Climate scientist Tim Flannery is promising an "Obama-style" campaign to raise funds for the new independent Climate Council.
The council, which replaces the now defunct Climate Commission, was officially launched in Sydney on Tuesday.
Professor Flannery was sacked as head of the Climate Commission when Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced he was abolishing the body.
He will now run the new group, along with other former commissioners.
The Climate Council will be funded by "people power", Professor Flannery told reporters.
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"We are raising money Obama-style in small donations online from the public, from ordinary Australians.
"Although in my view they are extraordinary Australians.
"They are the ones who have stepped up and recognised the need and sacrificed just a bit to make sure the job gets done."
The Climate Council received its first donation of $15 at midnight on Monday.
Since then it has received about 1000 donations worth over $30,000.
Professor Flannery, the 2007 Australian of the Year, set up the Climate Commission two years ago for the former Labor government to increase public awareness of climate change science.
Federal Environment Minister Greg Hunt last week phoned Professor Flannery and informed him of the decision to dump the commission to save money.
Professor Flannery and the other commissioners have vowed to continue their role through the Climate Council on a voluntary basis.
Fellow council member Gerry Hueston defended the need for the council despite a plethora of established environmental agencies.
He said unlike the Climate Institute, Greenpeace, WWF and others, the council was not an advocacy group.
"We are talking about presenting the facts from verifiable research in the fields we are talking about," he said.
"That doesn't include political advocacy."
Professor Flannery said the climate change projections painted a worrying picture for the future.
"I am filled with horror at the thought of all those young Australians facing a dismal future," he told reporters.
