Why This Possibilists AI Deep Dive

Young changemakers are tackling the most pressing issues of our time, but are often stretched and under-resourced. We believe helping them mindfully and ethically adopt AI tools can significantly help reduce this burden and focus more on and therefore scale their impact in the world. This report explores how they use AI, as well as what their concerns and hopes for it are.

The Change
We Envision:

The Possibilists is an alliance of the world’s largest support networks for youth innovation. Our vision is a global support ecosystem that is aligned by a shared, data-driven understanding of the needs that young changemakers have; creating the best possible conditions for their initiatives and themselves to thrive.

A Global Alliance

The Possibilists run scientific studies to explore the impact, challenges and needs of young changemakers. We hope these reports will serve as a leading resource for governments, foundations, civil society and anyone willing to support young social innovators. With the data gathered, we then launch collective action projects targeted at improving the support ecosystem.

Theory of Change

Our collective effort is guided by a clear vision of the systemic change we strive to achieve.

The problem(s) we aim to solve:

Young changemakers tackle some of the world’s most pressing challenges, but the conditions in the ecosystem make it difficult for them and their teams to thrive and deepen or scale their impact.

Lack of resources: The initiatives of young changemakers are underfunded, and they struggle with personal financial health. Less than 1 in 10 of them can compensate themselves fully for their work on their ventures.
Stress and burnout: Young changemakers experience stress and exhaustion and are prone to burnout – and in consequence may lose hope, become cynical and at risk of disengaging.
Juggling responsibilities: Many young changemakers have other ongoing professional commitments in parallel to the work on their initiative. Only a small portion of them can dedicate themselves fully and exclusively to their initiatives.
Lost impact: Society misses out on the true potential of young people’s ideas and energy, and some of the most disruptive and inclusive social innovations.

Our envisioned systems change:

The global support ecosystem is aligned around a shared, data-driven, understanding of the needs of young changemakers and creates the best possible conditions for them and their teams to thrive and to deepen or scale their impact.

The impact we aim for:

Young changemakers thrive personally and deepen or scale their impact.

About This Study And The AI Deep Dive

In early 2025, we surveyed 2,156 young changemakers aged 14 to 35 from 110 countries worldwide as part of the Possibilists Study 2025. 1,043 of them both hold a leading role within their organisations as well as completed the entire survey, which was the sample we used for the global report. 922 of the 1,043 people also went on to fill out the AI deep dive, which is the sample the report you’re reading right now focuses on.

Demographic Details

922

young changemakers

110

countries

Age

Gender

AI Changemakers

While this report looks broadly at how changemakers use AI in different ways, we also want to highlight selected changemakers who have deeply embedded AI into the core of their initiative:

Francielly Monteiro

Benthos

Belgium

Muyunda Kaonga

EBUSAKA

Zambia

Iva Gumnishka

HUMANS IN THE LOOP

Bulgaria

The Use Of AI To Support Change Making

65% of the surveyed changemakers say they either use AI daily or at least weekly, explicitly to “support the work they do as changemakers”.

38.3% Often (every week)

26.9% Always (every day)

18.4% Sometimes (once a month)

10.1% Rarely

5.7% Never

0.6% Prefer not to say

Percentage Of Changemakers In Different Regions Who Use AI Daily

What Young Changemakers Say When Asked To Respond To The Statement That "There are many beneficial applications of AI"

45% Strongly Agree

36.5% Agree

14.8% Neutral

2.4% Disagree

"I have ethical concerns about the use of AI"

"I have concerns about the environmental impact of AI"

What Young Changemakers Say When Asked To Respond To The Statement That "AI will benefit humanity"

16.3% Strongly Agree

41.9% Agree

31.1% Neutral

4.4% Disagree

2.4% Strongly disagree

Changemakers' Perspectives On AI

The complexity of AI is reflected in the perspectives of changemakers. While 65.2% of changemakers use AI regularly and 66.4% feel confident in their ability to use it, only 25% say they actually trust AI. A strong majority, 81.5%, agree that AI has many beneficial applications; yet, 67.1% report ethical concerns about its use, and 64.2% express concerns about its environmental impact. These paradoxes underscore the nuanced and often conflicting attitudes toward AI as an emerging technology, underscoring the need for more open dialogue on how to utilise AI ethically and responsibly.

