Youth
Action
#worldfoodforum
Youth Action Assembly
01 - Background
The Youth Action Assembly provides a dedicated, apolitical, sustained, self-organized, and institutional space for youth in agrifood systems advocacy and action founded on inclusivity, diversity and respect of all persons.
The Youth Action Assembly is co-created by youth for youth. It focuses on three working areas (each with its own working group) explained more in-depth in the following zero draft documents:
- The Action Compendium: A collection of priority working areas synthesized from youth calls to action worldwide, highlighting both requests to national and local governments and the commitments of youth and youth groups.
- The Action Plan: The future vision and goals of the Youth Action Assembly.
- The Youth Mechanism Terms of Reference: Guidelines for the coordination and facilitation of formal youth engagement in the Youth Action Assembly.
Further details on the three working groups are below.
02 - Tools
Youth showcased their top commitments for agrifood systems transformation through a range of youth manifestos and statements. The Youth Action Compendium describes the overall priority actions, highlighting both requests to Member States and commitments of youth and youth groups.
The priority actions were synthesized from a wide range of manifestos and statements found in the annex of the Zero Draft Compendium.
The overarching request from youth is to consider food as a public good and basic human right, organizing agrifood systems around the 4 pillars of Food Security. Likewise, youth also demand to have a sustained and democratic representation in policy and leadership, with equal access to resources.
The Compendium priority areas and the Actionable Solutions provide a guiding principle and direction for agrifood systems policy dialogues and workshops for and by youth. These policy dialogues provide a space for young people and youth groups to engage in agrifood systems discussions on multiple levels, from local to global dialogues. To transform suggestions into actions, the compendium will be linked to a dashboard of Actionable Solutions on different levels of implementation that can be taken up by national and local governments and partners. The Compendium will be revised every year and presented at the Youth Action Assembly for a concluding consultation and finalization.
The collection of actionable solutions can be found on the Innovative Food Systems Solutions (IFSS) Portal. Is a youth manifesto/statement missing in our Compendium? Add it here for it to be included in the synthesis of the Compendium!
For further questions or possible collaborations, contact [email protected]
The Action Plan provides the direction of the WFF Youth Action Assembly and focuses on policy engagement, workshops and empowerment. The Compendium provides priority areas that are supported by existing youth-led Actionable Solutions (under development).
Coming soon.
The Youth Action Assembly is governed by an independent group of youth, called the Youth Mechanism. The Youth Mechanism will become the decision-making body of the Youth Action Assembly, providing leadership to this youth-led body, with the support of the WFF secretariat. The Youth Action Track will engage in programs to support capacity building on actionable solutions and education on policy topics.
The Youth Mechanism is described in the Terms of Reference. These were drafted by youth representatives in 2021 and have been refined through a youth consultation process. The Youth Mechanism is composed of the Assembly and the Focal Points Group. The Assembly is the universal constituency structure.
The Assembly is composed of non-for-profit youth-led or youth serving organizations, or youth entities of the organizations, as well as individual youth advocates (under the age of 35). The Assembly is held during the WFF flagship event in October.
The Focal Points Group acts as a body that guides the strategic direction of the WFF Youth Mechanism as mandated by the Assembly. Each Focal Point acts in the interests of the WFF Youth Mechanism. It is composed of representatives / focal points from various backgrounds, entities, stakeholder groups and expertise. The nomination of the group is identified through a public process.
03 - Road to the Youth Action Assembly
Read below to learn more about upcoming Youth Action track activities and opportunities to get involved!
June - August 2022: Regional youth survey and consultation
In 2021, the Youth Action Assembly produced the Zero draft of the Youth Action Compendium which is a synthesis of global youth policy priorities that were identified through the analysis and summary of youth statements and manifestos around the globe. In 2022, the Youth Action Assembly has decided to draft regional youth action policy compendiums that will account for regional specificities, better ensure inclusivity in our policy asks and set the foundations for our future activities.
To identify regional priorities ahead of the Youth Action Assembly to be held in October, a youth survey has been launched and will be followed by regional roundtables in June and July, where we will hold substantive discussions to identify and agree on the first set of regional youth policy priorities and actions. Outcomes will be presented at the Assembly for a final consultation before final endorsement, setting the first drafts of the regional compendiums.
The regional youth action policy compendiums will work primarily and initially as advocacy tools to indicate youth priorities within the regions, and to be presented to national governments, FAO/UN regional offices and WFF partners. This will set the foundations for:
- WFF statements to upcoming international conferences (such as the Conference of the Parties [COP])
- Future WFF activities/national chapters to stimulate more regional and local actions with partners
- Guides and tools for future activities and programs in 2023
Let your thoughts be heard!
04 - Flagship event
Regional Youth Action Assemblies will be held during the WFF flagship event, gathering young people from around the globe. The outcomes of the regional consultations will be presented during the Assemblies for final discussions and eventual endorsement.
The flagship event will showcase the accumulation of activities held throughout the year, including the finals for the Transformative Research Challenge and the Startup Innovation Awards, along with interactive activities such as capacity development workshops, exhibitions, and more.
To complement these core events, the WFF is opening up the stage for everyone to share - either in-person or online - various ideas on how we can empower youth to transform our agrifood systems. The flagship event will be hosted in a hybrid format - live in Rome, and everywhere in the world through our virtual platform.
05 - Capacity Development training coming up!
Take part in this event to share knowledge, grow skills and abilities for achieving the SDGs and support policy-makers in the transformation of our agrifood systems. Check out our events page to learn more about upcoming activities and training.
To deepen your understanding of the wide range of food and agriculture topics, check out the FAO e-learning academy, which hosts hundreds of free online courses you can attend and add to your profile.
06 - Youth Action 2022 Timeline
News
Need more information?
Let’s create a better food future, together.
Be part of the solution.
