Shanghai Student Takes Top Honor at U20+ Youth Climate Action Summit

A student from Shanghai YK Pao School emerged victorious at the 2026 U20+ Youth Climate Action Summit over the weekend with his innovative water energy coordination system.

The event was co-hosted alongside Earth Day and Shanghai Climate Week by the Global Climate Academy, the UNITAR PAS, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Shanghai Center, and other parties. It brought together hundreds of young innovators from across the nation to present projects on issues such as green energy, healthy cities, water resources, clean air and ecological protection.

"The U20+ platform is dedicated to turning young people's creativity into tangible impact and environmental awareness into systematic solutions. Each project here is Gen Z's action proposal for our planet," said Wu Changhua, director of the Global Climate Institute.

William Zhou from YK Pao School won the Annual Leadership Award with his project which can efficiently coordinate photovoltaic power generation, passive cooling and synchronous water production by integrating photovoltaic technology and metal-organic frameworks, a Nobel Chemistry Award-winning nanomaterial. Designed for cost-effective mass production and dust-resistant operation, it is expected to offer sustainable solutions for Belt and Road nations' arid areas.

"Climate change isn't some distant issue. It's a challenge we can tackle with technology, action, and perseverance," Zhou said.

"Through this event, I hope more young people will see that we can do more than just care about environmental problems. We can come up with practical, replicable solutions, too."

During the event, a summer school program was launched to advance artificial intelligence and sustainability education and provide support for youth innovation.