from Root to sky

A Collective Healing Space for BIPOC Youth

About the program

From Root to Sky (FRTS) is a closed program designed to cultivate kinship and community among equity - deserving youth by promoting wellness and healing through art, storytelling, and spiritual and land-based practices. The virtual and in-person program creates a safe space for young Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) to freely express themselves while also building collective capacity for anti-racist climate action through dialogue, networking, and learning opportunities.

YCL launched this program in recognition that climate change is a symptom of deep-rooted systemic forces such as colonialism, racial capitalism, and patriarchy—the same structures that drive and sustain violence against BIPOC communities.

Rooted in Rest Retreat

A Gathering for BIPOC Climate Organizers

Asitu'lisk
Wentzells Lake, NS

In 2024, YCL hosted the first Rooted in Rest retreat, dedicated to prioritizing the experiences and well-being of BIPOC youth climate organizers. This closed gathering provided a space for participants to connect, mobilize, and build solidarity while fostering a deeper relationship with the land and waters. Through rest, reflection, and community, attendees had the opportunity to slow down, breathe, and replenish their energy.

Learn more

our Virtual Pilot Year

Click the headings below to preview the topics covered:

SESSION 1: Exploring Climate Joy
SESSION 2: Spirituality, Land Connection and Anti-Oppression
SESSION 3: Engaging with Eco-Grief and Climate Anxiety
SESSION 4: Arts-Based Approaches to Climate Justice
SESSION 5: Writing as an Act of Care
SESSION 1: Cultural Story Telling
SESSION 2: Art Therapy and Climate Justice
SESSION 3: Collective Healing and Justice
SESSION 4: Climate Justice and Anti-Racist Action Panel
SESSION 5: Indigenous and Black Solidarity in Climate Spaces
SESSION 1: Environmental Inequity Workshop (In-Person)
SESSION 2: Climate Emotions Meditation and Climate Circle
SESSION 1: Perspectives on Land and Art
SESSION 2: Anti-Oppression, Climate Justice, and Food Systems
SESSION 3: Climate Emotions Short Film Screening
SESSION 4: Environmental Racism and Demystifying Bill C-226
SESSION 5: End of Year Wellness Practice

by the numbers

In our pilot year, we…

Hosted 17 sessions, broken down into 4 seasons
Engaged over 125 unique youth
Collaborated with and paid 17 BIPOC thought-leaders, artists, activists and wellness practitioners

Of all participants who gave feedback…

75% experienced increased access to rest
49% learned new coping strategies or techniques
62% increased their understanding of climate justice and anti-racist climate work
43% felt an increased sense of compassion and community with other youth