Top 22 Climate Voices to Follow in 2022

All around the world, millions of people are taking action to help protect our planet and reduce the impacts of climate change. There are so many great voices contributing to the climate conversation, but some bring unique and inspiring perspectives that are particularly worthy of our attention. Here are some of our favorite climate advocates to follow:

1. Alexandria Villaseñor is a 16-year-old climate activist and second generation Mexican-American. She is the founder of the organization Earth Uprising, which educates and mobilizes young climate activists. Before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Alexandria skipped school and protested outside the United Nations headquarters in New York City every Friday for more than a year. Follow her on Twitter @AlexandriaV2005 or Instagram @alexandriav2005.

2. Autumn Peltier is a 17-year-old Canadian clean water activist from the Wiikwemkoong First Nation in Ontario. Autumn has advocated for the preservation of drinking water for Indigenous peoples since she was 8 years old. She is the Chief Water Commissioner for Anishinabek Nation and has spoken before the United Nations General Assembly, the World Economic Forum, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about the importance of clean water. Follow her on Instagram @autumn.peltier.

3. Dr. Ayana Johnson is a PhD marine biologist, policy expert, and conservation strategist who works to highlight the connection between the ocean, climate change, and climate justice. She is the founder of Urban Ocean Lab, a think tank that focuses on climate policy and the future of coastal cities, co-editor of the climate anthology All We Can Save, and co-host of the podcast How to Save a Planet. Follow her on Twitter @ayanaeliza or Instagram @ayanaeliza.

4. Christiana Figueres is the former executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). She was one of chief architects of the Paris Climate Agreement and played a major role in its adoption. Originally from Costa Rica, she has worked in the fields of climate change, sustainable development, energy, and land use, and she currently co-hosts a weekly climate change podcast called Outrage + Optimism, which promotes “stubborn optimism” as the way to tackle the climate crisis. Follow her on Twitter @CFigueres or Instagram @cfigueres.

5. Dallas Goldtooth is an Indigenous climate activist and organizer. He leads the Keep It In The Ground campaign for the Indigenous Environmental Network—the organization led by his father, globally recognized activist Tom B.K Goldtooth. Dallas was featured in the Grist 50 in 2017 and co-founded an Indigenous comedy group called The 1491s. Most recently, he has started in and helped write the FX comedy series Reservation Dogs. Follow Dallas on Twitter @dallasgoldtooth or Instagram @dallasgoldtooth.

6. Elizabeth Yeampierre is a Brooklyn-based climate justice leader. She is the co-chair of the Climate Justice Alliance and the Executive Director of UPROSE, a Latino community-based organization in Brooklyn that promotes sustainability and climate justice. She was the first Latina chair appointed to the EPA’s National Environmental Justice Advisory Council and was also selected as the opening speaker at President Obama’s first White House Forum on Environmental Justice. Follow her on Twitter @yeampierre.

7. Greta Thunberg is a 19-year-old Swedish climate activist and one of the most prominent climate activists in the world. In August 2018, Greta began her weekly “School Strike for the Climate,” which has turned into the global youth movement Fridays For Future. She has addressed numerous world leaders, including the UN and the United States Congress, urging them to take action on climate change. In 2019 she was named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year. Follow her on Twitter @GreatThunberg or Instagram @gretathunberg.

8. Isaias Hernandez is an environmentalist and eco-educator. Through social platforms such as Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok, Isaias shares accessible content under his brand Queer Brown Vegan to educate people on various topics related to environmental justice and green living. Follow him on Instagram @QueerBrownVegan or Twitter @QueerBrownVegan. 

9. Isra Hirsi is the 18-year-old daughter of Congresswoman Ilhan Omar and a prominent climate activist. She is the co-founder and co-executive director of the U.S. Youth Climate Strike and has organized hundreds of youth-led climate strikes across the country. In 2019 she was one of 6 recipients of the Brower Youth Awards, North America's top prize for bold young environmental leaders. Follow her on Instagram @israhirsi or Twitter @israhirsi.

10. Jerome Foster II is a 19-year-old climate activist from Washington D.C. He is the youngest member of the White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council, and he has developed virtual reality experiences to help people learn more about issues such as ocean plastic pollution, melting glaciers, and fossil fuel pollution. He has spoken about the climate crisis before the United Nations High Commission on Human Rights and the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis. Follow him on Twitter @JeromeFosterII or Instagram @jeromefosterii.

11. Dr. Katharine Hayhoe is an atmospheric climate scientist and professor. She is an expert on how to discuss climate change and gave a TED Talk called “The most important thing you can do to fight climate change: talk about it.” She produces a YouTube series called Global Weirding, which uses colorful cartoons to teach children about climate change and the environment. Follow her on Twitter @KHayhoe.

