Between January to February 2025, Commonwealth Alumnus Manzil e Maqsood delivered a two-day Model Conference of Parties 2025 (MCOP 2025) event for youth in Pakistan to learn about and experience global climate discussions through the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s (UNFCC) Conference of Parties (COP) model.
Manzil e Maqsood is the Founder and CEO of Oxbridge Innovative Solutions, a cross-sectoral consulting firm dedicated to driving change across education, clean energy, climate, and sustainable development.
Her activity promoted the 2024/25 ACEF theme, Youth for sustainable development.
Need for youth action in Pakistan
Pakistan is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change, despite contributing less than 1% to global carbon emissions. Every year, Pakistan experiences extreme weather conditions such as flooding, heat waves and droughts, affecting critical sectors and services, such agriculture, water security and public health.
In 2024, at the UNFCC’s COP29, the role of youth in climate action was a key focus. Youth possess the skills, innovation and potential to become change agents and advocates in raising awareness and advancing sustainable solutions towards climate action. As such, there is a need to build youth capacity for meaningful participation in climate policy discussions and climate decision-making.
Manzil-e-Maqsood addressing the participants
Manzil developed and delivered MCOP 2025, a two-day activity to build awareness on the role of youth in climate action, governance and global negotiations amongst young people. The event brought together over 400 students and educators from 14 public, private and charity schools across Islamabad, and climate and environmental experts and activists.
The activity was held at Headstart School, Kuri Campus, Islamabad with support from the school management, in particular Ms Sidra Qasim the Principal, as well as a team of faculty and student volunteers to co-organise the event. To deliver the activity at scale, Manzil received support from sponsors LKMR (Pvt.) Ltd., a tech and innovation company, Saudi Pak Industrial and Agricultural Investment Company Limited, a financial institution promoting agricultural development, and Techapolis (Pvt.) Ltd., a tech hub for innovation and entrepreneurship.
Introducing the model COP
On 31 January 2025, Manzil welcomed participants during the opening ceremony, and in the format of a real COP, introduced herself and Sidra as the Presidents of MCOP 2025.
Chief Guests included Mr Vaqar Zakaria, Energy & Environmental Expert and Co-Founder of Hagler Bailly Pakistan, and Mrs Naznin Murtaza, CEO, Headstart School.
Students were also introduced to a team of judges who played a crucial role in providing guidance and support to participating students throughout the activity.
The judging panel comprised 27 climate and environmental experts and activists, representing a range of organisations: Ministry of Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety, Government of Pakistan; Youth Climate Activists Pakistan; Centre for Peace and Conflict Development; Local Conference of Youth; World Wide Fund for Nature – Pakistan; Progressive Climate Foundation, Ecobricks, Saaf Mohalla Saaf Pakistan; Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS); Butterfly Effect; and Little Rebels Nature Camp.
In her opening remarks, Manzil highlighted that the format for MCOP 2025 adhered to the similar standards of the recently held global COP29 in Azerbaijan, which included plenary discussions, debates, negotiations, and a voting process. These additional sessions were designed to provide an opportunity for students to engage in climate policy discussions, develop leadership and negotiation skills, and strengthen collaboration and teamwork to address climate change as future leaders.
Forming delegations to solve global climate challenges
Over 300 participating students were divided into 17 delegations representing countries across the world- Bangladesh, Brazil, Chad, Columbia, Ethiopia, Germany, Japan, Maldives, Mexico, Mozambique, Myanmar, Pakistan, Philippines, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, and Sudan- to engage in climate policy discussions, negotiations and solution development.
Each delegation was divided into sub-teams to discuss policy deliberation and resolutions on themes such as climate finance and carbon markets, climate justice and equity, greenhouse gas emissions and energy transition, adaptation & mitigation strategies, sustainable practices and climate action, biodiversity and ecosystem protection, and Artificial intelligence (AI), technology and climate innovation.
During these sessions, delegates showcased their research skills and knowledge on key climate challenges, highlighting their designated country’s policies and proposed solutions within the international climate framework. This activity helped participants gain valuable insights into diverse national and regional perspectives on climate change and global climate policies. Participants learnt to identify shared interests and form strategic alliances in preparation of the negotiation phase.
Developing skills for climate action and governance
Judges supervising the sessions
On 1 February 2025, day two of MCOP included sessions on negotiations, alliance formations, resolution drafting, and voting, with active participation from students, facilitators and the judging panel. Judges guided the delegates in resolution drafting, alliance formation, and prioritising key climate issues. Judges provided expert insights and critical feedback, helping delegates refine their policy proposals and ensuring that their resolutions addressed the most pressing challenges.
