6/17/2015

Wikiprogress Online Consultation on Youth Well-being: Summary Report

The first Wikiprogress Online Consultation was a big success and the organisers thank all of you who took part. The consultation had around 300 registered participants and over 500 comments. As you may all know EPA was a partner in the consultation and we are very happy that the crucial role of parents was highlighted during it.

A summary report was produced, summarising some of the key points made in the consultation, and can be downloaded here.

The consultation findings and aspects of Youth Well-being more generally were discussed at a special session at the OECD Forum in Paris on 2 June.  Marianna Georgallis, Policy and Advocacy Officer from the European Youth Forum (one of the consultation partners) outlined some of the main issues and led the discussion.  The session, titled “What Does Youth Well-Being Really Mean?” was attended by around 50 people from the Forum, with many youth participants, and there was a lively discussion around the questions raised by the consultation.

Some of the main takeaways from the consultation and the session included:

Studying youth well-being is important because a half of the world’s population is under 30 years old.
  • Youth well-being matters not only for young individuals themselves, but also for their families, communities and countries: countries that are more youth-inclusive tend to be more prosperous, while those that exclude youth tend to have higher crime and more social instability.
  • Defining “youth’ is not straightforward as youth is a period of transition from childhood to adulthood, and from dependence to independence. For some youth means under 24 years, for others under 35. While youth age bands are somewhat arbitrary, there is nonetheless a need for greater precision when talking about youth and their needs: the needs of under-10 year olds are not the same as a 25-year old, for example.
  •  Parents and guardians play a crucial role in youth well-being, but it is important that role is supportive rather than coercive.
  • Youth participation in policy is important, and social media is a good ‘space’ for this. Many young people feel that adults don’t take them seriously. However, examples such as Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign as well as youth councils and university groups show that youth are willing to participate.  As noted previously, social media can harness this willingness if older generations and governments choose to listen.
  • Young people’s rights need to be strengthened as regards a labour market which depends heavily on the labour market: remuneration and opportunities for learning need to be improved and prioritised.

To read more on the consultation, download the report here

We would also like to thank our Consultation Partners for their input and support:


source: http://theblogprogress.blogspot.fr/2015/06/launch-of-wikiprogress-data-viz-contest.html

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