lunedì 18 novembre 2019

What is or should be the role of youth in international affairs? In what ways are the interests of the younger generation different from those of older generations?


Notes towards an essay plan (revised)
Introduction – refer to something current, a recent event, e.g. in Hong Kong, Ecuador, Lebanon, Iraq, Chile, a public position or statement by an international relations figure, e.g. Greta Thunberg's impassioned speech at the United Nations Climate Action Summit on 23 September 2019, or Boyan Sat (see the links at the end of this post), or this

Define 'youth' according to the UN (roughly 15-24).
Explain your line of argument. For, example, mine would be:
This essay will argue that while youth has long been a victim in national and international affairs, it must now become, or perhaps I should say again become, a committed protagonist, a real actor in the promotion of multilateral strategies to deal with the challenges that youth faces across the globe and that it will inherit from today's older generations and have to face in the future (e.g. climate change) but perhaps this has always been the role every younger generation.

Say that as victims and in terms of rights the definition must be broadened to include children as they are the youth and adults of tomorrow.
Youth as victims – in the developing world /living conditions, clean water, food, shelter, sanitation, health care / starvation / malnutrition / poverty rates / disease e,g. HIV-AIDS /the lack of medical care and its effects on long-term health / unemployment rates (e.g. North Africa) / child marriage / boy soldiers / female education rates, discrimination, lack of equal employment opportunities, inequality / exploitation of child and young workers / sexual exploitation / climate change, population growth, desertification, political instability leading to migration / human trafficking and migrant smuggling, refugees / labour exploitation of migrants in developed or more developed countries of arrival.
In the developed world – unemployment / underemployment, labour exploitation, poor contracts or unregistered black market labour / migration of graduates and other young people / voting in frustration for non-traditional parties and for radical alternatives.
For a developing or developed country, youth should be a 'smart' investment for governments as they have long working lives ahead of them, flexibility, IT skills and the ability to learn new things.
On their part, young people need to organize, to form an effective and vocal lobby, to become active in national politics and international relations, to become proactive and try to influence and, if possible, to set the international agenda.
Possible examples: Malala Yousafzai, young people in Hong Kong, the Y20 summit
They should press for (well, you choose, but possibly):
a) a global response to global warming and climate change
b) economic inclusion for youth
c) greater turn-out and youth participation in elections, as voters but also as candidates
d) more opportunities for youth like the Erasmus programme and programmes for youth in difficulty
c) greater responsibility from governments and the international community regarding challenges affecting children and youth
d) better prevention of nuclear proliferation
e) a lowering of the voting age?!?
f) prioritizing education and learning skills
There are some signs of hope, support for Greta Thunberg's School Strike for Climate movement, youth climate demonstrations, the UN Youth delegates, Malala Yousafzai and her campaign for civil rights and the right to education, role of youth in demonstrations in Hong, Kong, Tunisia
In the West the younger and older generation may not be so different. Today's older generation were once the younger generation and protested against the war in Vietnam, against dictatorship in Chile and Argentina, against the oppressive Soviet system in Eastern Europe (and celebrated its fall in 1989) against China's repression of protests in Tiananmen square and against the Iraq war and in favour of the Arab Spring.. They campaigned for jobs minority rights and social justice and founded the Green Party and ecological movement.
Perhaps the main difference is technology. Young people today can use social media to exchange ideas across borders, organise action and make their situation, views and action known to the world. They can put their case to the global community, Hong Kong, Iraq, Lebanon, Chile. Global warming will affect them more than the older generation but that is mainly a question of life expectancy. The older generation needs to respond to the situation and integrate the younger generation into the consultation and decision making process, to empower youth. Give an example of where this is, or is not, happening, like https://www.yepp.it/
Conclusion - perhaps we should not focus too much on the West but should look at the role of youth in the developing world where global warming may not be the priority. Physical and economic survival, escaping from poverty, violence, exploitation and human rights abuses, the fight against unemployment and income inequality may be their priorities. Many young people remain the victims and hostages of our global society and are hardly in a position to voice their grievances except through street protests.
NEET è l'acronimo inglese di "not (engaged) in education, employment or training".
Boyan Sat

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