earth guardians

we are the ones we've been waiting for


Earth Guardians is growing a resilient movement with youth at the forefront by empowering them as leaders and amplifying their impact. We invite you to join us in our mission to protect the planet for future generations.  No matter how old you are, you can make a difference.  

Kids suing to protect our climate

21 youth plaintiffs are suing the government for failing to act on climate change and protect future generations

Earth Guardians Youth Director Xiuhtezcatl Tonatiuh is one of 21 youth plaintiffs suing the federal government for the right to clean air, clean water, and a healthy future. These young leaders have created a wave of action as their case advances through the courts.

"The future of our generation is at stake," says 16 year-old plaintiff and Earth Guardian Victoria Barrett. "People label our generation as dreamers, but hope is not the only tool we have. I am a teenager. I want to do what I love and live a life full of opportunities. I want the generation that follows to have the same chance. I absolutely refuse to let our government's harmful action, corporate greed, and the pure denial of climate science get in the way of that. If anything, I'm going to use my positive energy to show my government that I won't let my world stop for them. WE won't let our world stop for them. Our generation will continue to be a force for the world."

Rising Youth for a Sustainable Earth (RYSE) 

Join an Earth Guardians crew or start one in your community

Visit our Action Center to get involved and help the planet

Earth Guardians kids are suing to protect our climate

A few of our projects to protect the earth, air, water and climate

Earth Guardian Youth Director Xiuhtezcatl Martinez

Featured Videos

RYSE member Kelsey Juliana speaks to Bill Moyers about fighting climate change in the courts and walking across the country to spread the word on global warming.

Remarks by Xiuhtezcatl, indigenous climate activist and Youth Director of Earth Guardians at the opening segment of the High-level event of the United Nations General Assembly on Climate Change. 

Watch RYSE member Jonathon Reed's spoken word video about his philosophy behind happiness: “Once it’s a verb it’s not a mystery. It’s an action. It’s not distant and it’s not tomorrow. It’s in every choice, in every muscle and in every single day.”

Social feed 


Stay up to date on what we're doing! Follow us on Instagram: @earthguardians or Twitter: @earthguardianz 

