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Introducing HYPE: Horizons Youth Project for the Environment
Introducing HYPE: Horizons Youth Project for the Environment
At Voyage, we have never been content to stand still. As we move into 2026, we are proud to announce the launch of one of our most exciting and forward-thinking projects to date, HYPE: Horizons Youth Project for the Environment.
This is a project we are deeply passionate about. It brings together everything Voyage stands for, empowering young people, opening doors that have been closed for too long, and ensuring that the communities who are too often left out of important conversations are not just included, but leading them.
The Problem We're Solving
The environmental sector is one of the most vital and fast-growing fields of our time. From renewable energy and green technology to conservation and sustainable urban planning, the opportunities are enormous. The world desperately needs the next generation to step up, bring fresh thinking, and drive real change.
But here's the uncomfortable truth: that next generation does not yet look like our communities. Black and brown young people, and those from working class backgrounds, are significantly underrepresented across the environmental sector. The people making decisions about our planet's future too rarely reflect the communities most affected by environmental challenges. That is not just unfair, it is a problem that weakens the quality of the solutions being built.
At Voyage, we believe that cannot continue. And with HYPE, we are doing something about it.
What HYPE Is
HYPE is a 12-week programme, running four times a year with cohorts starting in September 2026, December 2026, March 2027 and May 2027. Two days a week, young people aged 16 to 21 receive training, mentoring and real work experience from leading practitioners and green sector partners, all within a safe, structured and genuinely supportive environment.
The programme is designed specifically for young people facing real barriers, those who are disengaged from education, at risk of exclusion, facing unemployment, exposed to youth violence or exploitation, or struggling to access apprenticeships and work. These are not young people who have failed. These are young people who have not yet been given the right opportunity. HYPE changes that.
The programme combines personal development, mentoring, employability support, and green skills and industry exposure. Every participant goes through a careful screening and onboarding process before joining, ensuring the programme is safe and set up for their success from day one. All sessions are led by supportive, safeguarding-assured tutors, facilitators and guests, and delivered in partnership with employers, colleges and community organisations across the city.
Why the Environment, Why These Young People
The green economy is one of the fastest growing sectors in the UK, and employers are actively searching for the next generation of workers. Yet young people from disadvantaged and underrepresented communities are almost entirely absent from that pipeline.
HYPE exists to change that. By introducing young people to the environmental sector early, giving them hands-on experience and genuine industry connections, we are not just helping them find a job, we are positioning them for a career in one of the most important and in-demand fields of the future. When you give young people on the periphery the skills, the pathway and the belief in themselves, they do not just participate in the environmental sector, they transform it.
Building on a Successful Pilot
We did not arrive here overnight. HYPE has already been through a successful pilot phase, and the results were everything we hoped for and more. Young people who had never considered the environment as relevant to their lives left inspired, engaged and hungry to do more. The feedback was clear, this programme works, and it is needed.
We are now ready to take it to the next level, and we could not be more excited about what lies ahead.
Funded and Backed by Leading Partners
HYPE is funded by the Mayor of London and supported by City and Guilds, City Bridge Foundation, Sport England, the National Lottery and GO! London. This is a fully funded, professionally delivered programme with serious institutional backing, and the young people in your community deserve access to it.
Get Involved
If you work with young people aged 16 to 21 who need direction, confidence and a real shot at the future, we want to hear from you. Referrals are welcomed from colleges, PRUs, youth organisations, youth justice systems, social care and family support teams. Whether you are a referral partner, a potential employer, a mentor or a funder who shares our vision, there is a place for you in this project.
Stay tuned for our official launch, this is just the beginning.