UK Protected Landscapes 2026 Youth Voice Conference

From 7 to 11 May 2026, organised and hosted by North York Moors National Park Youth Voice to bring young people together from other protected landscapes in the UK.

Find out more about the conference directly from those who attended. Links are below.

A Youth Voice Action Planning session invited contributions from delegates who attended from North York Moors National Park, Exmoor National Park, Yorkshire Dales National Park, EUROPARC Youth Council, Lake District National Park, Ring of Gullion Area of Outstanding National Beauty, Belfast Hills Partnership, New Forest National Park and Peak District National Park.

Questions like ‘What does Youth Voice mean to you?’, ‘What would you like to see from your own protected area in terms of Youth Voice?’, ‘What do you think are the best ways of spreading the word about Youth Voice in the nature sector?’ and ‘Think of one action you can do to continue the network we have started at this conference’.

Ongoing collaboration and action planning is scheduled to continue, taking into account what matters most to young people, such as:

“Empowering young people to play more of an active role in protecting and managing protected landscapes”

“Valuing, respecting and empowering young people – and recognising that our thoughts are important”

“Non-tokenistic youth involvement”

“Being heard, respected and taken seriously”

“Ensure Youth Voice volunteer hours are tracked – show our value!”

“Creating a database of all the youth groups in the UK so that young people can look on a map for their nearest group especially if they move away for uni/jobs or for any events if they are visiting the areas i.e. volunteering/workshops”

Blogs and Reports from this first fully youth-led conference:

1. Landscapes Northern Ireland participants report: click here

2. Hayley Quarrington, EUROPARC Youth Council Member and Project Co-ordinator at Peak District National Park report: click here

3. Hannah Jennison, PR Assistant, Lake District National Park Authority report: pending release