Save the Children and Sesame Workshop Partner to Foster Young Children’s Climate Resilience

The partnership will strengthen children and their caregivers’ capacity to adapt to the unprecedented impacts of the climate crisis

[Los Angeles, CA and New York, NY – May 7, 2024] Today at the 27^th Annual Milken Institute Global Conference, Save the Children and Sesame Workshop announced a new partnership to support a generation of children and their caregivers to cope and thrive in the face of the climate crisis. The announcement was made by Sesame Workshop President and Interim CEO Sherrie Westin and Save the Children U.S. President and CEO Janti Soeripto, with a special guest appearance from Grover.

This new climate-response initiative aims to ensure continuity of learning amid climate disruptions, protect children's physical and emotional well-being, and improve the ability of families, communities, and governments to prepare for and adapt to the impacts of the climate crisis. As two of the world’s leading, most trusted organizations for children, Sesame Workshop – the global impact nonprofit behind Sesame Street – and Save the Children, the world’s leading child rights organization, have over 150 years of combined experience centering the needs of children. This initiative will begin as a pilot and scale over time, building on a long history of successful collaboration between the two organizations.

“Though climate change affects us all, young children are bearing the brunt of its effects,” Sherrie Westin, President and Interim CEO, Sesame Workshop. “There is an urgent need to build children’s climate resilience and help them cope with the unprecedented effects of the climate crises. We’re proud to join Save the Children and local partners to give children the skills they need to face these challenges."

The climate crisis is exacerbating existing inequities for children and communities around the world, including disruptions to education, and harm to physical health and emotional well-being. Climate-driven disasters like extreme heat and flooding disrupt the education of nearly 40 million children annually, and approximately 20,000 children are displaced daily by weather-related disasters, according to UNICEF.

This partnership aims to leverage Save the Children’s global footprint and Sesame Workshop’s educational media reach to put climate resilience tools and practices directly into the hands of young children and their caregivers. With guidance on key priorities from trusted local and national partners, they will develop new child-facing educational media; deliver community-based programs to reach children and their caregivers; and influence governments to embed these approaches in their education systems. Save the Children and Sesame Workshop are committed to allocating at least 25 percent of program funds to local and national partners to ensure those most impacted by the climate crisis are at the center of these solutions.

“Save the Children and Sesame Workshop are uniquely positioned to drive impact through our shared expertise in early childhood development,” said Janti Soeripto, President and CEO, Save the Children. “Through the powerful blend of community engagement and mass media, we aim to enable millions of children and communities to prepare for and adapt to the increasing effects of the climate crisis. By coming together with Sesame Workshop and local partners on this initiative, we are poised to meet the greatest threat facing children today.”

Sesame Workshop and Save the Children are looking for partners and funders in solutions that can be scaled up by governments and communities around the world to help children and families adapt to the growing climate crisis.

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About Sesame Workshop     
Sesame Workshop is the global impact nonprofit behind Sesame Street and so much more. For over 50 years, we have worked at the intersection of education, media, and research, creating joyful experiences that enrich minds and expand hearts, all in service of empowering each generation to build a better world. Our beloved characters, iconic shows, outreach in communities, and more bring playful early learning to families in more than 150 countries and advance our mission to help children everywhere grow smarter, stronger, and kinder. Learn more at www.sesameworkshop.org and follow Sesame Workshop on Instagram, X, Facebook, and TikTok.