Across continents, cultures, and communities, girls and young women stepped forward with confidence, curiosity, and compassion to tackle some of the world’s most pressing challenges — from climate change and body confidence to digital safety and leadership.
This year, through our global programmes, over 179,000 girls and young women completed life-changing learning journeys. More than 13,700 community action projects were delivered, reaching over 300,000 community members. The best part? The spirit of leadership was ignited in thousands more. Behind every number is a story of a girl who found her voice, a leader who inspired her peers, and a community that was transformed in the process.
Reimagining the Digital World with Surf Smart 2.0
In an age where technology shapes our relationships, identities, and realities, digital literacy is no longer a luxury but a necessity. Surf Smart 2.0, our flagship digital citizenship programme, empowered over 16,000 girls and young women this year to navigate the online world safely and responsibly.
From small group sessions in India to online workshops in Latin America, girls learned how to build safe online communities, challenge cyberbullying, and claim their right to digital inclusion. Their collective impact didn’t go unnoticed. Surf Smart 2.0 won the Big Impact Award at the Third Sector Awards 2025, recognising how girls are taking ownership of their online worlds.
The Power of Self-Belief: Free Being Me and Action on Body Confidence
For more than a decade, Free Being Me and Action on Body Confidence (FBM/ABC) have been helping girls see their worth beyond appearances. In 2025, the programme reached new heights with over 100,000 girls completing the curriculum, each one discovering that her body is not a limitation, but her strength.
In schools and community centres across the globe, girls learned to challenge impossible beauty standards and celebrate their individuality. Trainers and advocates shared stories of transformation that continue to ripple through their communities.
The programme’s transformative reach was also recognised globally. It won a Silver Medal for Best Educational Programme at the Corporate Engagement Awards 2025.
Leading the Green Generation: Girl-Led Advocacy on Climate Change
When the world talks about the climate crisis, girls are no longer listening from the sidelines, they are leading the conversation. In 2025, Girl-Led Action on Climate Change (GLACC) continued turning learning into real-world leadership, equipping girls and young women to understand the crisis, speak up for justice, and drive solutions in their communities. Across 24 Member Organisations in Africa, Asia Pacific, and Latin America & the Caribbean, 40,632 young people have completed the GLACC curriculum, supported by 1,591 trained leaders helping shape the next generation of climate advocates.
This year also brought major milestones. The GLACC curriculum for the Global South was finalised for the realities and priorities of Africa, Asia Pacific, and LAC, alongside the completion of Europe’s Youth-Led Action on Climate Change (YLACC) curriculum, developed with youth leaders and regional experts to reflect local challenges while centring girls’ leadership.
Learning expanded too, with the GLACC Self-Paced Learning Course launching on Campfire, and the movement stepping onto the global stage at COP30 in Belém, Brazil, where eight WAGGGS Advocacy Champions amplified the voices of 12 million girls and young women worldwide. GLACC’s reach grew further through a new agreement with UNICEF ESARO to strengthen girl-led climate action across Eastern and Southern Africa, while in LAC the programme closed its second phase with 12 Member Organisations and 33 Ambassadors reaching over 3,000 girls and young women—culminating in a Climate Action Summit at Nuestra Cabaña that united young leaders from 10 countries to build skills, community, and momentum for youth-led projects.
Building Leaders for Life: Plastic Tide Turners Challenge (PTTC)
Leadership begins with opportunity. Through PTTC over 34,000 girls and 1,500 leaders gained the skills to respond to crises, mobilise their communities, and advocate for equality.
Sustainability shaped the Design Thinking Training Series (Dec 2024–Mar 2025), where young innovators co-created locally grounded solutions with mentorship. It also sharpened a key lesson i.e. long-term impact depends on ongoing youth advocacy, peer learning, and better integration across WAGGGS initiatives.
At the same time, a new chapter opened with the first year of rolling out the YUNGA Gender Equality Badge under WAGGGS leadership, piloted with the Kenya Girl Guides Association and Mpanazava Eto Madagasikara, reaching girls across all four age groups and backed by regional orientation sessions that helped teams take ownership fast, even when curriculum timelines shifted.
Breaking Barriers in STEM: Partnerships for Possibility
In 2025, the STEM Changemakers Programme, supported by the Spectris Foundation and KLA Foundation, expanded girls’ and young women’s access to quality STEM opportunities across Nepal, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore, and Taiwan. A key milestone came in June, when Master Trainers from all five Member Organisations gathered at Sangam World Centre for immersive training, experiencing the Activity Pack firsthand, testing STEM challenges, and building confidence to lead National Trainings back home.
Under Spectris Foundation support, Nepal Scouts trained around 52 adult leaders (including regional and provincial staff) and 310 young members across nine provinces, while the Sri Lanka Girl Guides Association trained 39 adult leaders and 925 young members. With KLA Foundation support, Malaysia, Singapore, and Taiwan upskilled 350+ leaders in STEM facilitation, piloted the Activity Pack with around 80 girls in Taiwan and Singapore to validate and refine it for local context, and are now positioned to cascade these learnings in 2026 — alongside nearly 300 leaders trained in Malaysia, a peer-to-peer approach led by Young Adults and Guiders in Singapore, and culturally grounded adaptation in Taiwan.
Alongside this, WAGGGS and Siemens Energy launched the Girls for Green Energy (G4GE) pilot in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Taiwan to build renewable energy confidence among girls aged 8–14, blending Minecraft Education: Planet Rescuers with hands-on offline learning, from building water turbines to exploring different types of renewable energy and developing sustainability ideas. So far, 117 leaders and 419 girls have joined, with a standout moment at the Girl Guides Singapore Brownie Revel in November, where more than 900 girls gathered to learn about STEM and 190 engaged with G4GE booths, including an immersive VR experience.
From labs in Sangam to workshops at Our Cabaña, this year, girls and young women discovered the joy of experimentation and the courage to imagine themselves as scientists, engineers, and innovators. For many, it was their first time seeing women role models up close and realising that they, too, could be one.
Voices of Advocacy: Global Advocacy Champions
At the highest levels of global decision-making, WAGGGS’ Global Advocacy Champions (GACs) continued to make their mark.
This year, six GACs represented the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in New York, bringing girls’ voices directly to policymakers. They spoke about equitable access to resources, gender-responsive climate action, and ensuring that young women are recognised as powerful agents of change.
Across regions, advocacy champions also trained other girls to design and lead their own campaigns, ensuring that the movement for equality and justice continues to grow from the ground up.
From Ideas to Impact: How Global Youth Mobilization (GYM) Sparked Youth-Led Action Worldwide
Through Global Youth Mobilization (GYM), young leaders were trained to turn their ideas into community projects that drive environmental change. From tree-planting campaigns in Uganda to waste management drives in the Philippines, the initiative created a global wave of youth-led climate action. The Global Youth Mobilization Action Week, launched on International Youth Day, became a rallying point for young people everywhere to celebrate their power and purpose.
Looking Ahead: A Global Sisterhood Stronger Than Ever
What we’ve achieved together in 2025 is not just a collection of programmes but a story of courage, confidence, and connection.
From the first spark of self-belief to the first step in climate advocacy, WAGGGS girls and young women are proving that leadership has no age limit and that change begins with one voice.
As we look to 2026, we carry forward the same energy, empathy, and purpose that defined this year. Because when girls lead, communities thrive. And when communities thrive, the world changes.