Sophie Kim: An Overview of The Clean and Green Initiative

February 13, 2026

By Rafael Bonilla Abad, Ziqing Li, Gerselle Koh, 2025 Future Blue Youth Council members

Cover photo: Frame from the first installment in the series. Art by Sherry Ye under the direction of Sophie Kim

We often think of climate change as an adult topic; too scary for the younguns. Between you and me (Rafael speaking, btw), I agree. I got scared halfway to heaven as a little kid when I learned about climate change, but learning about it at a young age led me to where I am today.

So if climate change is too frightening for kids, yet still something they need to understand, what do we do?

This is exactly the question Sophie Kim asked herself over a year ago. The Clean and Green Initiative (TCAGI for short) began with the goal of making a children’s book series to address exactly that. The concept behind it was to show the different facets of climate change and what we can do about it—to strike a balance between seriousness and levity. Most importantly, the series aims to inspire, empower, and teach kids that they can fight for the environment.

The book series became Stella and the Starlight Solution.

Credit: Sherry Ye and Sophie Kim on tcagi.org

Stella the Star goes to visit her friend, the Earth… but finds her friend in an alarming state. A friendly alien explains what’s going on and tells her there’s something that can help the Earth: the Starlight Solution. Stella sets out to find the Starlight Solution and encounters humans helping the planet in different ways. Along the way, she pieces together what the solution really is.

Ultimately, the book highlights the importance of hope and working together to fight against our climate crisis. It pairs clear information with exciting graphics to emphasize its core message, while making the reading experience engaging. It’s a wonderful guide for children experiencing their first introduction to climate change.

But Sophie didn’t stop there.

She onboarded 32 youth from 14 different countries to The Clean and Green Initiative to help spread awareness about climate change, as well as support the initiative’s growing projects, including Stella and the Starlight Solution. Their responsibilities encompass a myriad of roles from being writers and illustrators for Stella and the Starlight Solution to writing blogs, managing the TCAGI Discord server and social media presence (including YouTube), and much more!

Credit: tcagi.org

Together with Bow Seat and us mentors, Sophie created an environmental contest open to everyone around the world, called *drum roll* The Sounds, Scenes, & Stories of Nature Contest. They could submit any form of creative work, with only one requirement: it had to highlight the beauty of nature.

At first, submissions came in slowly over the summer. But with relentless promotion and dedication, The Clean and Green Initiative ultimately received over 600 submissions from 14 different countries! Entries ranged from photography to poetry and everything in between. While gaining visibility for the contest was challenging at first, it ended up becoming a major success.

Sophie is currently working on a book that will feature a collection of the winning submissions. Still, every single entry is a reminder of how much beauty exists in the natural world, and how many people across the globe are willing to celebrate and protect it.

Credit: chainsofhope.org

Finally, Sophie is also working on a jewelry line where 100% of the proceeds will be donated to Ukrainian charitable organizations, including UNITED24 (founded by President Zelensky) and Maya’s Hope.

This year has been a journey for all of us. Working with Sophie has been incredibly rewarding. Her work is a reminder that we can all fight to make the world a better place, and that if you look closely enough, you’ll find other people who want to do the same.