Our Children's Trust

What Our Children's Trust does

Our Children's Trust is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit public charity (EIN 27-3094382) headquartered in Eugene, Oregon, founded in 2010/2011 to provide free legal representation to children and youth in constitutional climate litigation against government entities. The organization exclusively represents youth plaintiffs at no cost, asserting constitutional and public trust doctrine rights to a safe, stable climate through impact litigation at the federal, state, and global levels. Active cases span at least 10 U.S. jurisdictions — including the landmark Held v. Montana win, Genesis v. EPA and Venner v. EPA at the federal level, and state matters in Alaska, Utah, Pennsylvania, California, Hawaii, Montana, and Wisconsin — with named plaintiffs in each action.

The organization's core offering is not a software product but a litigation and advocacy service stack: constitutional legal strategy, motion practice, expert witness coordination in climate science (anchored to a stated scientific prescription of returning atmospheric CO2 below 350 ppm by 2100), youth-plaintiff training, communications support, and trauma-informed care for clients. It operates a Youth Advisory Council and a Climate Rights Corps training program, and supports adjacent knowledge products such as 350 PPM Pathways, Climate Science resources, Curriculum and Resources, and Short Films. Co-counsel partnerships — with Public Justice, Western Environmental Law Center, Gregory Law Group, Schonbrun Seplow Harris Hoffman & Zeldes, McGarvey Law, UC Irvine Civil Rights Litigation Clinic, Deiss Law, Gibbel Kraybill & Hess, and De Noble Law — extend capacity, while a 17-group coalition involving Sierra Club, American Lung Association, and American Public Health Association has co-filed challenges against federal regulatory rollbacks.

The revenue model is donation-funded: as a tax-exempt public charity, OCT relies on contributions from individuals and foundations, with the website explicitly stating operations are "community powered." Legal services are provided free of charge to youth plaintiffs; there is no fee-for-service pricing or subscription model. Marketing and distribution run through earned media (The Guardian, Inside Climate News), community webinars, email newsletter, events, and organic social channels (LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram). Geographic reach is described as global in ambition (with a Canada-specific page and "Global Legal Actions") though active case volume is concentrated in the United States.

Name

Our Children's Trust

Legal name

Our Children's Trust

Website

https://ourchildrenstrust.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Our Children's Trust is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit law firm based in Eugene, Oregon that exclusively represents children free of charge in constitutional climate litigation against government defendants across federal, state, and global venues.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Legal Advocacy

NAICS

Legal Services (5411), Human Rights Organizations (813311), Child and Youth Services (624110)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Child Rights & Protection (BPADAGAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Child Protection & Child Rights (BPAGABAG)

Keywords

• Climate litigation services
• Youth legal advocacy
• Environmental law
• Nonprofit legal services
• Constitutional rights

Headquarters

HQ city

Eugene

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and charitable contributions: As a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt public charity (EIN 27-3094382), Our Children's Trust relies primarily on donations from individuals, foundations, and supporters to fund operations, legal strategies, youth advocacy training, and trauma-informed care programs. The organization states it is community powered and donations fund strategy, communications training, legal representation, and partnership building.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Our Children's Trust is a nonprofit law firm that exclusively represents children and youth free of charge in constitutional climate litigation against government entities. Its services include federal, state, and global legal actions seeking binding judicial declarations that end new fossil fuel infrastructure, phase out fossil fuels by 2050, and restore atmospheric carbon below 350 PPM, complemented by advocacy training, partnership building, and trauma-informed care for youth plaintiffs.

Product overview

Our Children's Trust is a nonprofit legal organization that exclusively provides free legal representation to children in climate-related court cases. Their offering consists of youth-powered constitutional climate litigation services, including federal, state, and global legal actions. The organization does not offer a traditional software product but rather provides comprehensive legal advocacy, supporting youth plaintiffs through strategy, communications training, partnership building, and trauma-informed care. Key products include federal legal actions (such as Venner v. EPA, Genesis v. EPA, Lighthiser v. Trump), state legal actions (including cases in Alaska, Montana, Pennsylvania, Utah, Wisconsin), and educational resources including a Law Library, Climate Science materials, 350 PPM Pathways, and the Climate Rights Corps training program.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Youth-Powered Constitutional Climate Litigation Free legal representation of children and youth in constitutional impact litigation against government defendants (federal, state, and global) to enforce climate rights, end new fossil fuel infrastructure, phase out fossil fuels by 2050, and restore atmospheric carbon below 350 PPM. Provided exclusively to youth plaintiffs at zero cost.
• Climate Rights Corps Training Program Training and capacity-building program that equips youth advocates with strategy, communications, and partnership-building skills to lead climate rights advocacy, supported by trauma-informed care services.

