City of Mesa Awards $40,000 in Grants through the Mesa Youth Climate Action Fund

The City of Mesa has awarded $40,000 in grants to 11 youth-led sustainability projects through the Mesa Youth Climate Action Fund (MYCAF). Now in its third year, the Bloomberg Philanthropies-funded program empowers young people to turn their ideas into projects that promote conservation, sustainability and community resilience.

"Young people bring fresh perspectives, creative ideas and a passion for making a difference. Through the Mesa Youth Climate Action Fund, we're helping the next generation to turn that passion into meaningful projects that promote conservation, sustainability and community resilience in Mesa," said Mesa Mayor Mark Freeman.

The 2026 MYCAF recipients represent five Mesa high schools, universities and community groups. Projects focus on water stewardship, heat mitigation and materials management. All projects are expected to be completed by March 31, 2027.

•Circle of Waste (Greenlight Solutions) - providing zero-waste services at a Mesa event to raise awareness of proper waste disposal
•Common Ground (Benedictine University) - creating a peaceful reflection garden with an emphasis on water conservation and pollinator-friendly plants.
•Desert Blooms (Mesa Community College) - investigating which drought-adapted pollinator plants can maintain growth and support biodiversity with reduced irrigation demand.
•From Waste to Food (ASU/Mendoza Elementary) - connecting outdoor gardening with an indoor hydroponic growing system, adding shade to protect outdoor plants during extreme heat, and a food scrap recovery system.
•Make Way for Monarchs (Dobson High School) - creating a Monarch Waystation with native plants and an art installation, including ceramic and welded art pieces, for an educational component.
•Poly-Nation Biology: Students Study Mesa's Pollinators (ASU Polytechnic Campus) - researching which garden layout and plant groupings best promote Monarch butterfly success and benefit a diverse pollinator community.
•Skyline Garden Refresh (Skyline High School) - creating a food waste system by implementing a bin system in the cafeteria to separate compostable food and other waste and using the compost in the school garden.
•The Solar Canopy Effect (Mountain View High School) - researching whether solar panels above bodies of water reduce water evaporation rates and improve solar panel efficiency by measuring energy output.
•Urban Shade Island (Mountain View High School) - mitigating heat on the main patio by creating a gazebo, adding native plants and using sensors to measure how green space reduces area temperatures.
•Water for Mesa High (Mesa High School) - reducing single-use plastic waste on campus through a three-part strategy: repairing broken water bottle refill stations, installing student-led climate murals around the stations to increase their visibility and encourage engagement, and distributing reusable water bottles alongside dedicated recycling bins for plastic waste.
•Westwood Air Quality Improvement Project (Westwood High School) - installing four air quality monitors to study air pollution in different areas of the campus to establish a data set that will be used to propose changes to improve air quality for students, teachers, and staff.

Project teams of two or more were eligible to apply if between the ages of 15-24 and the project directly benefits the Mesa community. All applications went through a rigorous review process.

MYCAF is supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies as part of its Youth Climate Action Fund, which has expanded to 300 cities worldwide to help young people develop and lead projects addressing local sustainability challenges, which works to ensure better, longer lives for the greatest number of people.