COP29 is in full swing. Meet 12 incredible climate activists sounding the alarm all year round

COP29, the world's most important climate change conference, is underway in Azerbaijan. Every year, world governments gather to compare notes on how to tackle the ongoing climate crisis and track progress towards meeting environmental targets. And this year, there's serious concern that Donald Trump's recent US election victory could impact these goals.

While the climate crisis impacts everyone – yes, even Presidents – it's women and girls fleeing environmental danger zones (often brought on by extreme weather) who are currently bearing the brunt of the devastation. Zahra Hdidou, Senior Resilience Climate Specialist at ActionAid UK, says, “It’s heartbreaking to see women facing soaring rates of domestic violence and girls leaving school due to climate change.”

At COP29, Hdidou is calling for the UK government to “take unprecedented action and deliver vital funding to frontline women climate leaders.”

Every year, COP draws attention to the most pressing issues in the climate crisis. But it's also vital to recognise the fearless activists and campaigners shouting about the climate emergency all year round – often at an incredible personal cost.

Here are 12 of the most inspiring climate activists that need to be on your radar during (and after) COP29…

1. Vanessa Nakate

Vanessa Nakate is a Ugandan climate activist who rose to prominence when she took to protesting (on her own) outside the Ugandan parliament, calling out their lack of action on climate change.

She has since been one of the leading climate activists, starting the Green Schools Project, which aims to transition schools in Uganda to solar energy, and attending COP26 in 2021, where she highlighted the colonial roots of climate change, saying, “Historically, Africans are responsible for only 3% of emissions, and yet some of us are suffering some of the most brutal impacts fuelled by the climate crisis.”

2. Jo (@treesnpeace)

Jo is a vegan, environmentalist, and zero-waste blogger from Dundee who is fighting for a better future. This young activist focuses on caring for your body and the earth as one, as she believes the two are entwined. Watch her Instagram Stories to find out her recommendations for her favourite sustainable products.

3. Immy Lucas

Colorado-based Immy created the Low Impact Movement in 2018 to encourage people to become 100% waste-free like her. She takes a softer approach to activism, combining a plant-based lifestyle with minimalism and ethics, often using beautiful imagery and an approachable style to document her lifestyle and encourage others to follow in her footsteps.

4. Autumn Peltier

Autumn Peltier is an Anishinaabe Indigenous clean water advocate from the Wiikwemkoong First Nation on Manitoulin Island in Canada. She was inspired by her aunt Josephine Mandamen – who started the Water Walks (in which you pray and advocate for clean water) in Ontario – to continue her water advocacy.

Autumn is now lobbying the Canadian government to ensure that Indigenous people in Canada have access to clean water. You can support her campaign, here.

5. Mari Copeny

At only 16 years old, Mari Copeny is the youngest activist on this list. It's hard to believe that someone so young could have made such a big impact on the world but she really has. Known as ‘Little Miss Flint’, Mari is a tireless fundraiser, having raised $280,000 to distribute over one million bottles of water in Flint after the state stopped distributing free water, and over $500,000 for her Flint Kids projects, which include donating over 16,000 backpacks filled with school supplies.

6. Greta Thunberg

This amazing 20-year-old from Sweden barely needs an introduction. After her viral protest outside Swedish Parliament, where she called for more action against climate change, She has been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize and inspired young adults across the world to take a stance and act for their future, including the UK school climate strikes.

7. Pattie Gonia

Pattie Gonia is an incredible environmentalist who's connected with millions of people through their TikTok account, where they shared an incredible homemade look constructed entirely from trash. We also love their take on the Sound of Music: “The hills are alive with the sound of… climate change.”

8. Txai Suruí

Txai Suruí is an Indigenous activist, born of the Suruí people in Rondônia, Brazil. She has founded the Movement of Indigenous Youth of Rondônia and campaigns tirelessly to preserve the rights and land of Indigenous people.

9. Xiye Bastida

Xiye Bastida is a Mexican-Chilean climate activist who is part of the Otomi Indigenous group in Mexico. She is Bastida, a lead organiser with Fridays For Future, a youth climate strike movement, which organises strikes and campaigns about climate change. In 2018, she received the “Spirit of the UN” award.

10. Jessica Harumi

Slow fashion blogger Jessica started her sustainable fashion, slow travel, and minimalist blog back in 2018. The Seattle-based influencer gives out advice on building a foundation wardrobe with good quality basics and crafting capsule wardrobes.

11. Phoebe Plummer

Earlier this year, Phoebe Plummer and her Just Stop Oil comrade Anna Holland were jailed for throwing soup over Vincent van Gogh's famous Sunflowers painting in the National Gallery. They were each convicted of criminal damage. While their protest was extreme, their cause demanded the world's attention. The court heard that, after throwing the soup, Phoebe shouted, "What is worth more, art or life? Is it worth more than food? Worth more than justice?

“Are you more concerned about the protection of a painting or the protection of our planet and people?”

12. Mikaela Loach

Mikaela Loach is widely recognised as one of the most influential women in the climate justice movement. Earlier this year, she told GLAMOUR, “We have the opportunity to transform the world, not just preserve or maintain it with its inbuilt oppression.”

Now, wouldn't that be something?

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