Strongly agree

Agree

Neutral

Disagree

Strongly disagree

Skipped

Strongly agree

Agree

Neutral

Disagree

Strongly disagree

Skipped

How Changemakers Are Using AI

The majority of changemakers are using AI regularly for a wide array of tasks. Some integrate the use of predictive AI into their business model, whereas others rely on it to generate content and organising tasks. In interviews, they consistently cite that AI helps save time and energy, allowing them to invest their resources elsewhere. For small businesses and entrepreneurs who are stretched thin, this support has been a game-changer in terms of reducing some of the burden of juggling various tasks. However, they are also aware that the benefits of AI remain inaccessible to many communities (for instance, those without reliable internet connections), thereby further widening the disadvantage gap. They are also conscious of using AI in an ethical and responsible manner, citing a desire to maintain authenticity and enhance trust, rather than exploit it.

Case Studies

Let’s hear from the people on the ground:

Christopher Daccache

RECYCLER

Lebanon

Rawia Ibrahim

Jobs4Sudan

Qatar

Yusuf Munna

Reflective Teens - RT

Bangladesh

Bipana Dhakal

The Learning Fortress

Nepal

Who We Are

Initiated by ChangemakerXchange, The Possibilists is an alliance of 20 of the world’s largest youth social innovation networks and over 50 local and regional youth organisations. They have a combined total reach of thousands of young changemakers, activists and startup social entrepreneurs globally. Together we deliver real insights into the lives and work of changemakers and co-create systemic solutions to improve the conditions for Possibilists everywhere.

Academic Partner:

Kindly supported by:

Survey Interface by:

Design & code by:

The Possibilists Council

The Possibilists Council is a group of 12 leaders from Africa, Europe, Asia, North America, Latin America and the Middle East and Africa. They provide feedback, input and guidance to The Possibilists Team and The Possibilists Alliance. Through their invaluable contribution, we ensure that our work, surveys and activities are rooted in the lived experience of changemakers

Amina Idan Paul

Écolo à Djibouti

Djibouti

Amina is the founder of Écolo à Djibouti, with a mission to advance environmental education and science communication. Amina and her team actively work with schools, local communities, neighborhood leaders, and academic institutions to raise awareness among the Djiboutian population, particularly youth, about climate and environmental issues, while providing them with practical tools to take action.

Bipana Dhakal

The Learning Fortress

Nepal

Bipana is the founder and CEO of 'The Learning Fortress', a community-based foundation that advocates for and provides non-formal education spaces for children in rural and marginalized Nepali communities. Their particular focus is on delivering education in ways that celebrate creativity, agency, and local identity.

Caroline Schober

Neworn

Austria

Caroline founded Neworn, which helps parents make sustainable choices and offer a platform, where they can sell and buy high-quality children’s clothes and accesoires within a trustworthy community, while rewarding them with exclusive discounts from their local and sustainable partner companies.

Christopher Daccache

RECYCLER

Lebanon

Christopher is the founder of Recycler, an eco-venture specialized in solid waste management, environmental education, sustainable innovation, and agriculture. His mission is to support youth in building the skills necessary to become effective climate advocates.

Grace Kaimburi

Emission Pulse

Kenya

Grace runs Emission Pulse, a social and environmental initiative aimed at leveraging innovative technology to monitor and reduce carbon emissions, particularly in climate-vulnerable regions. Their work focuses on creating data-driven solutions to enhance transparency in emission reporting, with the ultimate goal of supporting policy shifts towards a greener future.

Isobel Boyd

YOUth Heroes

Canada

Isobel co-founded YOUth Heroes, a youth-led organization that provides mentorship and resources to underserved youth in Ottawa, Canada. The program focuses on teaching the importance of philanthropy and education, inspiring and guiding young people to become agents of social change within their communities.

