Walking through the corridors of the United Nations, the urgency of achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by their 2015 target date is palpable. Social media campaigns such as #MDGMomentum, which marked the 1,000-day milestone until the end of 2015, have focused attention on a final push toward achievement. At the same time, conversations and consultations about what will come after the MDGs, known as the “post-2015 development agenda,” are increasing in intensity and frequency. When the MDGs were drawn up in 2000 as part of the UN Millennium Declaration, the process was fueled by discussions among world leaders and development professionals, informed by a variety of public consultations. Now, empowered by new technologies and global awareness raised by the MDGs, the UN is able to gather citizen input on a much larger global scale to help shape the post-2015 agenda.
Through worldwide consultations—including in-person meetings, online surveys, digital gatherings, and regional teleconferences—the UN has taken great efforts to ensure that the contours of the development agenda are based on an open, inclusive and transparent process. The consultations have been designed to create a broad conversation that engages all stakeholders—from the public and private sectors to individual citizens—about what kind of world they want in 2030. While the final text of the new framework will ultimately be determined by negotiations among governments, a consistent element is emerging in consultations at all levels about the importance of young people in developing this agenda.
Representing 43 percent of today’s global population, people under the age of 25 are the largest generation in history. There is a clear recognition in and around the UN—starting with the Secretary-General, who has made youth a top priority and recently appointed an Envoy on Youth—that young people are not just “recipients” of development, but vital partners who will ultimately be responsible for implementing the agenda. The Secretary-General’s Special Advisor on Post-2015, Amina Mohammed, often points out that today’s youth will do the “heavy lifting” when it comes to implementation, stressing that this really is their agenda to own. At a recent session of the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals, youth representative Ralien Bekkers said, “It is good to talk about young people, but it is much more powerful and meaningful to talk with young people.”
The UN is actively responding to this evolving youth demographic by creating new opportunities for engagement and capitalizing on the prevalence of social media to reach young people through Google+ Hangouts and other virtual conversations. In December 2012, for example, the UN Population Fund convened the ICPD Global Youth Forum in Bali, Indonesia, where 600 youth leaders from over 130 countries, in addition to 2,500 virtual delegates, debated and agreed on a set of forward-looking recommendations for their future. The UN has also launched an innovative global survey, My World, which allows anyone—online, through SMS, or on paper—to vote for the top six priorities that would make a difference in their lives. Young people are using this platform to make their voices heard. In fact, 70 percent of respondents on My World are young people. To further support these efforts, the UN Foundation’s Global Entrepreneurs Council (GEC), a group of ten leading entrepreneurs under 45, will dedicate their work over the next year to elevating the youth voice at the UN. The GEC’s work is part of UN Foundation President and CEO Kathy Calvin’s vision to engage youth in the work of the Foundation.So what are young people passionate about?
My World results show that the youth have consistently rated a good education, better healthcare, better job opportunities, and an honest and responsive government as their top priorities. In fact, these issues are rated as the top priorities across the globe, from Africa to the Middle East to the United States. Youth unemployment is one of the issues that almost everyone lists near the top of their agenda and it will shape the global political future. As we have seen from recent events in the Middle East, young people are demanding not only jobs, but a voice and legitimate political participation.
While the post-2015 agenda will not alter political dynamics overnight, it can begin to gradually change norms and values—something the UN does best. The UN can provide a forum for young people to be heard, and it can bring international attention to issues affecting youth that may not gain traction elsewhere.
My World is just one example of a more open UN. The UN’s deliberate engagement of youth in this process is indicative of a larger shift—a UN that is increasingly accessible, open to outside ideas and innovation, and ready to pool the best of the world’s knowledge. As consultations move into a critical period of debate among governments, youth must capitalize on this openness to continue building momentum for their priorities. The fact that this important conversation among the next generation of leaders is already happening is clearly a step in the right direction. It is now time to continue the dialogue so that young people can shape the future they want—the future is theirs, after all.
Join the conversation by casting your vote on what should be included in the post-2015 development agenda at My World.org and follow the debate at @Post2015_UNF.
Emily Ross is the Deputy Director of UN Relations and Special Initiatives at the United Nations Foundation. Mara van Loggerenberg is a Program Associate in UN Relations at the United Nations Foundation.
The United Nations Foundation builds public-private partnerships to address the world’s most pressing problems, and broadens support for the United Nations through advocacy and public outreach. Through innovative campaigns and initiatives, the Foundation connects people, ideas, and resources to help the UN solve global problems. The Foundation was created in 1998 as a U.S. public charity by entrepreneur and philanthropist Ted Turner and now is supported by global corporations, foundations, governments, and individuals. For more information, visit www.unfoundation.org.
Photo courtesy of My World.
