Global Alliance of Universities on Climate

What Global Alliance of Universities on Climate does

Global Alliance of Universities on Climate (GAUC) is a non-profit international alliance of 15 leading universities from 9 countries across 6 continents, established in January 2019 at the World Economic Forum in Davos and formally chartered in May 2019 at Tsinghua University, which hosts the Secretariat in Beijing. The alliance coordinates cross-institutional activity across five workstreams: joint research on climate science, technology, and policy; talent cultivation through the Graduate Forum, Climate x Leadership Training Program, and Global Youth Summit on Net-Zero Future; campus decarbonization and carbon-neutral transformation; youth engagement via COP delegations and Global Youth Climate Week; and public events such as the Climate Change Global Lectures series. GAUC serves university students, researchers, and member institutions by providing platforms for collaboration, training, and representation in international climate governance, partnering with UNESCO, UNFCCC, and the World Economic Forum to amplify youth and academic input into global climate processes.

The alliance operates on a non-commercial model with no participation fees, generating no product revenue. Operating support flows from member universities and partner organizations; a secretariat staff of approximately 29 coordinates programs. Distribution relies on member university institutional channels, dedicated online platforms (climatexleadership.gauc.net, globalyouthclimateweek.org), annual flagship events, and COP conference participation. Reported impact metrics include 300+ million cumulative participants in GAUC activities, 170,000 online attendees at the 5th Global Youth Summit (October 2025), 1,000+ students from 74 countries in the 2023 Climate x Training cohort, and youth participation from 79 countries across Climate x Campaign events.

GAUC does not develop proprietary technology products. Its "platform" is a coordination architecture — charters, program calendars, governance committees, and partner agreements — overlaid on member universities' existing research, education, and campus operations. Leadership includes Tsinghua President Qiu Yong (Founding Chair), LSE Director Dame Minouche Shafik (Co-Chair), Lord Nicholas Stern (Academic Committee Chair, LSE), and Li Zheng of Tsinghua's Institute of Climate Change and Sustainable Development (Secretary-General). The governance structure comprises an Executive Committee, Academic Committee, and rotating Secretariat host.

Name

Global Alliance of Universities on Climate

Legal name

Global Alliance of Universities on Climate (GAUC)

Website

https://gauc.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

GAUC is a non-profit alliance of 15 leading universities across 6 continents that coordinates joint climate research, youth leadership training, campus decarbonization, and COP youth delegations. It serves university students, researchers, and member institutions through programs like the Climate x Leadership Training, Global Youth Summit, and Global Youth Climate Week, with the Secretariat hosted at Tsinghua University in Beijing.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Climate Education and Research Alliance

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (54162), Administration of Environmental Quality Programs (924)

akta.pro primary industry

Climate Change Mitigation & Adaptation (BPAGAGAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Climate Policy, Governance & NDC Support (BPADALAA), Environment, Climate & Sustainable Development IGOs (BPADAAAI)

Keywords

• Climate change research
• Higher education alliance
• University climate networks
• Youth climate leadership
• Carbon neutral campuses

Headquarters

HQ city

Beijing, Beijing

HQ country

China

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Non-profit University Alliance: GAUC operates as a non-profit coordination body for universities. The alliance does not generate commercial revenue. Member universities contribute to the alliance's activities, and external funding may come from partnerships with international organizations. The secretariat is based at Tsinghua University.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

GAUC is a non-profit international alliance of 15 leading universities that advances climate change solutions through joint research, education, talent cultivation, campus decarbonization, and public outreach. It operates flagship programs including the Climate x Leadership Training Program, Global Youth Summit on Net-Zero Future, Global Youth Climate Week, Youth Delegation to COP conferences, Graduate Forum, Campus Action workshops, and joint research initiatives among member universities.

Product overview

The Global Alliance of Universities on Climate (GAUC) is an alliance of 15 leading universities across 6 continents, established in 2019 to advance climate change solutions through research, education, and public outreach. GAUC operates as a platform offering multiple interconnected programs: the Climate x Leadership Training Program provides online training for emerging climate leaders; the Global Youth Summit on Net-Zero Future and Graduate Forum serve as academic exchange platforms; the Global Youth Climate Week and Youth Delegation Program engage youth in climate action; Campus Action promotes carbon-neutral university operations; Climate Change Global Lectures brings climate experts to students; and Joint Research facilitates member university collaboration. These programs collectively aim to mobilize higher education institutions to address climate change through youth empowerment and international cooperation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Climate x Leadership Training Program: An online training program established to inspire and empower emerging leaders through cultivation of the 'Climate x' mindset, equipping youth with knowledge, skills, and tools for a sustainable future.
• Global Youth Summit on Net-Zero Future
• Global Youth Climate Week

Products and services

• Climate x Leadership Training Program An online training program that empowers university students and emerging leaders globally with knowledge, skills, and tools to become climate leaders for a carbon-neutral future, emphasizing the synergy between climate action and other UN Sustainable Development Goals. Co-awards certificates with UNESCO.
• Global Youth Summit on Net-Zero Future An annual summit that brings together youth from around the world to exchange ideas and solutions on climate change, featuring academic presentations, action tracks, and youth dialogues. Operates under the 'By Youth, For Youth' principle.
• Global Youth Climate Week An international mechanism scheduled one week before each COP that calls on global youth to pool their climate actions. Has been held in over 20 countries with more than 100 events and participation of 5+ million individuals.
• Youth Delegation Program

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 300 million global participants engaged through GAUC activities
• +6 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

22 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core member, core founding member, core founding member and inaugural co-chair, core founding member and inaugural chair, major and notable.

• UNESCOflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022UNESCO is a strategic partner supporting the Climate x Campaign and Global Youth Summits. Co-awards certificates to program completers.
• Columbia Universitycore memberStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Joined GAUC in early 2020. Home to the Columbia Climate School, the first climate school in the Ivy League.
• University of Oxfordcore memberStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Joined GAUC in early 2020. Oxford conducts extensive climate research including SnapperGPS wildlife tracking and deforestation studies.
• Yale Universitycore memberStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Joined GAUC in early 2020. Yale conducts research on rewilding, carbon sequestration through animals, and climate communication.
• Stellenbosch Universitycore memberStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2019Member university from South Africa, joining in May 2019. Has a School for Climate Studies.
• Federal University of Rio de Janeirocore memberStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2019Member university from Brazil, joining in May 2019. Home to Coppe, Latin America's largest engineering research center.
• Indian Institute of Sciencecore memberStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2019Member university from India, joining in May 2019. Conducting research on climate change and decarbonization.
• Sciences Pocore memberStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2019Member university from France, joining in May 2019. Has the interdisciplinary workshop on environmental research (AIRE).
• Australian National Universitycore founding memberStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Founding member of GAUC from Australia. ANU has implemented the Below Zero Initiative with targets for net-zero emissions by 2025 and net below zero by 2030.
• University of California, Berkeleycore founding memberStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Founding member from the United States. UC Berkeley has carbon neutral energy targets by 2025 and carbon-free energy by 2035.
• University of Cambridgecore founding memberStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Founding member from the UK. Cambridge has set a Science Based Target to reduce scope 1 and 2 emissions to absolute zero by 2048.
• Imperial College Londoncore founding memberStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Founding member from the UK. Imperial College conducts climate research and has been involved in Antarctic ice studies and other climate science.
• London School of Economics and Political Sciencecore founding member and inaugural co-chairStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Founding member and inaugural co-chair of GAUC. LSE became the first Carbon Neutral verified university in the UK (2020/21). Home to the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change.
• Massachusetts Institute of Technologycore founding memberStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Founding member from the United States. MIT is a leading institution in climate science and sustainability research.
• The University of Tokyocore founding memberStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Founding member from Japan. UTokyo has implemented the Sustainable Campus Project (TSCP) with 50% CO2 reduction target by FY2030.
• Tsinghua Universitycore founding member and inaugural chairStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Founding member and inaugural Chair of GAUC. Hosts the GAUC Secretariat. Tsinghua established the Institute for Carbon Neutrality (ICON) in 2021.
• UNFCCC SecretariatflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerGAUC proposed the establishment of Global Youth Climate Week to UNFCCC in February 2022. Former UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa praised the initiative.
• COP26 Universities NetworkmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partner for the 3rd GAUC Graduate Forum and Global Youth Summit on Net-Zero Future (2021).
• Global Partners (100+ organizations)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOver 100 global partner organizations collaborated to initiate the 1st Global Youth Climate Week in 2022 across six continents.
• World Economic ForummajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGAUC was formed during the WEF Annual Meeting in Davos in January 2019. WEF welcomes the initiative as a grouping of universities to combat climate change.
• Wuppertal InstitutenotableStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the 5th Global Youth Summit (2025), providing expertise on sustainability transitions.
• GIZ (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit)notableStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Sino-German Cooperation on Climate Change and participated in the 5th Global Youth Summit.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Climate Action Network (CAN): The world's largest network of civil society climate NGOs, with observer status at UNFCCC. Comparable to GAUC as a convening body feeding into global climate policy processes (especially COP), though operates across all of civil society rather than just higher education.
• Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN): UN-backed global network of universities, research institutions, and solution-makers working on the SDGs including climate. Comparable to GAUC as a multi-university sustainability network, but broader in scope (all SDGs) and operating at larger scale.

Direct peers

• Second Nature: US-based non-profit that mobilizes higher-education institutions for climate leadership and campus decarbonization. Closely comparable to GAUC's Campus Action program and climate-leadership training, though focused primarily on US colleges and universities.
• University Climate Change Coalition (UC3): Coalition of North American research universities driving climate action and campus decarbonization. Directly comparable to GAUC on the campus-decarbonization and research-collaboration axis, though more US-centric.
• International Universities Climate Alliance (IUCA): Global alliance of universities convened to support climate action through education, research, and public engagement. Directly comparable to GAUC in mission, structure, and target audience.
• Universities Network for Collaborative Climate Action (formerly COP26 Universities Network): A global university network focused on climate change research and education, directly comparable to GAUC. Has partnered with GAUC on the Graduate Forum and Global Youth Summit, and competes for the same member universities and global-policy visibility.

Others

• World Economic Forum (WEF): Host of GAUC's founding meeting in Davos in 2019 and ongoing partner. Comparable as a multi-stakeholder convener shaping global climate and sustainability agendas, though far broader in scope and not education-specific.
• United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC): The UN body GAUC partners with for COP delegations and Global Youth Climate Week. Not a peer in a competitive sense, but the policy ecosystem within which GAUC operates and derives relevance; comparable as an intergovernmental convener on climate.
• UNESCO: UN agency partner that co-awards certificates for GAUC's Climate x programs and supports Global Youth Summits. An enabling/ecosystem partner rather than a direct competitor, but comparable in mobilizing global higher-education capacity for sustainability.

Peers

• International Association of Universities (IAU): A UNESCO-based global association of higher-education institutions that promotes sustainability in higher education including through the Higher Education Sustainability Initiative (HESI). Comparable to GAUC as a global university network working on climate/SDGs, though with a much broader institutional membership base.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/GAUC_News
• Facebookfacebook.com/GAUC
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/global-alliance-of-universities-on-climate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Global Alliance of Universities on Climate