Our program RYSE (Rising Youth for a Sustainable Earth) has been a game changer over the last two years for many young solutionaries! We have been able to train two incredible councils in leadership development, organizing, climate justice and much more.Through the youth council members, we have been able to activate and inspire 100s more change makers all over the world who are taking action in their communities! Now, we are preparing for our next RYSE Youth Council training happening this July! We are working to raise $20,000 and we need the support of our global network to make this training happen. Can you help us get there? https://www.gofundme.com/RYSEtraining2017 (link in bio) Any donation helps us move closer to giving these youth the training they need to build the world future generations deserve! If you can't donate, sharing this post helps us too. Please help us reach our goal and make this movement move! With love and Gratitude, The EG Team #RYSEUp #GenerationRYSE #EarthGuardians
WE RISE - Challenge the status quo, change the face of activism, and confront climate change head on with the ultimate blueprint for taking action. Xiuhtezcatl's new book, WE RISE, is available now for pre-order at the link below! It will be for sale in stores everywhere in September - Please share far and wide! #WeRise #EarthGuardians https://www.xiuhtezcatl.com/my-story
We are running out of time to solve the climate crisis. Every day it seems more people are calling out for climate action, but still, every time global leaders meet, they fail to reach binding agreements to curb greenhouse gasses. That's why Earth Guardians is launching a new training program called RYSE (Rising Youth for a Sustainable Earth). Your contribution will directly support 21 young leaders from around the country to get in-depth leadership training by top trainers from around the country to spearhead key national youth-led campaigns that have political weight in the streets and in the courts. Support one of our young leaders, Aji, to be able to attend this amazing leadership development training: https://www.gofundme.com/RYSEtraining2017 (link in bio) Here's more about Aji's story: Aji, 16, grew up in the woods of the Kitsap Peninsula in Washington. From his upbringing Aji developed a deep love and connection to the forest and waters of the Pacific Northwest. His journey in activism began when he learned about oil trains coming through his city and along the coast and he was driven to take part in protests and legislative hearings. He has since served his community by founding the Seattle chapter of Earth Guardians and serving as the President of Plant for the Planet, a nonprofit dedicated to fighting climate change through planting trees. As one of 21 youth plaintiffs suing the United States Government in a Landmark U.S. Federal Climate Lawsuit, Aji is taking matters into his own hands. He is also plaintiff on another youth-driven lawsuit demanding that Washington's environmental department act to mitigate climate change. During his spare time you can find Aji volunteering at local food banks, doing forest restoration work with his mother, and performing powerful activist-driven music.
#50SimpleThings Tip #28: Use Cloth Towels Instead of Paper Towels One super easy way to cut your carbon footprint is by using cloth towels instead of paper towels! Paper towels and napkins are two of the most consumed paper products across the world. The simplest way to reduce this is to simply use cloth napkins and towels! They’re available in almost every home consignment store and can be reused over and over and over again! Using reusable towels is also a great invest that can save you a lot of money because you don’t have to continuously replace them. Did you know that 40% of the waste in landfills is paper products? Or that the average American discards of 700 pounds or more of paper products each year? When you think about how much paper we’re wasting, do you ever think about the trees? Deforestation is one of the biggest ongoing issues in the world today. So much of that goes to just making paper and the majority of that paper we use just ONE TIME! Cutting disposable towels and napkins out of your life is a small but important step to addressing issues like deforestation. You will do the earth and your wallet a favor so go for it! Meme made by youth volunteer, Hallie! #EarthGuardians #ProtectOurFuture
Youth from around the country are convening with top trainers this summer to #RYSEUP and build the next generation of leaders. One of those amazing young people is Kelsey Juliana. Will you join her? Support her leadership today: https://www.gofundme.com/RYSEtraining2017 (link in bio) Here's more about Kelsey's inspirational story: Oregon-native Kelsey Cascadia Rose Juliana, age 21, has worked on climate issues since age eleven. By sixteen, Kelsey was already a trainer and organizer for the Sierra Student Coalition’s week-long grassroots organizing camp where she inspired, taught, and collaborated with fellow youth on leadership organizing and activism skills. Her background includes work with Our Children’s Trust, iMatter, and 350.org. Kelsey is now the lead plaintiff of the landmark federal lawsuit that claims our governments are complicit in the climate crisis, and therefore are violating the youngest generation’s constitutional rights to life, liberty, and property, as well as failing to protect essential public trust resources. Kelsey deferred her fall semester of college in order to participate in the Great March for Climate Action, marching 1,600 miles from Nebraska to Washington, D.C. urging climate action from world leaders...us! The march brought her to the People’s Climate March in NYC and Flood Wall Street, as well as an opportunity to testify at the People’s Climate Summit.
