Youth Eco Summit unites Indian students to tackle AI's environmental impact and climate change

AI is no longer a future-facing concept. It is shaping classrooms, careers, climate solutions and everyday decision-making often faster than conversations around responsibility, ethics and impact can keep up. Sridhar Vembu, founder of Zoho, has publicly warned about the hidden cost of advanced AI systems, noting that “one of the under-appreciated facts about the current state-of-the-art AI is how extraordinarily energy inefficient it is.” As AI becomes embedded across sectors, one pressing question stands out: how prepared is the next generation to tackle the environmental impact related to AI and to use it as a force for environmental good?

At the Youth Eco Summit, this question took the center stage. With participation from 66 cities across India, young students arrived not to debate whether technology is good or bad, but to understand and showcase how it can be used more responsibly. With a clear focus on putting young people as solution-builders rather than passive stakeholders, the Summit featured voices such as Prasiddhi Singh, GenAlpha Climate Leader and PM National Child Award recipient, Viraansh Bhanushali, Chief of Staff at the Oxford Union and Raul John Aju, known as the AI Kid of India. Together, they unpacked the challenges, responsibilities, and opportunities emerging from the rapid rise of Artificial Intelligence. The Summit also saw participation from Environmentalist and Model Milind Soman; Actor Rohit Saraf and UNDP India Youth Champion & Actor Sanjana Sanghi, along with key policy voices including Seep Agrawal, Lead – Civic Engagement at UNICEF YuWaah, reinforcing the importance of collaboration between youth, culture and institutions in shaping a more responsible tech-led future.

One of the key highlights of the Summit was MINI COP30, a youth-focused climate simulation modelled after the United Nations Conference of the Parties, where students from 28 schools across Jaipur took on the roles of countries, industries, civil society groups, workers’ collectives, and global institutions to discuss and deliberate on critical themes of E-waste, AI and Climate Change. The resolutions adopted were later presented on the Youth Eco Summit stage by lead student delegates, placing youth voices directly into the larger climate and technology conversation.

Aligned with the Summit’s theme, ‘Youth x AI: Green Leaders of Tomorrow’, a strong emphasis was placed on experiential learning. Through immersive zones such as Waste ReImagined, students showcased their Waste-to-Art models created during the nationwide online competitions held for the Youth Eco Awards. Other engagement spaces, including the TECNO AI Meme Studio, Knowledge Walk, and Green Education Corner, helped simplify complex climate narratives while offering guidance on education and career pathways within the green sector.

Speaking on the intent behind placing young people at the centre of the dialogue, Pankaj Bajaj, Director, Bajaj Foundation, emphasised that participation at the summit reflected conviction rather than obligation.

“You did not come here for marks or because it was mandatory. You came because you care. When we speak of ‘Youth x AI: Green Leaders of Tomorrow’, we believe in one simple idea — One World, One Family. Whether young people choose to act on this vision, not someday but starting now, is what will define the future,” he said.

Brought together by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, UNICEF YuWaah and TECNO, the Youth Eco Summit reaffirmed the power of collective action where institutions, communities, and young leaders come together to shape a more responsible, inclusive, and sustainable future.