective responsibility. Community projects, such as green space clean-ups and tree planting, will have immediate, visible environmental benefits while fostering a sense of agency and achievement. Over time, we envision measurable impact in several areas: increased climate literacy among participants, improved access to sustainable and safe sport activities, and stronger youth-led climate action at a local level. By centering the voices of young people most affected by environmental inequality, Green Moves Hackney will shift attitudes, change behaviours, and reduce environmental harm while building long-term resilience in Hackney’s communities.
Innovation: What is different about your initiative compared to other solutions that are already out there? How is your approach original and innovative?
Green Moves Hackney is innovative because it integrates climate action directly into sport and physical activity rather than treating environmental education as a separate topic. While many programmes focus on either youth engagement in sport or climate awareness, our initiative combines both, creating a practical, hands-on approach that links movement, play, and leadership with real-world environmental challenges. The programme is youth led, giving participants agency to co design sessions, lead peer workshops, and implement community projects. This ensures solutions are grounded in the lived experiences of those most affected by climate inequality rather than imposed externally. By embedding sustainable practices into everyday sports activities, such as using local green spaces, reducing single-use plastics, and scheduling sessions safely during extreme weather, Green Moves Hackney makes environmental responsibility tangible and actionable. Our approach also builds leadership, teamwork, and resilience while tackling climate change, creating a model that is both socially and environmentally transformative. Unlike traditional programmes, it positions young people as visible leaders in their communities, shifting them from passive recipients of climate messaging to active change makers who influence peers, families, and neighbourhoods. Through this combination of youth led design, sport based engagement, and climate action, Green Moves Hackney offers a new, scalable, and inclusive model for empowering young people to respond to the climate crisis in ways that are meaningful, practical, and sustainable.
Roles and Responsibilities: Describe how responsibilities are shared among your team or partners.
Ozer Umagen will lead the programme, coordinating overall delivery, managing logistics, and ensuring activities align with both climate and youth engagement objectives. Our experienced staff will design sport sessions, integrate sustainable practices, and deliver interactive climate workshops. They will also provide ongoing mentorship to Youth Climate and Sport Leaders, supporting them to develop leadership skills, co-design sessions, and implement community projects. Youth Climate and Sport Leaders, selected from programme participants, will play an active role in shaping the activities, leading peer workshops, and running community projects such as green space clean-ups, tree planting, and awareness campaigns. This ensures young people have ownership of the programme and that solutions are grounded in their lived experiences. Community partners, including local schools, BAME groups, and environmental organisations, will support by providing access to venues, resources, and additional expertise. They will help recruit participants, advise on cultural and accessibility considerations, and assist with the delivery of events and community actions. All partners and team members will meet regularly to review progress, share feedback, and ensure responsibilities are coordinated. This collaborative structure ensures each partner contributes meaningfully, combining expertise, local knowledge, and youth leadership to deliver an effective, sustainable, and inclusive programme.
Viability and Scalability: How are you setting your organization up for success, and what is your plan to ensure operational sustainability of your solution and its impact? What are your ideas for scaling your initiative to the next level?
Ozer Umagen will deliver Green Moves Hackney through our trusted community networks, experienced staff, and weekly programmes. Sustainability will be ensured by training Youth Climate and Sport Leaders to take ownership of activities and building partnerships with local schools, faith groups, and environmental organisations. To scale, we will document the model, share toolkits, and recruit additional community coaches to expand sessions across Hackney and neighbouring areas. Funding will support venues, equipment, and youth leadership development. Key milestones include programme design and staff training (months 1–2), recruitment and training of youth leaders (months 2–3), pilot sport and climate sessions (months 3–4), community projects such as clean-ups and tree planting (months 4–6), and monitoring and evaluation to refine the model (months 6–8). By month 8, we aim to plan borough-wide expansion, ensuring long-term youth-led climate action and sustainable participation.
Upcoming Milestones: Please provide an overview of the milestones that are required for your initiative to come to fruition/ to grow.
Months 1–2: Programme design, integration of sustainable practices, and staff training on climate-aware sport delivery. Months 2–3: Recruitment and training of Youth Climate and Sport Leaders to co-design sessions and lead peer activities. Months 3–4: Pilot sport and climate workshops with participants, testing session formats, sustainability practices, and interactive learning activities. Months 4–6: Launch community projects led by youth leaders, including green space clean-ups, tree planting, and awareness campaigns. Months 6–8: Ongoing monitoring, feedback collection, and evaluation to refine programme design. Preparation for borough-wide expansion and scaling the model to additional communities. Outcome: By month 8, young people will have increased climate literacy, leadership experience, and engagement in sustainable sport, while the programme will be ready for wider implementation and replication in other neighbourhoods.
Capacity-Building Participation and Support Funding: If you were to make it as a finalist, you will be required to participate in an 8-week capacity building programme. If funding/ cost is a barrier to your participation, we may be able to offer up to 10,000 GBP of grant money available to support you. Please break down below, if it is the case, what costs you would incur and you would need covered. (Please note that there are restrictions on how the grant money may be used; please refer to the T&Cs for further details (LINK).
Ozer Umagen will fully cover any costs associated with participating in the 8-week capacity-building programme, including staff time, travel, and coordination. We do not require additional funding for this component and are able to participate using our own resources.
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