From Nepal’s Project Tapari, recipient of this year’s Founder’s Award, to a Bee Hotel and other innovative climate solutions developed by students across multiple continents, this year’s Showcase demonstrated what is possible when young people have the tools and support to tackle real-world challenges with creativity, courage, and hope.

While we’re proud of the Showcase’s growth, what excites me most is what it represents: thousands of people inspired by student-led climate action and a growing community that sees how impactful youth-led solutions are!

Projects like Our Vertical Shield from Kericho Academy in Kenya, which took on the Climate Innovation Challenge and now has a growing program which transforms everyday spaces, like a vertical wall, into life supporting gardens. This project won Most Creative/Engaging in its age group during this past month’s Student Showcase, but its larger impact is the ripple effect created by its ongoing growth as an idea and achievement to the students at Kericho and beyond. This is the part of the CAVU story we want more people to know about!

At CAVU, we know that none of this happens without YOU!

Whether you’ve participated in the Climate Innovation Challenge, supported CAVU through a donation, shared our work with others, partnered with us, or simply followed along and cheered on our students, YOU are helping young people develop the skills, confidence, and agency to tell their story and build a healthier and more sustainable future.

Thank you for being part of this journey. I invite you to explore CAVU.org’s new website, watch this year’s winning Showcase videos, and, if you’re able, support our work as we continue expanding opportunities for students around the world.

Gratefully yours,

Jordan Vaughan Smith

PS: Interested in how you can get involved? Want to volunteer? Ask us how you can bring CIC to your community! Email: thrive@cavu.org

PSS: Registration is open – we’ve never made it easier to sign up – are you a student or a teacher? Register now! cavu.org/takethechallenge

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For the first time, ever, wind and solar power together generated more of the world’s electricity than natural gas during a single month!

According to a recent Reuters report, wind and solar supplied 22% of global electricity in April, surpassing the 20% generated from natural gas. It is an encouraging milestone and another sign that renewable energy is becoming an increasingly important part of how the modern world is powered.

As these technologies become more affordable and widespread, communities are discovering that cleaner energy can do more than simply reduce climate pollution. It can strengthen energy security, lower energy costs for families, reduce dependence on fossil fuels, and create new possibilities for how we use land and resources.

But building a cleaner energy future requries more than simply installing additional solar panels. It requires thoughtful planning and creativity. Where should renewable energy projects be located? How can they best serve communities? And how can clean energy infrastructure work alongside other essential needs, including agriculture and food production?

Those are exactly the kinds of questions students are exploring through CAVU’s Climate Innovation Challenge.

Watch Sunny Side Up: Agrivoltaics as a Positive Climate Solution and discover more student-created climate solutions through CAVU’s Student Showcase.

At Maclay School in Florida, ninth-grade students Bleakley Shettle, Nina Ozerova, and Fern Liebrich investigated agrivoltaics, the practice of using the same land for both agriculture and solar energy production.

Their project, Sunny Side Up: Agrivoltaics as a Positive Climate Solution, explores how solar panels and crops can share space rather than compete for it. By placing solar arrays above or among agricultural fields, communities may be able to produce clean electricity while continuing to grow food and support working lands.

The idea responds to an important challenge. As solar power expands, communities must decide how to make room for new energy infrastructure without placing unnecessary pressure on farms, natural areas, or other valued landscapes. Agrivoltaics offers one possible solution by allowing a single piece of land to provide more than one benefit.

This kind of thinking reflects what makes the Climate Innovation Challenge so powerful. Students are not only learning about the technologies transforming the world around them. They are examining how those technologies can be applied thoughtfully, practically, and in ways that benefit people and the planet.

The global rise of wind and solar gives us reason for hope. The work of students like Bleakley, Nina, and Fern gives us another.

It reminds us that the clean energy transition is not simply something young people will inherit. They are already studying it, questioning it, and helping shape what comes next.

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CAVU Africa Celebrates Student Climate Innovators in Kenya

Last month, CAVU Africa brought students, educators, and community partners together at the National Museum of Kenya in Nairobi for a joyful celebration of climate learning and student innovation.

The Student Showcase ceremony welcomed representatives from more than 10 schools, including approximately 150 learners/students, 50 teachers, and friends and supporters of CAVU Africa. The gathering offered an opportunity to recognize the creativity, determination, and teamwork students demonstrated throughout the 2025–2026 Climate Innovation Challenge.

Watch our CAVU Student Showcase winners from Kenya for their outstanding projects:

Kivandini Primary School — Outstanding Entry, International

Kericho Academy — Most Creative & Engaging Project, Middle School

Ohana Academy — Most Creative & Engaging Project, Elementary School

Joel Omino Comprehensive School — Most Practical & Effective Concept, Middle School

We are grateful to every learner, teacher, school, guest, and CAVU Africa supporter who helped make the ceremony such a meaningful conclusion to this year’s Challenge.