12. Dr. Katharine Wilkinson is an author, public speaker, strategist, podcaster, and educator on climate science. She co-hosts the climate podcast A Matter of Degrees with climate professor Dr. Leah Stokes. Along with Dr. Ayana Johnson, she co-edited the climate anthology All We Can Save—a collection of essays from women in the climate movement. Follow her on Twitter @DrKWilkinson. 

13. Leah Namugerwa is a 17-year-old climate activist from Uganda who has become a prominent climate voice in her country. She participates in Fridays For Future school strikes every Friday and started a petition to President Museveni for Uganda to ban plastic bags. Follow her on Instagram @namugerwaleah or Twitter @NamugerwaLeah. 

14. Leah Thomas, also known as Green Girl Leah, is the founder and creative director of Intersectional Environmentalist. IE is a platform that highlights the connections between climate and racial justice, amplifies people of color in the environmental movement, and advocates for inclusion in environmentalism. Follow Leah on Twitter @Leahtommi or Instagram @greengirlleah, and follow Intersectional Environmentalist on Twitter @isxenviro or Instagram @intersectionalenvironmentalist. 

15. Mari Copeny, also known as “Little Miss Flint,” is a 14-year-old from Flint, Michigan. In 2016, she wrote a letter to President Obama about Flint’s water crisis, which inspired him to travel to Flint and gave the city national attention. She now uses her platform to bring awareness to the Flint water crisis, as well as raise donations for water bottles, books, toys, and other resources for Flint residents. Follow her on Twitter @LittleMissFlint or Instagram @littlemissflint.

16. Mary Annaïse Heglar is a climate justice writer. She has served as the Director of Publications at Natural Resources Defense Council and the inaugural writer-in-residence at Columbia University’s Earth Institute. She produces a climate podcast and newsletter with environmental journalist Amy Westervelt called Hot Take, in which they look at media coverage of climate change with an intersectional lens. Follow her on Twitter @MaryHeglar. 

17. Quannah Chasinghorse is a 19-year-old climate activist from the Hän Gwich’in and Oglala Lakota tribes. Based in Alaska, Quannah is a vocal advocate for protecting the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge from oil drilling and protecting Arctic communities from the devastating effects of climate change. She was featured in Teen Vogue’s 21 Under 21 list and gained national prominence after her appearance at the 2021 Met Gala. Follow her on Instagram @quannah.rose or Twitter @Qchasinghorse.  

18. Dr. Robert Bullard is known as the father of environmental justice. He has written 18 books on environmental racism and other topics such as sustainable development, urban land use, industrial facility siting, and regional equity. He is the co-founder of the HBCU Climate Change Consortium and was named one of 22 climate trailblazers and one of the 100 most influential people in climate policy. Follow him on Twitter @DrBobBullard.

19. Tara Houska is an Indigenous land and water advocate and tribal attorney from the Couchiching First Nation. Tara participated in the Dakota Access Pipeline protests and gave a TED Talk called “The Standing Rock resistance and our fight for Indigenous rights.” She co-founded the nonprofit Not Your Mascots and was featured in the Grist 50 in 2017. Follow her on Twitter @zhaabowekwe.

20. Vanessa Nakate is a 25-year-old climate justice activist from Uganda. In January 2019, she began a strike outside the Ugandan parliament to protest climate inaction—and was the sole protester for several months. She also founded the climate action groups Youth for Future Africa, Rise Up Movement, and 1 Million Activist Stories. Vanessa has spoken at COP25 in Spain and the World Economic Forum in Davos. Follow her on Twitter @vanessa_vash or Instagram @vanessanakate1.

21. Varshini Prakash is co-founder and executive director of Sunrise Movement, a prominent climate organization that mobilizes young people to advocate for climate action. Varshini and Sunrise Movement gained national attention during their 2018 sit-ins outside of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s office, when Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez joined their protest. Varshini was included on the 2019 Time 100 list, nominated by Governor Jay Inslee, and the 2018 Grist 50 list. Her work has been featured in the Washington Post, New Yorker, Forbes, Vox, Vice, TeenVogue, BBC, and more. Follow her on Twitter @VarshPrakash.

22. Xiye Bastida is a 19-year-old climate activist. She and her family moved to New York City after her Indigenous community in Mexico was ravaged by heavy rainfall and flooding. As a lead organizer of the Fridays For Future youth climate strikes, Xiye fights to keep Indigenous peoples at the forefront of the climate conversation. Follow her on Twitter @xiyebastida or Instagram @xiyebeara.

At CleanChoice Energy, we envision a world free of catastrophic climate change for all. We are grateful for these climate leaders and so many others who are working alongside us to make that vision a reality.