Advocacy training that equips youth to influence decision-makers and drive policy change.
Girl Up Advocacy Training - Research Notes
Girl Up Advocacy Training is embedded within a movement that has successfully influenced U.S. legislation such as the Protecting Girls' Access to Education in Vulnerable Settings Act, giving learners a proven model to emulate. The training is free and paired with ready-to-use campaign toolkits.
Because it targets youth specifically, the program differentiates itself from general advocacy trainings that assume professional or adult learners, building cohort identity among participants.
Girl Up's advocacy training evolved alongside the broader Girl Up movement that began under the United Nations Foundation in 2010. The organization launched the Girl Up Academy in 2022 to deliver structured advocacy and leadership coursework to youth activists.
After becoming a fiscally hosted initiative of Global Fund for Children in 2025, Girl Up renewed its commitment to equipping one million young leaders and advocates by 2030.
Girl Up Advocacy Training teaches participants how to research issues, build campaigns, contact decision-makers, and mobilize peers around gender equality and social justice. The curriculum is delivered as free online modules through the Girl Up Academy and is paired with action toolkits and event guides.
Learners can apply the training through Girl Up clubs, regional campaigns, and global initiatives such as the annual International Day of the Girl campaign.