Cadmus (Nov 2021)
Youth Groups: A Quick Look at International Organizations
Abstract
Much of the hope for resolving our world’s greatest problems is vested in the power of youth. Since the adoption of the UN Security Council Resolution 2250 on Youth, Peace, and Security (2015), the recognition of young people as a positive force for preventing and resolving conflict and building sustainable peace has gained significant momentum. What is it that makes today’s youth more capable of introducing radical and sustainable social transformation than the youth of the previous generations? It is not merely that the new generations are more capable of coping with the VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity) world, but the urgency of overcoming the risks that our planet and our society are facing, has become so obvious that the younger generations are pushed to act for their security, here and now. Also, the technological environment and the widely spread skills have given youth unprecedented opportunities for interaction and collaboration like never before. Contemporary youth are the first globally networked generation in history with communication capabilities that allow an almost unlimited flow of information and widespread promotion of global causes. Collective participation of young people in international projects through youth groups provides possibilities for intergenerational dialogue that is necessary to both adjust current institutional frameworks and make room for new ones. Apart from intergenerational projects that empower youth to play an essential role in creating rapid social change, such as the UN projects in the last few decades, youth have also established themselves as crucial actors in global social movements which in their own right intend to bring about effective change in our highly fragmented and disparate world. Youth organizations inspire interaction among people from around the world, with a purpose of bringing about common well-being. For the new generation, this process ought to start at an early age and become a life-long quest to be nurtured as a social obligation. The article lists a selection of 22 dedicated international organizations, many of them youth-led, which have been addressing the Sustainable development issue.
