Austin College Climate Ambassadors Head to COP31 in Antalya as Official Observers

Sherman, Texas, 7 November 2026: The Climate Ambassadors of Austin College are packing for Antalya. The student group leaves the small Texas college on Saturday, 7 November, to serve as official observers at COP31, the United Nations climate conference that opens in Antalya, Türkiye, on Monday, 9 November 2026.

At the conference, the ambassadors will engage with climate leaders, follow the international negotiations and explore solutions that address communities’ economic and social priorities, according to the college. It is the fourth COP the programme has attended, after Dubai, Azerbaijan and Brazil.

From a Texas campus to the COP31 negotiating halls

Austin College, a private liberal arts college in Sherman, Texas, with about 1,300 students, won official observer status as a research and educational institution in 2023, after a 10-month application process. Students apply to join the delegation and are selected through a rigorous application and interview process, then take a fall-term seminar course in climate science, policy and outreach before travelling.

The first group of seven ambassadors travelled to COP28 in Dubai in December 2023, where the college held three observer badges and sent a different group each week of the conference. The students also worked with students from Juniata College and Swarthmore College to document the negotiations and advance undergraduate representation at the talks. The programme has since sent delegations to COP29 in Azerbaijan and COP30 in Brazil.

The work is led by Dr David Baker, the college’s Donald MacGregor Chair in Natural Science, who applied for the observer status in 2022.

A programme built on conversation

The ambassadors’ motto is “Action Inspires Hope”, and conversation is their main tool. “The Climate Ambassadors believe one of the best things you can do for the climate is talk about it,” said Karsyn Clouse, a member of the class of 2027. “While climate change can be a taboo topic, we have realized that conversation about climate change leads to meaningful dialogue about our shared values and concerns, even across cultures and politics.”

On campus, the group promotes climate action by encouraging conversation and sharing practical ways to make progress. During the 2026–27 academic year it plans to host a campus Sustainability Month, visit local high schools, present to the North Texas Audubon Society and collaborate with sustainability efforts in downtown Sherman.

A wider wave of young ambassadors heads to Antalya

Austin College is not travelling alone in spirit. Luxembourg has appointed two Climate Youth Delegates, Josephine Loschetter and Alexander Feil, to represent the country’s youth at COP31. They were appointed in March 2026 under a programme run jointly by the youth organisation Jugendrot/CGJL and Luxembourg’s Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity, and are supported by Lara Bertemes and Sarah Mackel, delegates from the previous year.

In the United States, the University of Connecticut is sending 11 students to Antalya as UConn@COP fellows, continuing a tradition that began in 2015, the year the Paris Agreement was adopted. “The United States government is not attending, so that means that universities, students, and professors who are going are going to be the face of the United States,” said fellow Paige Gregory.

The European Federation of Geologists is also sending a delegation led by its Global Ambassador, Maureen Gallagher, with events including a session on transferable climate solutions at the Italy Pavilion on Monday, 9 November, and a session on international cooperation in a changing Arctic on Thursday, 19 November. And the Christian Climate Observers Program is training new observers at COP31 in two week-long sessions, from 8 to 16 November and from 13 to 21 November.

How observer status works

Under the UN climate convention, admitted observer organisations — including universities registered as research or educational institutions — may attend COP sessions, follow negotiations, join briefings and take part in side events. Registration runs through the UNFCCC’s online system, and every delegate needs a conference badge. Observers cannot vote — only governments decide — but they watch the talks, question negotiators and carry what they learn back home.

That is the point of the ambassador model: students who have sat in the negotiating halls return to their campuses and communities as witnesses, and the conversation continues. Young people made their voice heard at COP31 before it even opened: at COY21 in Antalya, youth delegates presented the Global Youth Statement 2026 to the COP31 Presidency on 7 November. Read our report on the youth handover at COP31. The ambassador programmes build on the same idea — that young volunteers can turn climate promises into local action, as the 2026–27 green ambassador cohorts show.

Key facts

• Departure: Saturday, 7 November 2026, from Sherman, Texas, to Antalya, Türkiye
• Conference: COP31, the 31st UN Climate Change Conference, 9–20 November 2026
• Role: official observers — following negotiations, engaging climate leaders, exploring solutions
• Programme: Austin College Climate Ambassadors; observer status since 2023; previously at COP28, COP29 and COP30
• Motto: “Action Inspires Hope”
• Also heading to COP31: Luxembourg’s Climate Youth Delegates, 11 UConn@COP fellows, and the European Federation of Geologists’ delegation led by Global Ambassador Maureen Gallagher

Frequently asked questions

What is an Austin College Climate Ambassador?

A student selected through an application and interview process who takes a seminar course in climate science, policy and outreach and then travels as an official observer to the annual UN climate conference. The programme is open to students of any subject.

What does official observer status mean?

It means the college is admitted by the UNFCCC as a research and educational institution, so its delegates can attend COP sessions, follow negotiations, join briefings and take part in side events. Observers cannot vote; only governments decide.

When and where is COP31?

COP31 takes place in Antalya, Türkiye, from 9 to 20 November 2026. Türkiye holds the COP presidency and Australia leads the formal negotiations, according to the Royal Meteorological Society, and the conference also begins the second Global Stocktake under the Paris Agreement.

Who else is sending young ambassadors to COP31?

Luxembourg has appointed Climate Youth Delegates Josephine Loschetter and Alexander Feil, the University of Connecticut is sending 11 UConn@COP fellows, and the European Federation of Geologists’ delegation is led by its Global Ambassador Maureen Gallagher. The Christian Climate Observers Program is also training new observers at the summit.

What happens after the ambassadors return?

Back on campus, the group plans a Sustainability Month, visits to local high schools, a presentation to the North Texas Audubon Society and collaboration with sustainability efforts in downtown Sherman — carrying what they saw in Antalya into conversation at home.

Sources: Austin College news release, 6 November 2026; Austin College Climate Ambassadors programme page; Embassy of Luxembourg in Ankara; University of Connecticut Office of Sustainability; European Federation of Geologists; UNFCCC COP31 observer organisations page.