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Indigenous and Afro-descendant children aged 5 to 14 are gathering in climate assemblies in their territories to answer one question: how does the climate crisis affect them, and what solutions already exist where they live? Their answers will be shared at the Global Gathering of Indigenous and Afro-descendant Children on November 7, 2026. Each assembly can register here: https://imaginaccion.cc/
Key facts about the Global Gathering
- When: Saturday, November 7, 2026, 9:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. (UTC-6, Mexico and Central America).
- Where: Online, with children from five continents. Interpretation available in Spanish, English and Portuguese.
- Convened by: K’iche’, Nahua, P’urhépecha and Zapotec children from the Semilleros de Futuros Ancestrales (Ancestral Futures Seedbeds), with support from Hackeo Cultural, UNESCO and Fondo Defensores.
Why it matters
The climate is tightening its grip. The World Meteorological Organization forecasts that El Niño will reach very strong intensity by the end of 2026. According to UNICEF, 1.1 billion children, nearly half of the world’s children, are exposed to three or more climate hazards at the same time. El Niño will affect every area of UNESCO’s mandate: it will disrupt education, increase pressure on water and food systems, threaten cultural heritage and make access to reliable information more essential than ever. Behind these challenges are millions of people whose lives and livelihoods are at stake, which is why UNESCO is stepping up its response through “UNESCO x El Niño.”
The root is political. In Indigenous and Afro-descendant territories, droughts, wildfires and floods compound dispossession, racism and extractivism. Governments and corporations respond with limited solutions.
Children are not passive victims. The assembly is a form of self-governance for many people; practicing it from childhood recognizes children’s agency. They are not being asked for answers. They are being recognized as living solutions.
Stories from territories
The ImaginAction call grew out of community-based work with Nahua, K’iche’, P’urhépecha and Zapotec communities.
- Cuentepec, Morelos (Nahua). Facing a drought driven by Super El Niño that wiped out this year’s harvest, children point, in their own Nahuatl language, to threats such as open-pit mining as part of the cause. “We defend our language, our joy and our community life,” says Olin, age 6. Video
- Totonicapán, Guatemala (Maya K’iche’). Amid megaprojects, migration and climate displacement, girls and boys help sustain community water management. “Our K’iche’ ancestors held the soil and the water as sacred,” says one student. Video
- Cherán, Michoacán (P’urhépecha). In the town that defended its forest and won its autonomy, children see themselves as comuneros, full members of the community. Video
- Cuajimoloyas, Oaxaca (Zapotec). Illegal logging, water exploitation, tourism waste and a Super El Niño that is hitting their crops. Their response: “care for the forest” and “work the fields.” Video
