Filling the descriptive representation gap? Youth platforms in global environmental governance

Youth are official stakeholders of global environmental politics (GEP) since 1992, and several youth platforms have been created within the framework of the United Nations since the 2000s. However, recently, the oppositional voice of youth, through climate protests, has increased worldwide. While official youth platforms have been active over the years, this article asks to which extent they mitigate a descriptive representation gap in GEP. Academic investigation on these platforms is extremely limited. To provide new research insights, we track the creation history and the governance evolution of four transnational youth platforms, investigating two research hypotheses. To create new data, our methodology relies on official documentation, observations at international meetings and interviews. Results show the fragility of youth platforms in GEP. However, a strong ownership of these platforms by youth enables them to get a certain leeway for effective representation of youth, and of civil society more broadly.