We are running out of time to solve the climate crisis. Every day it seems more people are calling out for climate action, but still, every time global leaders meet, they fail to reach binding agreements to curb greenhouse gasses. That's why Earth Guardians is launching a new training program called RYSE (Rising Youth for a Sustainable Earth). Your contribution will directly support 21 young leaders from around the country to get in-depth leadership training by top trainers from around the country to spearhead key national youth-led campaigns that have political weight in the streets and in the courts. Please contribute today! We need your support to build the future we need. https://www.gofundme.com/RYSEtraining2017 (link in bio) #EarthGuardians #GenerationRYSE
#50SimpleThings Tip #27: Compost leftover food Composting left over food and yard trimmings is one of the easiest and most effective steps that one person can take towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Trash is throwing something into a hole in the ground and leaving it there for millions of years. Composting is taking some of that same ‘garbage’, and turning it into nutrient rich soil that can be used for farming, gardens and carbon sequestration. In landfills, a gas called methane is produced. In the atmosphere, methane creates ground level ozone, which is bad for human health, and contributes to global warming. On the other hand, a compost pile undergoes aerobic decomposition, where it gets absorbed back into the earth.Once added to the soil creating healthy soil, compost helps the soil in pulling tons of CO2 out of the atmosphere! Two of the major things that many people know to compost are food waste and plant waste. If you’re trimming trees, weeding, or doing other yard work, throw all of the plants and branches in the compost! The same goes for food: apple cores, banana peels, fruit pits, carrot tops, and any other food waste can be composted too! Visit http://ecocycle.org/files/pdfs/CurbsideCompostGuidelines.pdf, to find out other things to compost. If you’re interested in learning more about composting and soil building sign up and help us create #SoilForLife! You can take it on by signing up at tiny.cc/joinsoilforlife (link in bio) #EarthGuardians #ProtectOurFuture
We are calling Earth Guardians every where to work with us to build #SoilForLife. Join our global soil building challenge as an effective way to pull carbon from the atmosphere and fight climate change! Learn more and sign up: tiny.cc/joinsoilforlife (link in bio) Did you know that according to Yale university, "restoring soils of degraded and desertified ecosystems has the potential to store in world soils an additional 1 billion to 3 billion tons of carbon annually, equivalent to roughly 3.5 billion to 11 billion tons of CO2 emissions." This means that by building healthy soils we can make a huge positive impact! Not only does healthy soil pull lots of carbon out of the atmosphere, it also increases water quality, air quality and the nutrition of the food we grow. There are so many awesome and easy ways to take on #SoilForLife. And when you sign up you get our exclusive Soil For Life Information Packet with detailed tips on how to build healthy soil! Sign up to take action at tiny.cc/joinsoilforlife #EarthGuardians #ProtectOurFuture
#50SimpleThings Tip #26: Turn down shower water a few degrees If you’re looking for simple actions to take to cut your carbon footprint, turning down your water temperature is as easy as it gets! Not only does water cost money, but heating the water also costs. The more hot water you use, the higher your electricity bill will go. To start, you could take shorter showers. That’s what most people will tell you to do if your water bill is too high. What they don’t know is that by simply turning down your water a few degrees, you can drastically decrease the amount you spend on your shower. In addition and most importantly, you'll use way less fossil fuels to heat your water, especially in the winter, when time spent in showers and baths increase dramatically. How many people, do you think, dread getting out of the shower in the winter? Well, it’s a lot. What would help you to not fall into that water-loving trap? Simply turning down the shower a few degrees will help reduce your longing to stay in. Not only that, but colder water is better for both your skin and your hair. Cooler or lukewarm showers can keep skin hydrated and help hair stay strong and shiny. So do yourself and our environment a favor by turning down the temperature of your water! Meme made by awesome youth volunteer Hallie! #EarthGuardians
It's more important than ever to #PledgeToPlant things that pollinators like bees, hummingbirds, wasps, bees and many others love! This will help support this crucial part of our ecosystem that is under threat by giving our pollinator friends lots of food. It's thanks to them that we have the abundance of food we have so it's time we returned the favor! We are calling all EGs out there to create pollinator gardens in your community! This is a super easy and incredibly effective way to take action that you can see the results of quickly. It's important to remember to plant native species to your area, this way you are sure to support your local pollinators. Sign up to take on this amazing project today- the butterflies and bees will thank you! tiny.cc/joinpledgetoplant (link in bio) 📸: @a_ferri5 #EarthGuardians #ProtectOurEarth
We just got some huge news on our Colorado lawsuit! #Repost @youthvgov (@get_repost) ・・・ Big news today in our #Colorado #youthvgov lawsuit! Governor @hickforco chose to side with the youth and asked Colorado Attorney General to not appeal our historic win in the Court of Appeals to the Colorado Supreme Court. @xiuhtezcatl_tonatiuh, plaintiff and youth director of @earthguardians, says: “Even our Governor who has been one of fracking’s biggest cheerleaders opposes this appeal. Maybe he can now see that #fracking is increasingly deadly, and that the state is not doing enough to protect its citizens." 📷: @orourke_photo