Today, September 20, world leaders are gathering at the United Nations (UN) for the Summit on the Millennium Development Goals and the following meetings of the 65th session of the UN General Assembly. During this period of sessions a document will be submitted that voices the opinion of youth and includes recommendations for governments on measures to be taken in the areas of youth and development, for 2015 and beyond. This document, the Statement of the NGO Global Meeting, was drafted, developed and adopted during the World Youth Conference 2010 in Mexico (August 23-27, Léon).
I was part of it and I wish you would have been there too.
The event provided opportunities for a whole range of experiences. Firstly, I was directly and actively involved in the making of the document. Sharing my opinions and expertise, moderating thematic working groups, speaking up at the plenary meetings and even seeing my own formulations and ideas in the final Statement – this all turns a yet another paper into something a lot more personal that I now feel co-responsible for. Secondly, being selected as one of the 10 youth representatives I also had the chance to participate in the sequent Governments’ Meeting and its thematic round table discussions to then underpin and push forward the ideas and recommendations of the youth. Last but not least, meeting engaged youth leaders from more than 150 countries couldn’t leave anyone cold. This has been one of the most inspiring youth-events I have participated in, resulting in new friendships and connections that will most definitely play some role in the future.
Another worthy experience has been witnessing the “behind the scenes” of such an event, with all its problems, intrigues, heated discussions and shortcomings. No lecture on politics could ever replace such lively on-site observations.
So, what results should we expect from this document? Of course, this is only a paper, that eventually could go unnoticed, yet the discussions at the Governments’ Meeting and the ongoing efforts of youth activists give hope for a lot more positive prospects. A good number of countries addressing the plenary session brought up specific points of the Statement and its importance as such. We can’t foresee what particular effect the document will have, nevertheless, doing what we can means doing a lot more than nothing. Ensuring youth participation and representation takes a lot of small steps, and this has been one of them.
The reason I’m telling this story is that I’m not all that different from you. Youth have the rights to speak up and be involved in decision making at local, national and international level. We only have to find the ways to do so, be pro-active, persistent and patient. We should be proud of the work being done as the YMCA is changing people’s lives all over the world. “Striving for global citizenship for all” is not only a slogan but a task demanding real and continuous action, also yours.
The World Youth Conference 2010 was one of the events planned in the frame of International Year of Youth (August 12, 2010 – August 2011). Stay updated on how the year unfolds, and take action! This is our year!