Jahmel Brown

Opportunities for Caribbean Youth (OFCY)

Jamaica

Jahmel is the founder of Opportunities for Caribbean Youth (OFCY), an online youth platform which provides guidance to for young people looking to upskill, find new jobs, or gain access to more youth opportunities for self-development.

Rawia Ibrahim

Jobs4Sudan

Qatar

Rawia runs a social initiative called Jobs4Sudan with a mission to support sudanese professionals, and navigate career obstacles, offering resources and guidance to enhance their skills and achieve their career objectives.

Simon Gonzalez

Sustein Material

Spain / Venezuela

Simon is the founder and CEO of Sustein Material, which manufactures carbon-neutral (to-be) construction materials, made from upcycled healthcare fibers. Simon and his team developed a replicable circular economy model by transforming healthcare waste into fully-circular, thermal and acoustic insulation, as well as boards for construction and design.

Terence D'Souza

Global Affairs Canada

Canada

Passionate about systems-thinking and inclusion, Terence is a foreign policy advisor at Global Affairs Canada. He is also the Chair of Advocacy on the Board of Directors at Apathy is Boring, Canada's leading youth voter engagement organization. Terence primarily works in government and often with the community sector to gain a wide perspective of Canada’s systemic and policy challenges on foreign affairs, democratic institutions and the inclusion of young people.

Venancio Conuepan

Impacto Indigena

Chile

Venancio is a founding partner of the global platform Impacto Indigena, a social enterprise and foundation that seeks to drive a narrative shift from considering Indigenous Peoples as mere vulnerable groups to empowering them to be full partners in climate action, sustainable development and peace building.

Yusuf Munna

Reflective Teens - RT

Bangladesh

Yusuf leads Reflective Teens (RT), a non-profit organization established in 2013, which aims to empower under-resourced schools throughout the country by designing innovative solutions that address the challenges these schools face.

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The Way Forward

Young changemakers are willing to take on the world’s greatest challenges to create a better future, but they can’t do it alone.

Ssekitto Kalule Emmanuel

Faces Up Uganda

Uganda

"The present and the future of humanity lies in the hands of changemakers. The ones that are bold to stand up and do something because it’s through doing something and taking action, that we come up with solutions that address some of the world's most pressing needs of our times."

Marcela de Anda

Psigo

Mexico

"In Mexico we say “poner tu granito de arena”, which means that with your actions, you are contributing with a little grain of sand to build up a beautiful beach altogether. I believe that the more changemakers we are, the more we believe in our projects, the more we support each other to make them sustainable and make them grow, the more people will see social entrepreneurship as not just work, but a way of life."

Jan Stassen

Museum of Values

Germany

I hope that we are just the “early adopters”. My hope would be that all of us develop the ambition to co-shape the future. The future doesn’t happen to us, we are active agents and co-pilots on this massive and beautiful planet that we call home. So, I’m playing my part in co-shaping and hope more people will, too.

Namrata Tiwari

ITS ALL FOLK

India

"Personally for me working with the grassroots communities from a very early age has built my character and kept me rooted. Change is such a slow process, but a single visit to the community puts everything in perspective for me. You realise the stakes are high when it's not just about you. When you know you are contributing to something bigger than yourself, even a drop in the ocean counts!"

Rogers Omollo

Activate Action

Kenya

"I have a deep interest in meaningful and ethical youth engagement in policy making, especially on matters which affect vulnerable young people. I hope to play an important role in the future in championing a people-centred approach to addressing community needs such as poverty, diseases and education."

Maria Clara Magalhaes

Be.Labs

Recife/Brazil

“To reach my desirable 2030 future, I must act now. The future has been entrusted to me, I need to be bold and bright. If not now, when? I do all my projects because someone needs to do it. If not me, who?”

Alhassan Baba Muniru

Recycle Up!

Ghana

“We have colonised the earth and we see ourselves as separate from nature - and hence we also deny climate change. These are the things that keep me up at night. I hope that our generation will be able to change some of this for the better.”

Rashida Namulondo

The Sophie Muwanika Institute of Art for Change