“Development with people and planet at the center!”
This unanimous call to action echoed through the halls of the United Nations during the ECOSOC Youth Forum 2019. The air was crisp with the energy and idealism of young people from across the world.
They spoke of the need for immediate change– that 1.2 billion young people around the world cannot achieve their potential if they don’t have access to basic rights, especially education. It’s not surprising that while more than 260 million children are out of school globally, 64 million young people are unemployed1 and 145 million are living in poverty.
The ECOSOC Youth Forum, held on April 8-9, gathered nearly 1000 youth advocates from around the world and provided a unique platform for young people to discuss their vision of the Sustainable Development Goals, make their voices heard to ministers and government officials gathered for the Forum, and provide contributions to the upcoming UN meetings, including the High-Level Political Forum and the SDG Summit in September.