She is currently running a project called the “Peer Educators Programme.” It targets youth between 16-25 and helps them become community peer counsellors. The programme is running across nine districts in Trinidad and targets 25 young people. Her project was financially supported by the Ministry of Sport and Youth Affairs. A facilitator training in psychology was hired to assist with the process. Topics breached include understand the self and self-esteem through role playing and interactive sessions.

At the end of the training sessions, she hopes to have a group of community counselors who young people think they can turn to. So far, in the districts where training has been completed,  trained individuals are seen as respected advisors within their respective communities.

On top of this, she is hoping to meet with the Secretary General at the National Commission in Trinidad to start discussions on settin up a Youth Desk!

She holds two Bachelors, one in history and the other in literary and language studies from Sorbonne University, as well as a Masters in Economies and Societies in Anglophone areas, also from la Sorbonne. She has been working with UNESCO since the age of 12, when she first volunteered in the Romanian Club for UNESCO and for the Secretary of the European Federation for UNESCO Clubs, Centers and Associations. Currently, she is the treasurer of the European Federation for UNESCO Clubs, Centers and Associations.

In light of learning more about fellow delegate projects, Adeline wanted to introduce what she has been working on this year. Two major events called “Youth and Museums,” an international conference with more than 15 countries participating in May 2009, and “Workshop-Metamorphoses,” the creation of a cultural pavilion space in young people’s vision.

Adeline says: “I truly believe that it is important to attract young people towards culture and for me the best way to attract them is to let them be free to imagine this kind of space created for them and by them.” Please check out Adeline’s two projects here and here.

Sylvia has also helped start a community based organization, Kirinda Youth Environmental Management and Poverty Alleviation Project or KYEMPAPU in Masaka District with the help of Canadian Youth Delegate, Xhing Chiu. They intend on establishing a bark cloth making project, as well as a poultry project for the youth in the community.

The Forum will take place within the framework of a broad-based inter-agency initiative to identify, exchange and disseminate best practices in youth-related policies and programmes, organized by 7 United Nations agencies; the IDB, OECD, CYP, OAS and OIJ; as well as 5 international NGOs and 6 national public and private sector institutions; and observers from different youth related organizations around the world. The event is coordinated by UNESCO’s Section for Youth, Sport and Physical Education; with the cooperation of the Inter-American Development Bank’s IDB-Youth programme, in collaboration with the Mexican Institute for Youth and the Institute for Youth of the Sate of Jalisco, Mexico.

For more information visit the project’s website at: http://youthpractices.ucol.mx/inicio.php , or write to Berenice Alcalde at b.alcalde@unesco.org .

In the last days I have participated in the Norwegian delegation to the General Conference, and followed the Education Commission. I can report that the awareness of the Youth Forum report is very good, and recommendations has been lifted up in several debates. This is very good. However, as has been noted in earlier emails, the possibilities of changing resolutions and decisions at the GC has been limited. Not only are we very few youth delegates that are present and allowed to take an active role, but also a lot of deadlines for submitting Draft Resolutions has been exceeded by far and most important discussions were largely finished in informal discussions without our presence. In lack of relevant agenda points, putting forward direct demands from the youth forum for adoption has been a task of creativity.

In the previous week the Nordic countries discussed the possibility of putting forward a DR up to Saturday. Finally a small amendment was taken up from the floor by Norway  in the adoption of item 1.6 LINK in the PRX Commission.

It reads:

New part II

The General Conference,

Welcomes the final report from the 6th UNESCO Youth Forum

Invites the Director General and the Executive board, when preparing future sessions of the General Conference to include the results from the Youth Forum on the agenda of the General Conference

Although only concerning the agenda of the 36^th GC. Having a independent agenda point of the Youth Forum will enhance the possibility of having a DR specifically on Youth. This is also done in the UN General Assembly. And if the Youth Forum also work on a DR that can be adopted by the GC in 2011 in addition to a report, the chances are better of having some real influence on decisions.

Education

In the education commission there was already room for discussions on our recommendations on education, however no easy way of putting forward proposals. The Youth Forum was early noted, as both Austria and Norway gave the floor to the youth delegates in the first debate on program and budget.

Social and Human Science

This commission begins its work on Friday. There has been discussions on how to address youth forum recommendations into the program and budget, however no new DR appear to be submitted on this item. Colombia has however already put forward a DR on changing a Main Line of Action, strengthening research on youth. http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0018/001838/183891e.pdf

Another relevant item is the DR (agenda item 5-7, document in 35C/ 44) on “report on the commemorative activities celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and on the ways in which those activities specifically advanced the objectives set forth in the plan of action for the commemoration”. http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0018/001837/183705e.pdf

According to the work plan of the SHS commission it will be debated on Monday morning. In the suggested decision, mainstreaming of human rights in UNESCO programs is proposed. The DR is a possibility to advance the youth should be prioritized in this plan. After efforts from the Austrian youth delegate, a DR has been submitted that put weight on youth in the secretariat work on this plan, with a suggestive explanatory note referring to the youth forum http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0018/001850/185043e.pdf

Norway is considering to ask for a new provision in the DR after “22-4” giving priority to youth and student participation. The preliminary wordings of this is:

Recommend that in the plan of human rights mainstreaming, particular attention is given to promoting youth and student participation in decision making processes, and the protection of human rights defenders in the field of education.

If you agree to the proposals of Austria and Norway and want to help having these proposals adopted, I ask that those of you that have good contact with your delegations to urge them to have an open position towards including “youth human rights” in this DR. And that delegations that consent please address their support for this in the debate.

