1. The kids are not alright: Policy responses to jobs and social protection for the youth – Explore why young people are experiencing the lowest levels of happiness today and the policy solutions from ILO experts to address rising stress, economic uncertainty and limited opportunities.
   

2. Girls’ Voices Guiding the Way: Participatory Research in India Turning Evidence into Action – Discover how over 261 million youth are locked out of education and jobs, and how the GenU’s Girls’ Education and Skills Partnership (GESP) is breaking barriers to help them move from learning to earning.
   

3. Unlocking HER potential: Gender equality through equitable access to assistive technology – Learn from this new UN Women policy brief on how assistive technology can advance gender equality for women and girls with disabilities, with insights and actionable solutions from nearly 50 countries.

🗓️ Upcoming Youth Events and Opportunities 

Check out the latest youth events and opportunities posted at the YouthForesight platform! From the upcoming ECOSOC 2026 Youth Forum, health and agriculture grants and more. Explore the engage section.


🗣️ Trending in our Community Forum:

“In Uganda, we’ve seen youth SACCOs (Savings and Credit Cooperatives) become powerful engines of opportunity, helping young people access finance, build skills, and invest in climate-smart projects. STEM clubs and youth innovation hubs are also thriving, giving young people practical exposure to science and entrepreneurship.

These models show that when youth are trusted with responsibility, they create lasting impact for their communities.”

Do you agree with our member Matayo Meshack? Join the conversation!

1. Youth Progress Index 2025 – Check out European Youth Forum’s Youth Progress Index 2025 platform, a global tool tracking young people’s quality of life across 169 countries to help identify gaps and drive action.
   

2. ILO’s CINTERFOR Platform – Explore the ILO’s observatory dedicated to promoting and stimulating vocational training in Latin America, the Caribbean, Spain, Portugal and Cape Verde. Its mission is to make possible the transformative potential of vocational training.
   

3. 2026 Youth Report: Lead with Youth – This Delve into this UNESCO and UN Youth Office’s report highlighting young people as leaders in education decision-making worldwide, showcasing how students drive long-term, systemic change in policy and practice.
   

🗓️ Events round up 

🎬 During World Day of Social Justice, we conducted the webinar, Nothing About Youth Without Youth: Advancing Decent Work and Social Justice Together [watch the replay here]!

Together, we unpacked a central idea: young people aren’t just beneficiaries of youth employment programmes, they’re essential partners in shaping them. 🤝

🗣️ Trending in our Community Forum:

New members, new voices! ✨ Welcome to the YouthForesight community forum Munguzo and Matayo Meshack !

👏 Munguzo, founder of CAMPUS Digital Hub based in Nakivale refugee settlement, has introduced himself in his first post with us. Interact with him!

👏 Matayo also opened up a conversation about the importance of youth opportunities and how he saw youth in his locality, SACCOs (Savings and Credit Cooperatives), become powerful engines of opportunity, helping young people access finance, build skills, and invest in climate-smart projects.

At YouthForesight, knowledge fuels action. Explore these resources highlighting pathways to gender equality, youth leadership, and opportunities for young women worldwide:

👉 Read and explore:
① UN Women’s explainer article in achieving legal equality for women and girls
🔗https://bit.ly/4aUBSK1 

② UN Girls Education Initiative’s policy brief on Transitioning Young Women to Work
🔗https://bit.ly/4skB2vG 

③ World Bank Group’s 🆕 report on Women, Business, and the Law
🔗https://bit.ly/3MLPT3t 

💡 What actions can help ensure young women not only access opportunities—but lead the future? 💜

💬 Let's discuss!

Employment and social protection specialists at the International Labour Organization recently published an article examining the drivers behind declining youth well-being and the policy measures that can strengthen employment pathways, income security and social protection.

This raises urgent questions about the pressures and challenges facing today’s youth. How can societies better support young people’s mental health and well-being?

🔗Read the full article here.

This Saturday, a powerful webinar brings together voices, ideas, and strategies to confront inequality in STEM and reimagine education that truly empowers.

Date: Saturday 28th Feb

⏰ Time: 4:00pm to 5:30pm EAT

📍 Location: Online.

This is more than a webinar. It is a call to action, a chance to challenge stereotypes, and an opportunity to stand for justice in education. Every presence matters. Every voice counts. Be part of the change. Be part of the future.

To refresh our memory, here are some key points presented by our speakers: 
 
1️⃣ Youth as Rights-Holders and Change Agents 
The session framed young people as rights-holders and innovators, not just passive recipients of employment programmes. We heard voices and perspectives from diverse youth, including refugees and forcibly displaced youth whose insights are often missing in decision-making. 

2️⃣ Youth Call to Action and Shared Priorities 
The webinar also brought forward the Youth Call to Action reflecting the priorities and solutions developed by young people during the 2025 Gyeonggi-ILO International Labour Festa to address the youth employment challenges. This is a strong example of putting youth priorities at the centre of decent work and social justice. 

3️⃣ Tools for Practitioners: Meaningful Youth Engagement Package 
The webinar also introduced the ILO Meaningful Youth Engagement for Decent Work training package on engaging young people across employment programs – helping bridge the gap between intention and implementation. 

