Youth Agenda for Advocacy

About

The GYF20 was conceived to underline the importance of grasping the needs of young entrepreneurs and making the cooperative model as relevant as possible to the new global challenges of work. Given the current political discourses around the Future of Work and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the event has been the trigger for the majority of participants to get together to drive forward an ambitious Agenda for advocacy.

The Closing Session of the GYF20 was the occasion to present the results of those 4 intensive and enriching days: the Youth Agenda for Advocacy.

The Agenda focused on five key topics that will lead the youth policy actions worldwide:

Sustainable Economies

Collective action

Digitalization

Education

Just societies

A participative approach

In order to make sure that everyone’s voice was involved in the Youth Agenda for Advocacy document before it is finalized, shared and published, a linear process was set up. Participants were guided in this process and were able to take an active part in it during the interactive session ‘If There is no Proof, it Never Happened. Be part of the GYF20 Resolution Development!’ set up by trainers Georgia (Policy Coordinator for the ICA-EU Partnership #coops4dev) and Ana (Vice-President of the Global Youth Network – Europe).

Besides the training session, a ‘Declaration Wall’ installation was set up within the Social Area. This becamea space where participants had the opportunity to share ideas, work on possible partnerships, exchange impressions, and discuss with their peers. Thanks to this installation, participants were able to express their ideas in a more informal setting throughout the event, and inspire others to write down their own. At the end of the event, suggestions were analyzed and integrated in the Agenda.

Ultimately, the final declaration was presented on stage at the Closing Session by some of the participants that had taken part in the interactive session: the Youth Agenda for Advocacy was delivered by the youth, to the youth.

 

The result: an inclusive and ambitious declaration

The transformation of current economic systems requires systemic changes to the ways youth are tapping into a constructive policy dialogue. Given the current political discourses around the Future of Work and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development, the Global Youth Forum 2020 on Cooperative Entrepreneurship was designed to provide young entrepreneurs from 50 countries with the necessary skills and opportunities to reach their full potential.
The Global Youth Forum 2020 has been the trigger for the majority of participants, to drive forward an ambitious Agenda for advocacy to continue working on:

Sustainable Economies

Creation of a democratic process to define and select social, environmental and economic accountability indicators that go beyond mere growth

Promotion of economic models that aim to end precarity and enable fair remuneration and decent work which conform with democratic processes

Collective action

Creation of a legal framework to include cooperatives in political spaces. Bring more diversity and transparency to the empowerment of communities
Include cooperatives in leadership, redefining it as servant leadership and reporting back with full transparency so citizens can make informed decisions and take action

Digitalization

Promote cooperation among cooperatives by linking existing cooperatives to platform cooperatives, creating an environment for interoperability
Use technology as an inclusive tool that complements participation in democratic decision making rather than jeopardizing it

Education

Upgrade the education model towards a more inclusive, democratic and interactive model
Addition of life skill development and a lifelong learning framework
Inclusion of the cooperative model in all educational institution curriculums at all levels

Just societies

Link and connect the cooperative movement with social and environmental movements
Recognition of intergenerational inclusiveness, solidarity, respect and co-creation as sources for societal improvement
Creation of a cooperative fund for various social, environmental and sustainability concerns, such as education

LET’S DRIVE THIS AGENDA FOR
ADVOCACY FURTHER TOGETHER!