I hope that you find this update useful. I would also like to thank and praise the work of Justin and Sara for their great presentations of the Youth Forum during the GC.

Best regards,

Magnus Ofstad Malnes

Internasjonalt ansvarlig/Executive for international affairs

Norsk studentunion/National Union of Students in Norway

Dearest friends,

First of all, I would like to thank all of you once again, in behalf of Sara and myself, from the bottom of our hearts, for the heartwarming support that you have not ceased to give us ever since Day 1. Please be assured that we are doing our very best to make the Youth Forum not only a 3-day event, but an event that goes on and on and on and on!

I have the honor to inform you that Mr. Pierre Sané, ADG for Social and Human Sciences, presented the recommendations from our Final Report relating to National Commissions during today’s Informal Meeting of Presidents and Secretaries-General of National Commissions of UNESCO held in Room IX at 1:30pm. The room was filled with heads of National Commissions and people had to stand at the back of the room because there were no more chairs available.

After his presentation, yours truly was given the opportunity to intervene. I had to deliver an impromptu statement as I wasn’t expecting to intervene at all! I first thanked the ADG for his presentation and of course UNESCO for giving the youth a chance for our voices to be heard. I also informed the heads of National Commissions that we, the 128 youth delegates of the 6th UNESCO Youth Forum, are very passionate about the recommendations that we have put forward in our Final Report. I also told them that many of you have been ardently following up even after the Forum, through the listserv and the Facebook group, on the progress that is being made. I ended by encouraging the National Commissions to consider our proposals with a sense of urgency, knowing that someday, we too will be adults. The applause was tremendous!

Here are some of the interventions by National Commission heads after my comment:

Canada – Full integration of youth is needed

Indonesia – A Youth Forum was held in Indonesia emphasizing the role of Youth in establishing peace, as well as the role of media and ICTs in the establishment of peace in the minds of the Youth

Kenya – We should find ways to incorporate the Youth in government after surpassing the Youth age range (15-24)

Russia – Proposal no. 7 in 35C/INF.5 regarding the development of online tools is a very good and important proposal. The youth could help us create important online networks

Uganda – We should show the youth the way and emphasize the importance of networking

Côte d’Ivoire – thanks UNESCO for aiding the National Commission in sending youth to the Youth Forum

Togo – UNESCO should help National Commissions implement Youth recommendations

Tanzania – National Commission is looking forward to creating more programs and activities targeted at Youth

Our Final Report is available for downloading in English and in French.

As for our speech during the General Policy Debate, I will send it to you as soon as I get the translation of the Arabic part from Sara!

Youthfully yours,
Justin

For the first time in twelve years, youth from all over the world will have the chance to participate in another World Youth Conference. The conference will be held in Mexico City in August 2010. The Director General of the Mexican Institute for Youth, Priscila Vera, invited youth delegates, on the last day of the Forum, to participate in this initiative – a meeting point for representatives of government and civil society organizations.

Reminding youth that this is the “largest generation of young people in the history of mankind,” Vera proposed that a bank of best practices is created in order to give youth the possibility to learn from young people of other regions. She also said that the World Youth Conference will provide a concrete opportunity to follow-up on the youth agenda of the United Nation System.

In the same session, the observers attending the Forum also presented their own final report. Recognizing the value of UNESCO’s decision to give a greater voice to youth delegation during the Forum, they called for more space for observers. The observers also called for a greater integration of the work they are conducting with the work being conducted by the youth delegates and UNESCO.

During an interview on Thursday October 1, where he discussed the integration of young people in their respective National Commissions, as well as their role therein, the Assistant Director General of UNESCO’s Social and Human Science Sector announced that “here, at the level of the General Conference, we will try to push forward a resolution that will commit Member States to open up National Commissions to youth participation. If it’s adopted, the resolution will mean that National Commissions have to reach out to youth organizations and integrate their representatives in the work of the Commissions”. Marcio Barbosa, Deputy Director General of UNESCO, confirmed the good news for young people during a Q&A session on Saturday, October 3. He added that Member States were being lobbied by UNESCO to adopt this resolution.

By Renata Summa 

The second plenary session took place yesterday stressing the importance of ICTs and social networking as tools to promote young people’s participation in political and social life.

One of the main concerns of the global gathering of youth attending the Forum were ICTs, which were presented as a good instrument to create banks of best practices and share successful experiences.

Social networks were also underlined as tools to bring about change and connect young people from all over the world.

Jennifer Corriero, from TakingITGlobal; Sinead Wad, from the Foroige Youth Work Organization; and Gwakisa Makaranga, from the youth desk of the Tanzania National Commission all explained the importance of social networking, and how it can really make a difference to youth all over the world. They also provided inspiring examples of how young people are creating changes through social networking.   

However, unequal or insufficient access to ICTs, and therefore, to social networking, which prevents the most vulnerable people and regions enjoying all the benefits it brings, remains a problem. As Sylvia Namukasa, a youth delegate from Uganda comments, “In Uganda, ICT only favors the urban youth who can access computers, unlike their rural counterparts, many of whom have never had a chance to look at a computer.” Uganda only has 2 million internet users out of a population of 32 million people. Saudi Arabia has 6 million users from a population of 28 million and Norway has almost 4 million internet users from a population of 4.6 million.

Giving youth more opportunities to access new technologies, and to participate on social networking, however, still deserves all our efforts.