Youth Visioning for Island Living

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Youth Visioning for Island Living
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What is Youth Visioning?

• A process whereby young people articulate
  how they want their islands to develop in the
  future and then take action to make their vision
  become reality.

Background Involve youth in preparation fo
r the review of SIDS Programme of Action in the
run up to MIM, January 2005. Proposed by
Ministry of Education Scientific Research in
Mauritius facilitated and supported by UNESCO
through SIV, Bureau of Strategic Planning Youth
Section and other partners.
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Key Partners

• Pacific Regional Office UNESCO Apia
• Caribbean Regional Office UNESCO Kingston
• Indian Ocean Regional Office UNESCO Dar es
  Salaam
  
• United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF) Pacific
  Office, Fiji
  
• United Nations Development Programme, Mauritius
• UN Headquarters Department of Public Relations
• Caribbean Community (CARICOM)
• Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States
  Environment and Sustainable Development Unit
  
• Indian Ocean Commission
• Secretariat for the Pacific Community
• Pacific Concerns Resource Centre
• Lighthouse Foundation
• Taking IT Global
• Mauritius Government
• National Commissions and government ministries
  in a number of the SIDS

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Overview of activities before and during the
Mauritius meeting
Phase I Preparation

• Testing the Youth Visioning Concept Bahamian
  Ministry of Education and UNESCO co-sponsored a
  side event to the interregional preparatory
  meeting, Youth Focus Bahamas, a theme 'Youth
  Vision for Island Living (January 28 - 29,
  2004).
• Other preparatory activities in SIDS around the
  world, including
  
• National consultations, Regional meetings,
  poetry and essay contests
  
• Art contest, organised with UN Cyber School Bus

Phase II In Mauritius

Discussions focusing on sharing ideas and
experiences between youth from the 3 regions and
developing concrete, youth-led project proposals
for implementation in their home islands
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Youth commitments for follow-up work

• Life and Love in Islands island lifestyles and
  cultures (17 projects)
  
• Culture 7 islands
• HIV/AIDS 4 islands
• Substance abuse 3 islands
• Youth and governance 2 islands
• Teenage pregnancy 1 island

• My Island Home safeguarding island
  environments (15 projects)
  
• Environmental education - 6 islands
• Waste management 4 islands
• Beach protection 4 islands
• Reforestation 1 island

• Money in my pocket economic and employment
  opportunities (11 projects)
  
• Youth employment 5 islands
• Education 4 projects
• Career guidance 2 islands

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Koïchiro Matsuura and Kofi Annan, Youth Visioning
closing ceremony
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Phase IIIPrincipal action plan elements for
project implementation 2005-2006

• Project implementation
• Youth prepare submit project outlines
• Together with National Commissions and regional
  and inter-regional partners support youth
  initiatives
  
• Establish an Island Youth Fund with partners to
  provide seed funding for youth projects
  
• Monitor project implementation together with
  partners
  
• Hold regional follow-up meetings with partners
• Networking and awareness
• Establish an email discussion group for youth
  networking
  
• Prepare a publication and DVD featuring the Youth
  Visioning event in Mauritius
  
• Regularly update the Island Youth website
• DVD on project implementation

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Follow-up Projects Highlights

• Completed
• Singapore Joy 2005!
• Objective To promote inter-generational exchange
  between the youth and the elderly, by celebrating
  Chinese New Year (7 Feb 2005) with a steamboat
  feast for 105 elderly inhabitants.
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Implementation in Progress (1)

• Mauritius Empowering disabled youth
  Objective To promote and preserve the skills of
  disabled youth to raise awareness in the society
  and to help them become self-reliant and
  independent.  
• Fiji Young Leaders for a sustainable
  FijiObjective To raise awareness on
  environmental issues amongst the young leaders at
  local, regional and global levels including
  instruments on the environment (National
  Environment Act of Fiji, Rio Declaration and
  Agenda 21, Barbados Programme of Action for SIDS
  and Mauritius Strategy)

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Implementation in progress (2)Dominica
Sensitisation and clean-up campaign in Gutter
villageObjectives To educate residents on the
impact of improper waste management, to get them
involved in cleaning up their neighbourhood and
keeping it clean and to uplift the image of the
communityCape Verde Youth and children against
HIV/AIDSObjective Raise awareness on HIV/AIDS
issues and prevention through sports. Dominica
Parle CreoleObjective To promote Dominican
heritage through the teaching and use of
Creole St. Vincent the Grenadines Regional
Sandwatch FairObjectives To raise awareness
about destruction of the beaches and involve
members of the community, particularly the youth,
in cleaning and maintaining the beaches.

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Proposals under evaluation

• Antigua Barbuda Youth employment small
  business development
  
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• Bahamas Refreshing da Well (clean up an unused
  well, turn into a fountain)
  
• Cuba Creating a bulletin on environmental
  education activitiesMadagascar Environmental
  education for all
  
• Maldives Sanitation and safe drinking water
  (awareness raising for schools)Jamaica
  Training youth to teach children about
  eco-tourism and environmental awareness
  Kiribati The beauty of S.Tarawa (waste
  management)Palau Recycling for a better Palau
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• Seychelles Helping create more youth
  employment through local investmentTrinidad
  Tobago Eye on SandwatchTurks Caicos
  Beautiful by nature (create a club environmental
  awareness for school children)

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Youth Visioning and the Mauritius Declaration and
Strategy
The need to involve youth in working for the
sustainable development of SIDS is repeatedly
emphasized
Recognize that women and youth as well as the
civil society are playing a key role in promoting
sustainable development activities in small
island developing States and encourage them in
their efforts -----Mauritius Declaration,
paragraph 15
Small island developing states recognize the
integral role of youth in sustainable development
and express the need to further ensure their
participation.-----Mauritius Strategy, paragraph
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Further action is required by small island
developing States, with the necessary support of
the international community to
(h) Involve youth in visioning
sustainable island living -----Mauritius
Strategy, paragraph 72
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Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

• Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
• Achieve universal primary education
• Promote gender equality and empower women
• Reduce child mortality
• Improve maternal health
• Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
• Ensure environmental sustainability
• Develop a global partnership for development
• .

The 8 goals are connected and have a bearing on
the youth, which makes 1/5th of the world
population
Investing in youth will provide the longest and
most effective dividend towards meeting the MDGs
by building the social capital needed to foster
pragmatic development. (Youth
the MDGs Challenges Opportunities for
implementation, April 2005)
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Thank you for your attention!