What is YRE?

Here is a quick overview of everything you need to know about YRE.

Young Reporters for the Environment

Video: Introducing YRE

In this video, we'll walk you through YRE competition, the steps required to submit your entry, and the resources available to help you.

YRE Guide for Educators

In a hurry? Download this webpage as a PDF Guide.

Competition Deadlines

The YRE Competition is held annually in two stages. Each participating country holds its own national competition, and winners of those competitions then progress to the international competition.

In Scotland, the deadline for entries to the 2026 YRE competition is Earth Day 22 April 2026 but you can submit an entry at any point before that. All young people aged 8-25 are welcome to send in an entry either individually or in groups. Results of the Scottish Competition are announced by Keep Scotland Beautiful in the second week of May and we then send winners of each category on to the international competition.

The international competition is open to young people aged 11 to 25. International competition results are usually announced by the Foundation for Environmental Education in the first week in June.

Have a look at each category to see previous winners.

Four Elements

Like its sister programme Eco-Schools, YRE is based on a set of Four Elements: grounded in Project-Based Learning, an approach where young people take the lead in identifying a problem, investigating its causes and impacts, and developing solutions. YRE also makes links to the Sustainable Development Goals.

Investigate

Start by choosing an environmental issue that concerns you. Gather information from sources like scientific papers, reports, or interviews to understand the scale of the issue.

Research & Propose Solutions

Building on your Investigation, research potential solutions to the issue. Contact environmental organisations or community leaders to find the most effective solutions. Conduct original research like surveys, or interviews with people making a difference. Ask: what is being done to solve this environmental issue? What more could or should be done?

Report

Put your research findings into an exciting report. This could be photographs, a video, a podcast or an article. What media works best for your audience? Take a positive approach to inspiring change without shying away from criticism. Present your findings objectively, asking for the most promising solution with clear reasoning and evidence.

Share

Share your report with your audience through social media, newspaper, magazine, TV, or radio, at an exhibition at a library or village hall, a film screening or a community meeting. Take part in discussions with others who share your interest for environmental responsibility.

Sustainable Development Goals

Have a look at the Sustainable Development Goals to link your issue to the bigger global picture. The Sustainable Development Goals are a set of global priorities for ensuring that economic, environmental, social and cultural wellbeing is achieved for everyone around the world.

YRE and Skills Development:

Participating in Young Reporters can support the development of Meta Skills including:

Curiosity: in looking for a solution to an environmental problem or wanting to learn more about a project already happening.

Sense Making: in explaining a solution, and presenting a convincing justification.

Creativity: creating an interesting report – whether it is an article, photograph, video, or podcast, requires strong storytelling and content creation skills.

Critical Thinking: independent research, considering different perspectives and finding relevant information.

Communicating: Creating a persuasive and engaging report requires strong communication skills. Additionally, sharing your report on social media and participating in discussions requires strong public engagement and advocacy skills.

Leadership: Creating a powerful report will motivate others to act for the environment.

Collaborating: Connecting with a diverse network of like minded-young people around the world. Group entries are also welcomed and can foster collaboration skills.

Initiative: Gathering independent information to answer the questions: Who? What? Where? When? Why? and How? and confidence in public speaking when presenting a report, or interviewing members of the community to understand their perspectives.

In addition, YRE can also support the development of Information Literacy in learning to distinguish credible sources, find biases, and analyse information objectively to avoid disinformation.

YRE Supporting A Curriculum for Excellence:

The report format of Young Reporters for the Environment can fit well within subjects and qualifications across the curriculum including but not limited to:

National 3 Geography: Global Issues
BGE: English, Gaelic (Learners), Gàidhlig, and Social Subjects.
National 4 English: English Creation & Production
Higher and Advanced Higher English
National 4, National 5 or Higher Media
National 5 Gàidhlig: Component 4: Obair shònraichte–sgrìobhadh
National 4 Gàidhlig: Creation and Production
Higher Photography
Skills for Work: Creative Digital Media
Skills for Work: Creative Industries

In addition, YRE can support learning in colleges as part of qualifications such as:

HNC or HND Media & Communication
HNC or HND Photography

If you are interested in using YRE in your classroom and need support, please get in touch with us at youngreporters@keepscotlandbeautiful.org.

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