Global Youth Biodiversity Network (GYBN)Conference

COP17 Youth Pavilion Side Event Call

This one has closed

Archived

Opportunity type

Conference

Funding

No Funding

Location

Global

Deadline

Archived

About this opportunity

The Global Youth Biodiversity Network is inviting young people to propose the sessions that will fill its space inside the Blue Zone at the UN biodiversity conference in Yerevan, Armenia. Selected organisers get a 30 to 60 minute slot between 19 and 29 October 2026 to run a panel, workshop, roundtable, cultural event or human library on a topic they choose. GYBN supplies the room and the equipment but no funding and no COP accreditation, so you need to be reaching Yerevan and getting into the Blue Zone under your own arrangements.

What you get:

A 30, 45 or 60 minute slot in the Youth Pavilion inside the COP17 Blue Zone in Yerevan
A room equipped with a screen, HDMI cable and microphones, seating up to 20 people
A place on the Youth Pavilion programme alongside other youth-led sessions
A platform in the venue where delegates and decision makers gather for the biodiversity negotiations

What you'll do:

Describe your proposed side event in up to 150 words, naming its theme and format
Run it as a presentation, workshop, panel discussion or intergenerational dialogue, cultural event, roundtable or human library
Pick a preferred date plus backup dates, which the GYBN organising team then schedules
Line up your own speakers, keeping gender balance and representation across different regions and cultures
Prepare a safeguarding plan so the session stays a safe space for participants

Key dates:

Applications close September 20, 2026 at 5:30 PM UTC
Selected side event organisers contacted between September 22 and 28, 2026
Youth Pavilion runs October 19 to 29, 2026 in Yerevan, Armenia

More information:

Pavilion hours are 10:30 AM to 5:30 PM Armenia time, with no sessions from 1 to 3 PM or 6 to 8 PM
Applications may be written in English, French, Spanish or Armenian
Hybrid sessions are welcome, but GYBN is still confirming internet in the venue and provides no technical support for them
No catering and no virtual services are available, and interpretation is left to the organisers
GYBN publishes a short guidance note on planning an inclusive side event, linked from the application form
Because of the volume of applications, GYBN contacts only those whose events are selected

Who can apply

Open to youth, youth groups, youth-led networks and organisations, and their partners
Apply as an individual, as a youth group, GYBN chapter or youth movement, or as an organisation
You must obtain your own credentials to access the COP17 Blue Zone, GYBN does not provide them
You must cover your own costs, GYBN provides no funding of any kind to side event applicants
Applicants give their name, date of birth, affiliation, region, country and Telegram number
Groups must list the team members involved plus a website or social media handle
Organisations must give the organisation name, its website, and the role of the person responsible
GYBN publishes no age limit for this call, although the form asks for your date of birth

AI Verification

✓ AI Verified

Our AI read the official sources and cross-checked the key facts. Here is what held up, and what it could not confirm.

We could not fully verify this organization or all of its details. Check it independently on the official website before you apply, and never share sensitive personal or financial information until you are sure a request is genuine.

LOT Verification ScoreSolid

Cross-checked 17 of 19 key facts

Confirmed Our best read Not stated

Good to know

+Free to apply, and you can apply as an individual, as a youth group or as an organisation.
+You get to run your own session inside the Youth Pavilion at the UN biodiversity COP in Yerevan.
+Run by the Global Youth Biodiversity Network, the recognised youth constituency of the Convention on Biological Diversity.
+The application is short and asks about your session rather than about your credentials.

Worth checking yourself

!It closes at 17:30 UTC on 20 September, not at the end of the day. That is six and a half hours earlier than most listings say.
!You must already hold COP17 Blue Zone accreditation, and GYBN states plainly that it will not get it for you. Without it you cannot take up a slot.
!There is no money at all. You pay for your own flights, accommodation and everything else in Yerevan.
!GYBN publishes no separate information page for this call, so the form itself is where the details live.

Sources checked

DOdocs.google.comApplyDOdocs.google.comApplyGYgybn.orgOfficialGYgybn.orgOfficialGYgybn.orgOfficialGYgybn.orgOfficialGYgybn.orgOfficialGYgybn.orgOfficialGYgybn.orgOfficialGYgybn.orgOfficialCBcbd.intOfficial

LOT finds and checks opportunities from public sources. Always confirm details on the organiser’s own page before applying.