Across the globe, girls and women are driving innovation, discovery, and action in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) while leading the charge for a more sustainable planet. From pioneering researchers and environmental activists to young changemakers tackling local challenges, women are shaping the future of climate solutions. This guide celebrates their achievements and offers classroom resources to help students explore the vital intersection of gender equality, STEM, and climate action. By highlighting real-world role models and hands-on STEM activities, educators can inspire the next generation of problem-solvers to build a more just and resilient world.

Dr. Jane Goodall is a pioneering primatologist, conservationist, and passionate advocate for environmental protection whose work has inspired generations of women in science. She revolutionized our understanding of chimpanzees through decades of groundbreaking research in Tanzania and has dedicated her life to promoting conservation and sustainable living worldwide. As a visionary leader in science, she has empowered countless girls to pursue careers in STEM and conservation.

Greta Thunberg is a Swedish climate activist who has become a global voice for urgent climate action, inspiring millions of young people worldwide. She began her activism as a teenager, launching school strikes to demand stronger government policies on climate change. As a young woman in the climate movement, she has shown the power of youth-led activism and amplified the role of women in shaping the planet’s future. She motivates youth to take action for a more sustainable world.

Lola Fatoyinbo

Lola Fatoyinbo is a renowned NASA forest and coastal ecologist who uses cutting-edge satellite technology to study mangroves and flooded forests, tracking their carbon storage and vulnerability to climate change.

Eunice Newton Foote

Eunice Newton Foote was a pioneering American scientist and inventor who, in 1856, discovered that carbon dioxide traps heat, effectively identifying the greenhouse effect decades before it was widely recognized.

Laurene Allen

Laurene Allen, the 2025 Goldman Environmental Prize winner, is a tirelessly dedicated community health activist who courageously fought PFAS pollution in her town’s water and helped push for stronger chemical regulations.

These ACE Youth Climate Stories highlight the voices of girls leading climate action in their communities. These stories showcase how young women are tackling environmental challenges, from protecting local ecosystems to advocating for sustainable policies, while inspiring their peers to get involved. Each story emphasizes the power of youth-led solutions and demonstrates how girls are driving meaningful change in their communities and beyond.

These teaching materials explore how gender equality supports climate action and sustainable solutions. Students will learn about initiatives in East and Southern Africa, the role of education and activism, and UN Sustainable Development Goal #5. Through articles, videos, and interactive slides, they will reflect on gender norms and consider how policies and individual actions can advance equality and address climate change.

These interactive slides from EarthCubs use images, videos, and text to introduce students to gender inequality. Students will watch videos on active citizenship and gender discrimination in India and reflect on how gender norms sustain inequality.

This short video introduces UN Sustainable Development Goal #5—gender equality and empowering women and girls—as key to building a peaceful, sustainable world. It also highlights the importance of empathy and respect for others.

This video explores how educating girls and empowering women can help address climate change. It also highlights the importance of active participation in the movement and encourages viewers to take meaningful action in their own communities.

This article from United Nations Climate Change introduces an initiative in East and Southern Africa that integrates gender equality into climate action. Students will learn how the initiative was developed and supported with a technical guide.

Engage students with hands-on activities that explore weather, environmental stewardship, and renewable energy. They’ll build instruments to measure humidity and wind, design upcycled projects, study how warming water drives sea level rise, and create solar-powered circuits for a model house. These activities strengthen problem-solving skills and show how science connects to the real world.

This resource includes two activities where students build a pine cone humidity detector and a wind dial (anemometer) to explore how pine cones respond to moisture and how wind speed is measured.

This activity explores upcycling, caring for the environment, and our connection to nature. Students will plan, design, and engineer an innovative object that reduces waste and present it to the class.

In this hands-on experiment, students observe how rising water temperatures increase water volume. They’ll learn how global warming leads to ocean thermal expansion and sea level rise.

This hands-on project teaches students about electricity, circuits, and solar energy, then guides them to build a basic solar-powered circuit to power lights and a fan in a model house they design.