The climate crisis is a brain story. Come help tell it.
The NeuroClimate Youth Internship is a free, fully virtual summer program where Canadian high-school students explore how climate change shapes brain health and equity — then build something real to move that knowledge into their communities.
hiding in plain
sight
A summer of learning,
building & being heard.
Over roughly eight weeks you’ll join a small interdisciplinary team, learn directly from clinicians and researchers, and create one original knowledge-mobilization product — a campaign, explainer, toolkit, story, or design that makes climate-and-brain science land with people your age. You’ll present it at a national Demo Day, and the strongest work gets published.
No science background required. We build teams from a mix of strengths on purpose — the best knowledge-mobilization comes from mixing perspectives.
Four things, one summer.
Learn
Join five short, youth-friendly webinars from doctors and researchers on climate, the brain, mental health, and equity. Solutions-first, never doom.
Build
Work in a small team to design one original knowledge-mobilization product that translates the science for your community.
Get mentored
Your team is paired with a mentor — a fellow or early-career researcher — for 3–4 light check-ins and real feedback.
Present
Share your project at a national Demo Day. Standout work is published on brainclimate.org and partner platforms.
Five conversations that connect the dots
Each session is short, solutions-focused, and ends with a real-world gap — an open problem your team can turn into a project. Tap a session to explore it.
The Big Picture: Climate Change & Human Health
What you’ll take away
How a changing climate is reshaping human health — the foundation that every other session builds on. You’ll leave able to explain, in plain language, why climate is a health story and not only an environmental one.
Most people still see climate change as polar bears and weather, not health. How would you make the health connection click for someone your age?
Your Brain on a Changing Climate
What you’ll take away
The direct line from heat, air quality, and extreme events to the brain and nervous system — stroke, headaches, cognition, and more. The science that makes “neuro-climate” a real field.
The brain–climate link is barely in public conversation. Could you build a tool that connects local air quality to brain-health risk in a way people actually use?
Climate & Mental Health
What you’ll take away
Eco-anxiety, collective trauma, and the nervous-system science of resilience — plus trauma-informed ways to cope and to support the people around you.
Young people feel the weight of climate but rarely get tools for it. What resource would have helped you — and how would you make it for others?
Equity & Community: Who’s Affected and Why
What you’ll take away
Why climate and brain-health burdens fall unevenly — across income, geography, and newcomer status — and what justice-centred responses look like in practice.
The communities most affected are least represented in the conversation. How would you center their voices in something you make?
Youth Voices in NeuroClimate
What you’ll take away
Young people already doing this work share how they started, what they’ve built, and how you can too — the bridge from learning to making.
You don’t need permission or a degree to start. What’s the smallest version of your idea you could ship by Demo Day?
No prerequisites. Just curiosity.
You do not need to be a science student. We’re building interdisciplinary teams on purpose — bring whatever you’re good at.
From application to Demo Day
You won’t be doing this alone.
Every team is matched with a mentor — a student fellow, graduate researcher, or early-career professional — who helps shape your idea and keeps you moving.
- A mentor matched to your team’s topic
- 3–4 light, friendly virtual check-ins
- Real feedback as your project grows
- A genuine connection in the field you’re exploring
- Want to mentor? Apply too →
Built to be seen — not shelved.
This isn’t busywork. Your project is made to reach real people. At Demo Day you’ll present to a community of researchers, clinicians, educators, and partners — and the strongest work is published on brainclimate.org and the O’Brien Institute platform, with a certificate co-signed by our partner directors.
Good to know
Who can apply?+
How much time does it take?+
Does it cost anything?+
What will I actually make?+
Can I take part as a mentor?+
Do I need to live in a big city?+
Turn climate worry into climate work.
One short form. A five-minute chat. A summer that could change how you see your future. Applications close mid-July 2026.
