Mount Everest Foundation
Supporting the exploratory

MEF Backs Another Cycle of the Young Alpinist Group

At its management meeting on 26 March 2026, the Mount Everest Foundation agreed to provide funding for a further three-year cycle of the Young Alpinist Group.

YAG Page
The 2023-25 YAG Participants in Chamonix

The Mount Everest Foundation has supported the Young Alpinist Group (YAG), which provides a mentorship pathway for British and Irish mountaineers between the ages of 19 and 29, since its second cycle in 2023-2025.

The YAG, which was established by British alpinist Tom Livingstone in 2021, operates on a three-year cycle, during which participants are supported through a programme of training, trips and expeditions designed to help them progress more safely and efficiently than they would climbing on their own.

Barnaj II East Summit
Callum Johnson, Tom Seccombe and Matt Glenn on the summit of Barnaj II East

The previous two YAG cycles have seen extraordinary successes, including the 2022 first ascent of Barnaj II East (6,303m) by YAG graduates Callum Johnson, Tom Seccombe and Matt Glenn, as well as the 2025 first ascent of the northwest face of Aikache Chhok (6673m) by James Price and George Ponsonby on a YAG expedition.

Pioneering routes like these are made possible through the YAG programme and are exactly why the MEF is excited to once again commit itself to funding the next generation of British and Irish mountaineers.