GENERAL PROVISIONS

Contest Overview: 

The National Climate Contest is held to engage schoolchildren in the development of practical, socially significant projects aimed at addressing climate change. The Contest promotes climate education, youth innovation, and project-based learning on issues related to mitigation (including carbon footprint reduction), adaptation, and public awareness.

The contest is based on the Climate Box educational toolkit as the primary methodological and informational foundation. The toolkit was developed by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and its partners, and has been implemented in Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia.

Working language of the Contest: Thai / English

Contest Organizer: UNDP Thailand, in collaboration with Ministry of Education (OBEC) and Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA)

Contest Objectives:

• To promote project-based learning in pedagogical practice and foster collaboration and creative exchange among participating educational institutions, students, and teachers.
• To educate a generation actively involved in combating climate change, equipped with the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behaviors needed to face its challenges.
• To encourage the ability to analyze contemporary issues faced by people and society from the perspective of various disciplines.
• To foster the ability to value the importance of harmonious coexistence between humans and nature.
• To develop skills for drawing conclusions and proposing solutions to global sustainability challenges, particularly those affecting their communities.
• To raise awareness and engage youth in the advancement of the Sustainable Development Agenda and strengthen the relationship between young agents of change and UNDP.

CONTEST IMPLEMENTATION PROCEDURE, TERMS, AND REQUIREMENTS

Categories, Participant Eligibility, and Project Requirements

Projects must fall under one of the following official categories:

• Reducing Carbon Footprint
• Adaptation to Climate Change
• Climate Change Public Awareness Events and Campaigns

The Contest is open to schoolchildren (either national or international), from educational institutions in Thailand, aged 8–17

Projects may be developed and implemented by a group of schoolchildren of minimum 1 and maximum 5 students. However, if selected for the final stage, only one student must represent and present the project during the in-person presentation.

Teachers and supervisors are expected to guide and support the student(s) in the elaboration of the projects.

Collaboration with community members, as well as scientific, educational, civil society organizations or institutions, is encouraged during project implementation.

Presentation and Evaluation of the Projects

Submissions must include:

• Completed application form, to be submitted through the following link, within the deadline reported in section 2.3: https://forms.gle/eTV6LyxkwwWSCdkR6
• The following has to be uploaded through the same link:

Project description (maximum 3 pages in MS Word format, A4, Times New Roman, 12 pt, 1.0 spacing; may include tables, images, references). It is recommended to clearly highlight: problem statement; project idea; data to demonstrate the impact of the project; involved partners; clear justification of the link with climate change.

Visual presentation (PPT or PDF format including images or graphics)

Optional multimedia content

Projects must:

• Clearly relate to climate change (mitigation, adaptation, or awareness)
• Include practical implementation or social relevance, and scientific grounding: submissions may include ideas, plans, or partially implemented projects. Fully implemented project are highly encouraged
• Provide visual materials (e.g. photos, graphs, video, etc.)
• Projects based on the Climate Box toolkit are encouraged

Ineligible projects include:

• Projects without practical results or social value
• Purely theoretical works or literature reviews
• Works not aligned with contest themes

The expert committee will evaluate the projects based on the following criteria:

• Relevance to Climate Change and Thematic Focus (25%)
  • The project clearly addresses key climate change issues such as mitigation, adaptation, or public awareness.
  • It demonstrates an understanding of climate-related challenges at the global and/or local level.
• Content Quality: Goals, Methodology, and Results (20%)
  • The project has clearly defined goals and uses an appropriate and structured methodology.
  • The outcomes are well-articulated, evidence-based, and aligned with the stated objectives.
• Practical Implementation and Impact (25%)
  • The project has been implemented or tested in a real-life context (school, home, community) or demonstrates to be potentially implementable.
  • It demonstrates measurable impact, or has clear potential for sustainability and replication.
• Innovation and Creativity (20%)
  • The project presents an original idea, method, or approach.
  • It offers a fresh perspective or proposes a novel solution to a climate-related problem.
• Clarity and Quality of Presentation (10%)
  • The project is well-organized, visually catchy and clear, and professionally presented
  • The presentation is coherent, engaging, and effectively communicates the core message.

Contest Stages and Timeline

Stage 1 – Project Ideas Submission

• Deadline for submission of projects ideas: September 14, 2025
• The experts committee will shortlist the finalist projects that meet the contest criteria to advance to the next stage. Participants will be informed of the results and next steps by September 23, 2025.

Stage 2 – Projects presentation of finalist during the Bangkok Climate Action Week (BKK CAW) (In-Person)

• The finalists of the selected projects will present their work on the 4 October 2025 in a public event organized in the context of the Bangkok Climate Action Week (BKK CAW). The event will be held in Bangkok.
• Each project must be represented in person by one student representing the project group and must be accompanied by one supervising teacher.
• Project presentations:
  • Projects developed under the themes “Reducing Carbon Footprint,” “Adaptation to Climate Change,” and “Climate Change Awareness” will be presented by one student (author or representative) with a visual presentation format and multimedia materials, followed by Q&A.
  • Time allocation: 5 minutes for presentation, followed by 3 minutes for expert questions.
  • Projects will be evaluated by the expert committee according to standard criteria. Results will be announced immediately at the end of the project presentation event
• During the event, one session will be held by climate and education experts to provide feedback and recommendations on how to improve the projects submitted, including good practices for successful climate projects. 
• All expenses related to participation in the BKK CAW will be covered by the  Climate Box Programme. 
• The finalists will have one additional month to strengthen and further develop their projects. Demonstrating partial or complete implementation of the project ideas in the resubmission is mandatory. The finalists will need to resubmit their strengthened project proposals by 2 November, 2025. 
• Projects will be evaluated by the expert committee according to standard criteria. 

Stage 3 – Announcement of the winners and Participation to the International Festival

• The winning projects will be three (3), regardless the category of submission. 
• The three winners will be announced by email by 7 November, 2025. 
• Three selected representatives of the winning groups, together with their teachers, will be invited to participate to an International Schoolchildren’s Festival on Climate Change, to take place in Thailand in the last week of November 2025, where they will have the occasion to widely present their work, share experiences with other schoolchildren from all around the world and increase their awareness on climate change.
• All expenses related to participation in the international event will be covered by the Climate Box Programme. 

CONTEST TIMELINE SUMMARY

• Stage 1 – Submission deadline: September 14, 2025
  Notification of the finalists: by September 23, 2025
• Stage 2 – In-person presentations at the BKK CAW: 4^th October, 2025
• Stage 3 – Resubmission of strengthened projects proposals (just for the finalists): 2 November, 2025 
• Announcement of the winners: by 7 November, 2025

AWARDS

• All participants of the final stage will receive certificates of participation and gadgets.
• All the finalists will participate to a in-person event in Bangkok organized within the BKK CAW.
• The top three projects (one student in presentation of the group and one teacher/supervisor per project) will be invited to participate in the International Schoolchildren’s Festival on Climate Change organized within the framework of the Climate Box Programme.
• The expenses of the trips will be paid by UNDP.
• The winners will have an opportunity to join UNDP Thailand Youth Network and the finalist projects will be amplified through UNDP platforms.

MORE INFORMATION

For questions related to application submission, please contact: undpclimateboxthailand@gmail.com

Examples of youth projects from other countries can be found at the following link: https://climate-box.com/youth-projects/

The Climate Box in English, Thai and other languages, can be found here: https://climate-box.com/toolkit/