The delegations gained skills in strategically aligning their proposals with realistic and implementable climate solutions, strengthening their negotiation strategies for the final resolution drafting and voting process.
Following the negotiations, experiencing further the real-life negotiations and roles of COP delegates, the student delegates worked together to form alliances based on economic interests, geopolitical alignments and shared climate vulnerabilities. A total of 20 climate resolutions were drafted and presented reflecting diverse policy approaches and collaborative efforts among alliances.
Manzil invited delegates to ask questions and challenge or support other delegations’ resolutions. Delegates were invited to vote and out of the 20 resolutions, 10 were passed.
Amongst all resolutions, AI, technology and climate innovation was the most notable and focused on leveraging AI and data sharing to combat climate change effectively. The resolution demonstrated that young people are not just passive observers but active participants in addressing global climate challenges, highlighting the importance of youth in utilising innovative solutions and advocating for actionable measures in climate decision-making processes.
Celebrating climate resolutions
Following completion of the two days, the delegations who proposed the best resolutions for sustainability received award funding to bring their proposed projects to fruition.
The winners will receive support and mentorship from leading climate experts and activists to deliver their projects during their school Summer break. Winning and runner-up projects include:
- From waste to worth: a sustainable initiative
- EcoSmart school initiative: sustainable practices for a greener future
- Sustainability education & training for schools in marginalized communities in Islamabad
- Achieving food security through climate-resilient sustainable dairy value chain
- Future makers: the eco-innovation internship.
These initiatives aim to provide practical opportunities for participants to implement real-world climate solutions and reinforce Manzil’s commitment to fostering innovation and equipping young leaders with the tools to drive climate action on a broader scale.
The event wrapped with a panel discussion on, ‘Unlocking youth potential for climate action’ in which climate experts shared insights and opportunities in climate finance, climate entrepreneurship, conservation, and sustainability.
Panellists
In keeping with the UN COP event style, Manzil replicated a Green Zone, inviting participants to explore the eco-friendly product displays, climate tech innovations, and sustainable solutions on exhibit. As part of the closing ceremony, a sustainable fashion show was delivered by students to promote sustainability in the fashion industry, to further highlight climate friendly career opportunities.
The ceremony was concluded by closing remarks by the Chief Guest Mr Vaqar Zakaria on youth-driven climate action and policy making.
Scaling MCOP at a national level
MCOP 2025 was successful in promoting awareness amongst high school students on global climate threats and emphasising their role in advocating for climate action. The event demonstrated the power of youth-led climate discussions, fostering policy-driven solutions and collaborative decision-making. Students gained skills in public speaking, critical thinking, and diplomacy, essential for international climate discussions.
MCOP 2025 was pivotal in engaging the next generation of leaders and policymakers in climate action. The event helped participants understand international climate frameworks and foster diplomatic skills, inspiring them to champion sustainability initiatives in their local communities.
“The Model COP made me realize how urgent the climate crisis is. It’s not just a problem for the future—it’s happening now, and we need to take action immediately.”
Pakistan Delegation
“I never realized how my small actions, like reducing plastic use or planting trees, could make such a big difference. This event inspired me to do more in my daily life.”
Germany Delegation
Feedback received from climate experts also echoed the impact of MCOP 2025.
“I’m a National Geographic Young explorer and the founder of Little Rebel’s Nature Camp. I’m so honoured to be a part of this revolutionary event and I hope events like this, particularly the MCOP, become a trend in our country, as it is becoming around the world. It has never been more important than it is today to involve the youth in conversations about the planet.”
Maria Hashmi, National Geographic Young Explorer, Board of Directorates
Before the Model COP was organised at Headstart School, Manzil had conducted a pre-Model COP activity with over a 100 government school students, so as to involve the Ministry of Education and the Federal Directorate of Education in recognizing a new pedagogical method for climate and sustainability education for high school students. Based on the positive feedback she gained at the pre-COP, Manzil recently has been requested by Ms Riffat Jabeen, Director of Academics at Federal Directorate of Education Islamabad to conduct a two-day workshop for middle, high school and college level teachers on Project Based Learning focusing on Model COP. This workshop will be held on Friday 18th April and Monday 21st April 2025.
Given the success of the activity, Manzil intends to deliver MCOP at a national level. Her long-term vision is to take the event to a global stage, implementing a hybrid model that combines virtual and physical participation, making it accessible to students worldwide.
Manzil Maqsood is a 2007 Commonwealth Shared Scholar from Pakistan. She completed a MPhil in Education Research from the University of Cambridge.