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How the UN is Engaging Youth in the Post-2015 Agenda—and Why it Matters
September 10, 2013
Walking through the corridors of the United Nations, the urgency of achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by their 2015 target date is palpable. Social media campaigns such as #MDGMomentum, which marked the 1,000-day milestone until the end of 2015, have focused attention on a final push toward achievement. At the same time, conversations and consultations about what will come after the MDGs, known as the “post-2015 development agenda,” are increasing in intensity and frequency. When the MDGs were drawn up in 2000 as part of the UN Millennium Declaration, the process was fueled by discussions among world leaders and development professionals, informed by a variety of public consultations. Now, empowered by new technologies and global awareness raised by the MDGs, the UN is able to gather citizen input on a much larger global scale to help shape the post-2015 agenda.
Through worldwide consultations—including in-person meetings, online surveys, digital gatherings, and regional teleconferences—the UN has taken great efforts to ensure that the contours of the development agenda are based on an open, inclusive and transparent process. The consultations have been designed to create a broad conversation that engages all stakeholders—from the public and private sectors to individual citizens—about what kind of world they want in 2030. While the final text of the new framework will ultimately be determined by negotiations among governments, a consistent element is emerging in consultations at all levels about the importance of young people in developing this agenda.
Representing 43 percent of today’s global population, people under the age of 25 are the largest generation in history. There is a clear recognition in and around the UN—starting with the Secretary-General, who has made youth a top priority and recently appointed an Envoy on Youth—that young people are not just “recipients” of development, but vital partners who will ultimately be responsible for implementing the agenda. The Secretary-General’s Special Advisor on Post-2015, Amina Mohammed, often points out that today’s youth will do the “heavy lifting” when it comes to implementation, stressing that this really is their agenda to own. At a recent session of the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals, youth representative Ralien Bekkers said, “It is good to talk about young people, but it is much more powerful and meaningful to talk with young people.”
The UN is actively responding to this evolving youth demographic by creating new opportunities for engagement and capitalizing on the prevalence of social media to reach young people through Google+ Hangouts and other virtual conversations. In December 2012, for example, the UN Population Fund convened the ICPD Global Youth Forum in Bali, Indonesia, where 600 youth leaders from over 130 countries, in addition to 2,500 virtual delegates, debated and agreed on a set of forward-looking recommendations for their future. The UN has also launched an innovative global survey, My World, which allows anyone—online, through SMS, or on paper—to vote for the top six priorities that would make a difference in their lives. Young people are using this platform to make their voices heard. In fact, 70 percent of respondents on My World are young people. To further support these efforts, the UN Foundation’s Global Entrepreneurs Council (GEC), a group of ten leading entrepreneurs under 45, will dedicate their work over the next year to elevating the youth voice at the UN. The GEC’s work is part of UN Foundation President and CEO Kathy Calvin’s vision to engage youth in the work of the Foundation.So what are young people passionate about?
My World results show that the youth have consistently rated a good education, better healthcare, better job opportunities, and an honest and responsive government as their top priorities. In fact, these issues are rated as the top priorities across the globe, from Africa to the Middle East to the United States. Youth unemployment is one of the issues that almost everyone lists near the top of their agenda and it will shape the global political future. As we have seen from recent events in the Middle East, young people are demanding not only jobs, but a voice and legitimate political participation.
While the post-2015 agenda will not alter political dynamics overnight, it can begin to gradually change norms and values—something the UN does best. The UN can provide a forum for young people to be heard, and it can bring international attention to issues affecting youth that may not gain traction elsewhere.
My World is just one example of a more open UN. The UN’s deliberate engagement of youth in this process is indicative of a larger shift—a UN that is increasingly accessible, open to outside ideas and innovation, and ready to pool the best of the world’s knowledge. As consultations move into a critical period of debate among governments, youth must capitalize on this openness to continue building momentum for their priorities. The fact that this important conversation among the next generation of leaders is already happening is clearly a step in the right direction. It is now time to continue the dialogue so that young people can shape the future they want—the future is theirs, after all.
Join the conversation by casting your vote on what should be included in the post-2015 development agenda at My World.org and follow the debate at @Post2015_UNF.
Emily Ross is the Deputy Director of UN Relations and Special Initiatives at the United Nations Foundation. Mara van Loggerenberg is a Program Associate in UN Relations at the United Nations Foundation.
The United Nations Foundation builds public-private partnerships to address the world’s most pressing problems, and broadens support for the United Nations through advocacy and public outreach. Through innovative campaigns and initiatives, the Foundation connects people, ideas, and resources to help the UN solve global problems. The Foundation was created in 1998 as a U.S. public charity by entrepreneur and philanthropist Ted Turner and now is supported by global corporations, foundations, governments, and individuals. For more information, visit www.unfoundation.org.
Photo courtesy of My World.