4️⃣ Intergenerational Dialogue 
The webinar brought together youth voices alongside governments, practitioners and social partners to explore how meaningful youth engagement can be institutionalized and sustained. 

Some of the key takeaways from the webinar included the need to invest in youth engagement; strengthen the capacities of staff and institutions to meaningfully engage young people; move beyond one-off, ad hoc consultations towards structured and continuous participation; and ensure the inclusion of diverse groups of youth, particularly those most often excluded.

In this forum thread, we will follow up on questions raised during the webinar, and we also welcome any additional questions or reflections you may have. 

⚡Now, on to you: what are the key dimensions of meaningful youth engagement for you and do you have any examples to share from your work? ⚡

[Discussion link] https://community.youthforesight.org/general/post/from-learning-to-earning-to-justice-youth-led-pathways-for-gender-o6fZ6EDj2xGuvCn

We heard from community members👀✨

• ⚖️ Justice barriers span the full pathway. Acen Maureen highlighted harmful norms, early marriage, period stigma, and weak law enforcement. Exauce Bigue Koviko shared how displacement, trauma, hunger, and exclusion from funding and markets especially affect refugee girls and young women. Tendai Musendo reflected on gaps between learning, earning, and access to justice in Zambia, showing how structural and economic barriers intersect.

• 💪 Belief and support matter. Aya Alnajar shared the impact of not believing in girls’ abilities and the lack of equal support. Acen Maureen also reinforced how poverty, household responsibilities, and restrictive norms limit education and long-term earning power. Changing mindsets and strengthening support systems is critical.

• 💼 The “first job” gap is key. Sita Sangotade emphasized that skills only become protective when they lead to paid work. The example she shared from Lagos showed how simple hiring fixes, like standardized profiles and short video introductions, can open doors for first-time women job seekers and bridge learning to earning.

As we have a few more days in the discussion (till the end of this week!!!), we encourage you to continue engaging with the questions already posted and to build on each other’s reflections. New voices and perspectives are always welcome, and there is still time to contribute if you are just joining. 🤝✨

This webinar will explore what meaningful youth engagement looks like in practice and how it advances decent work and social justice with and for young people—especially refugees and forcibly displaced youth whose voices are often excluded from decision-making.

Grounded in the principle of “nothing about youth without youth,” the session will share outcomes from the 2026 Gyeonggi-ILO International Labour Festa and present the Youth Call to Action, amplifying young people’s priorities, demands, and solutions for decent work and inclusive labour markets.

The webinar will also introduce Meaningful Youth Engagement for Decent Work, a practical training package developed under the PROSPECTS Programme to help youth employment practitioners engage young people more systematically and meaningfully, with a focus on refugees and forcibly displaced youth.

💡OBJECTIVES:

• Build a shared understanding of meaningful youth engagement beyond tokenism to inform more inclusive youth employment interventions.

• Foster intergenerational dialogue and exchange of good practices among youth employment practitioners.

• Amplify youth voices and priorities from the Youth Call to Action in advancing the Global Coalition for Social Justice.

• Introduce the Meaningful Youth Engagement for Decent Work training package to strengthen practitioners’ capacity to engage young people effectively.
  

🙋AUDIENCE:

• Global Coalition for Social Justice members

• Employers’ and workers’ organizations - Youth networks and refugee youth-led organizations

• Youth employment stakeholders (policymakers, development practitioners)

• Organizations supporting forcibly displaced people
  

📣 DETAILS:

• Date: 18 February 2026

• Duration: 90 min

• Time: 10.30AM – 12.00PM CET

👉 Register Here

1. Green Jobs for Youth Pact - Learn how the Green Jobs for Youth Pact addresses the green skills gap to advance a just transition to a low-carbon, circular economy. This is a Stockholm+50 legacy initiative led by ILO, UNEP and UNICEF.

2. Digital Education and AI Strategy 2025-2030: Beyond digital as usual - Explore UNICEF’s Digital Education and AI Strategy, accelerating learning gains and skills acquisition while bridging digital, gender, disability, and language divides in and out of school.

3. The Global Employment Trends for Youth 2022: The Americas - This report examines post-COVID youth labour markets, highlighting uneven recovery, ongoing risks, and job potential in emerging economies in Latin American countries.

🗓️ Events round up 

🎬 We just launched our first webinar of the year, From Learning to Earning to Justice: Youth-Led Pathways for Gender Equality at CSW70 [with recording available]!

Watch how young people and partners explore learning-to-earning pathways that advance gender equality and justice for adolescent girls and young women.


🗣️ Trending in our Community Forum:

📣 Your voice matters! Your insights will directly shape the Global Youth and Adolescents Recommendations for #CSW70 ✨

Our community forum discussion, “From Learning to Earning to Justice: Youth-Led Pathways for Gender Equality”, is now OPEN!  

Over the next two weeks, share your reflections, experiences, and ideas on how education, skills, work, and youth engagement can advance gender equality and justice for adolescent girls and young women.

👉💬 Join the conversation! Introduce yourself, share your story, and help co-create youth-led recommendations.