YouthLead is organizing an online youth assembly to celebrate International Youth Day 2020. Following the theme of this year’s International Youth Day, “Youth Engagement for Global Action,” the event will bring together youth leaders, advocates, and community organizers from across our network and beyond to explore topics such as the role of Positive Youth Development (PYD) in youth engagement, the power of networks, and organizational readiness for youth engagement. The virtual event will feature talks by young changemakers, interactive discussion, breakout sessions, and networking opportunities. See the agenda below:


Schedule of Events

8:30 am – 9:00 am EST

Networking Hub

Attendees are invited to join for an informal online networking hub before the kick-off of the event

9:00 am EST

Happy International Youth Day Video

9:00 am – 9:05 am EST| Welcome and Opening

Sarah Sladen, Senior Youth Engagement Adviser, YP2LE kicks off The International Youth Day Celebrations with a short welcome and scene-setting for the assembly, Including some remarks about the importance of IYD as a day to celebrate steady progress towards the actualization of a global youth development agenda and the recognition of young peoples’ rights and aspirations. Sarah will also share some of the ways that YouthLead is contributing to these efforts.

9:05 am – 9:15 am EST| What is PYD, why is it Important, and How Does it Contribute to Youth-Inclusion?

Dr. Christy Olenik Technical Director, YouthPower2:  Learning and Evaluation (YP2LE) will offer a primer on the concepts behind Positive Youth Development (PYD), how It Is applied In practice through YP2LE and elsewhere, and its relevance to inclusive youth development. Christy will help us understand how and why PYD Is relevant to young people, youth-led organizations and youth-serving programs, and to youth development policy as a whole, drawing on some of the findings and recommendations from the past 5 years of the Youth Power Project

09:15 am- 09:35 am EST| PYD In Action: Connecting Young Leaders, Making Change

Building on the previous session on the importance of PYD and its relevance to IYD, we will hear directly from three young leaders who are putting PYD into practice in different ways through their work and advocacy. The purpose of the panel is to ground the ideas of PYD with practical examples and educate and inspire other young leaders to consider how they can apply a PYD framework to their change-making activities. The panelists will also highlight the significance and impact of local or global networks on themselves and their work.

09:35 am – 09:50 am EST| Youth Opportunity Outlook: A Fireside Chat

Drawing from his perspective as the Agency Youth Coordinator for USAID, Mike McCabe will join a young changemaker for a one-to-one fireside chat on the Global Youth Development Opportunity Outlook Mike will offer our audience some “big picture” Insights about some of the critical challenges and opportunities facing our world today. Mike will also speak to the issue of youth inclusion inside institutions and what needs to happen for us to move the needle with policymakers and institutional leaders. The purpose of the discussion Is to help set the stage for deeper dive discussions in our breakout groups led by youth facilitators

09:50 am – 10:15 am EST| Youth in the Lead: Engagement for Global Action (Concurrent Breakouts)

The breakout sessions will take a deep-dive into some of the concepts and these identified in the morning’s discussions, with a particular focus on how young leaders are positioning themselves for opportunities through their activities either by leading, volunteering, or by being part of a team. The session will seek to understand some of the challenges faced by young people in positioning themselves for opportunities. The session will also look at ways by which young leaders are also creating spaces for the inclusion of other young people and ensuring no youth is left behind.

10:15 am – 10:25 am EST| Group Report Out and Discussion

Facilitated by a YouthLead member, the group will reconvene and share out some of the findings from the breakout discussions.

10:25 am – 10:30 am EST| Final Reflections and Close

10:30 am EST| Winner of the YouthLead Writing Contest for Poetry Reading

Register here

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