Many are feeling that their faith in the global order is being shaken today, and increasing numbers see around them a world growing more chaotic and ungovernable by the day. How such challenges are to be overcome, and the distinct role to be played by youth and young adults in doing so, were central to the Bahá’í International Community’s (BIC) engagement with this year’s UN ECOSOC Youth Forum, which concluded late last week. 

“Humanity is increasingly seeking a compelling vision for the future,” said BIC Representative Cecilia Schirmeister, who headed the BIC’s delegation to the Forum. “Around the world we see youth, with their keen sense of justice and creativity of mind, devising constructive responses to contemporary challenges, whether in their personal lives or across various social settings.”

Central to the BIC’s participation in the Forum was a panel discussion, entitled “Carving Constructive Paths Forward in a Fracturing Global Order: The Role of Youth” and co-hosted with the African United Nations Youth Delegates Program (AUNYD), in which speakers from various institutional and geographic backgrounds shared experiences of youth fueling movements for constructive transformation. 

Stefano Guerra, Attaché of the Permanent Mission of Portugal to the United Nations, described the National Youth Council of Portugal, which applies a youth lens to any proposed policy or law, as well as a citizenship education program that aims to help youth understand their role and responsibilities in contributing to their community. 

Amen Frew Messele, Representative with the AUNYD, highlighted how youth in Sudan, though themselves facing challenges, helped mobilize over $1 million in humanitarian aid in response to conflict and economic crisis. 

Nesta Nezerwe, Founder of Bridge4Refugee, noted the high percentage of youth among Rwanda’s refugee population, and the potential that could be unlocked by ensuring them access to higher education.  

Kimberley Truin, with the Bahá’í Office of External Affairs of the Netherlands, spoke of a group of youth who, dismayed by the state of the world, which was leading to growing anger and even conflict in their neighborhood, designed a five-day camp for younger teens—a space to explore how to use their talents in service to others and to reflect on the central question: What does it mean to become builders of peace in today's world?

The BIC also co-hosted an event with the Permanent Mission of Ireland to the UN and the AUNYD around the role of youth in socio-economic growth in Africa. Speakers at this event included H.E. Ambassador Fergal Mythen and Youth Delegate Natasha Esther Maimba, both of Ireland; UN Development Programme Senior SDG Investment Advisor for the Africa region Joanne Manda; AUNYD Representatives Amen Frew Messele and Kapwani Kavenuke; and Ms. Schirmeister. 

Underlying the BIC’s various activities at the Forum was its statement on youth, entitled In the Vanguard: The Role of Youth in an Ever-Advancing Global Society. Featuring the voices of youth and young adults from around the world, the statement explores lessons that have been learned about the distinct role that young people can play in mobilizing large numbers, of any age, to arise in action for the betterment of their society.  

“To overcome the many challenges facing humanity … the international community needs capable young leaders not by the tens and dozens but by the hundreds of thousands,” the statement reads. “How do entire populations—and not just small numbers of exceptionally motivated or connected individuals—come to function as effective actors shaping their societies’ development? And what is the distinctive role that youth, alongside other populations, can play?”