Quantifiable outcome

• Held v. Montana — first constitutional climate change case to go to trial, securing historic ruling from Montana Supreme Court
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• Public JusticecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-filed Venner v. U.S. EPA on behalf of 18 youth plaintiffs on February 18, 2026. Public Justice is a legal nonprofit that partners with Our Children's Trust on youth constitutional climate cases.
• Gregory Law GroupsupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCo-counsel in Genesis v. EPA case representing California children in federal constitutional climate lawsuit.
• Western Environmental Law CentersupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCo-counsel in Held v. Montana, which won the Public Justice Trial Lawyer of the Year Award 2025 for groundbreaking constitutional climate work.
• McGarvey LawsupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCo-counsel in Held v. Montana case that secured historic Montana Supreme Court ruling.
• UC Irvine School of Law - Civil Rights Litigation ClinicsupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPaul Hoffman, Director of Civil Rights Litigation Clinic, represents plaintiffs in Genesis v. EPA case.
• Schonbrun Seplow Harris Hoffman & Zeldes LLPsupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerJohn Washington represents plaintiffs in Genesis v. EPA federal constitutional climate lawsuit.
• De Noble Law Offices LLCsupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerBrad De Noble represents youth plaintiffs in Alaska Sagoonick cases, supporting young people in Alaska since 2011.
• Deiss LawsupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartnered with Our Children's Trust to file Roberts v. Board of Oil, Gas, and Mining on behalf of ten Utah youth.
• Gibbel Kraybill & HesssupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerJason Asbell of this Pennsylvania law firm serves as co-counsel in McIntosh v. DEP case challenging gas-fired power plant permit.
• Sierra ClubcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of coalition of health and environmental groups; awarded Our Children's Trust the Sierra Club 2026 Trail Blazer Award. Sierra Club is a co-plaintiff in lawsuits against EPA's Endangerment Finding rescission.
• American Lung AssociationsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of coalition of 17 health and environmental groups that filed lawsuit challenging EPA's reversal of 2009 Endangerment Finding.
• American Public Health AssociationsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of coalition of 17 health and environmental groups that filed lawsuit challenging EPA's reversal of 2009 Endangerment Finding.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Earthjustice: Earthjustice is the largest nonprofit environmental law organization in the U.S., running high-impact environmental and climate litigation across federal and state courts. It overlaps with OCT's litigation-led climate strategy but operates at much broader scale and across many issue areas beyond youth rights.
• Greenpeace International: Greenpeace litigates climate and environmental cases globally and supports related impact litigation. While broader in tactics (campaigns, direct action), it shares OCT's mission of holding governments accountable for climate inaction and pursues comparable litigation pathways.
• Sierra Club: Sierra Club is a coalition partner with OCT in the Endangerment Finding lawsuits and awarded OCT the 2026 Trail Blazer Award. While Sierra Club is primarily an advocacy and organizing organization rather than a law firm, it funds and joins climate litigation OCT leads, making it a directly comparable climate-mission peer.
• Natural Resources Defense Council: NRDC is a major environmental advocacy organization with a significant litigation arm that litigates climate and clean-air cases including challenges to EPA actions. It shares OCT's climate-litigation playbook but operates across a far broader portfolio of environmental issues.
• Center for Biological Diversity: The Center for Biological Diversity runs an active climate and endangered-species litigation practice targeting fossil fuel approvals and federal agency action, overlapping closely with OCT's challenge to EPA and fossil fuel permitting. It is broader in scope but uses similar litigation levers.

Direct peers

• Urgenda Foundation: Urgenda is the Dutch foundation behind the landmark Urgenda v. Netherlands climate case, which established government climate duties under tort and human-rights law. It is the European doctrinal predecessor to OCT's constitutional-rights approach.
• ClientEarth: ClientEarth is an environmental law charity using litigation to enforce climate and nature laws, primarily in Europe and the UK. It is one of the closest international analogues to OCT's litigation-led, mission-driven legal model.
• Western Environmental Law Center: WELC served as co-counsel in Held v. Montana, the case that earned OCT the Public Justice Trial Lawyer of the Year. It is a nonprofit environmental law firm focused on the U.S. West with directly comparable litigation capacity and case alignment.
• Conservation Law Foundation: CLF is a New England-based environmental law and policy organization that litigates climate, clean-air, and clean-water cases against government and industry defendants. It overlaps directly with OCT's region-specific climate-litigation strategy.
• Public Justice: Public Justice is a national legal advocacy nonprofit that partners with OCT on climate cases, including co-filing Venner v. EPA in February 2026. Both organizations run precedent-setting impact litigation on environmental and social-justice issues, and Public Justice awarded OCT's team the Trial Lawyer of the Year.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/youthvgov

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Our Children's Trust