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International Youth Day 2025

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International Youth Day 2025

Local Youth Actions for the SDGs and Beyond

This August 12th marked International Youth Day – a global celebration of the pivotal role that youth play in global innovation, development, and problem solving (1). In fact, wherever you go, there are initiatives that are inspired and implemented by youth movements across the globe. 

This year’s theme, “Local Youth Actions for the SDGs and Beyond” focuses on the power of young people in integrating the SDGs into their local communities, using their unique insights, and fresh perspective.  

Localisation is particularly relevant given the vital role that community plays in health and service provision, and the move toward culturally tailored, sustainable, and assets-based healthcare.  

So, let’s look at some of the central amenities and institutions you might find in your community, and how young people across the globe have shaped them to improve health… 

Health in…grocery stores

As one of the 4 pillars of health, nutrition has a significant influence on community wellbeing – this starts at the local food supplier or grocer and is dependent on access to affordable health options (4).  

However, with global inflation and pricing it is estimated that around three billion people worldwide cannot afford a ‘healthy diet’ (5).  

With a mission to improve local food systems in Hawai’i, the Hawai’i Youth Food Council aim to tackle this issue (6). They are vocal advocates for equitable access and have collaborated with local stakeholders to raise awareness on food pricing, sustainable farming and agriculture, and have led annual campaigns for locally grown produce.  

The “Bite Back” campaign is a UK-based, youth-led initiative that collaborates with local businesses and governments to improve local food landscapes (7). The community food champions use their mix of local expertise, creativity, and engagement to propose changes for equitable access to healthy foods. These projects have resulted in community workshops, national reports, and prize grants for community proposals.  

Health in…schools

Education is well-established as a protective factor against poor health, however, there are many communities across the world who cannot access schooling (9). Roughly 250 million children globally are currently out of school, according to UNESCO data (10).  

16-year-old Ahmad from Afghanistan has come up with a creative way to address this. “Buddha Book” is a network providing free books to help make education accessible for Afghan girls (11). With over 750 children and 3000 books involved, this community solution has provided a valuable opportunity for education in Afghanistan.  

The WHO Youth Council is another notable example of youth-led change for health (12). Through their “Working Group on Health, Education and Literacy”, they focus on improving health education and literacy in a variety of community settings where information and resources might be made more accessible. This is achieved through local partnerships with NGOs, youth organisations and an understanding of local contexts for implementation. 

Health in…transport

Across the globe, public transport systems are widely used and promoted as a sustainable solution in a time where climate change is reaching a critical turning point. Sadly, a major deterrent for many is the risk of sexual harassment (13,14). Approximately 3 in 5 women reported experiencing sexual harassment on public transport worldwide, with other estimates report much higher numbers (15).  

In Bangladesh, Youth for Change paved the way in addressing this (16). The movement used social media, information leaflets, and even handing out stickers with a helpline number, to raise awareness for the injustices they saw in their community. 

This spread across different public transport services, schools and workplaces, and was later adopted by the Bangladeshi government.  

In addition to the multimedia campaign, the Youth for Change group focused on amplifying the voices of those affected by harassment via their online platforms, and through surveys they conducted. This data was presented to policy makers, including at the National Human Rights commission, to lobby for change.  

Health in…the environment

Climate change is one of the most pressing global health threats of today, with 3.6 billion people currently living in high-risk areas (17). Low- and middle-income countries disproportionately affected by the climate crisis, facing the brunt of natural disasters, economic shifts, and resource scarcity.  

A group of young changemakers in Ndola, Zambia, supported by YMCA’s Youth-Led Solutions, utilised the arts curriculum to educate the community about upcycling, repurposing, and sustainably working to improve their local eco-footprint.  

Students for Global Health is another youth-led network whose recent annual  coordinated theme focused on Climate and Health (19). The programme was split into two phases, Educate, and Advocate & Act. Various branches conducted research, organised educational events and speaker series, and even put together a lobbying group for COP26 to emphasise the important relationship between climate and health. The constituent branches of the network also provided local context and lobbying power, tailoring interventions and activities to the surrounding partner organisations and populations.  

Health in the…workplace

For many people globally, a large proportion of time is spent in the workplace to generate income. Therefore, maintaining health in the workplace is essential to overall health and wellbeing within the community.  

In recognition of the importance of the workplace in health, the International Labour Organisation launched the “Work Wise Youth” campaign, engaging youth organisations to help develop guidance for workplace rights and protections that improve employee wellbeing (20).  

In April 2024, OECD’s (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) Youthwise cohort also made critical strides for health in the workplace, helping the youth workforce to better understand workplace wellbeing through consultations, discussions and workshops with key stakeholders (22). Comprised of young professionals and individuals in the early stages of their careers, the cohort also engaged with labour and employment bodies to evaluate policy proposals. 

Health in…the online community

Communities are not only defined by geographical boundaries or specific identities. In the age of digital health and technology, young people, or ‘digital natives’ have utilised online platforms for a variety of health education, awareness raising, and advocacy campaigns within their online communities.  

“Hi M8”, a campaign from Diverse Youth Northern Ireland, tackles youth mental health using mixed methods to engage their audience (23). This includes creating an online community using their social media platforms to share lived experience, resources, and signposting.  

“Young Experts: Tech 4 Health” is a youth movement championing digital natives as a bridge to better digital health (24). Engaging individuals to upskill, capacity build, and contribute to policy making, this initiative empowers youth to make changes and tackle local health challenges using digital solutions, in collaboration with the Transform Health Coalition. 

Another notable case of youth led digital health innovation is by Amanda Southworth, who was influenced by her own mental health challenges and created online platforms for others facing similar struggles.  

 

Health in…local government

The importance of youth voices in local policy-making cannot be understated. Youth Organisations and civil society groups have been consulted as key stakeholders for health initiatives by local government, to ensure representative policy making, and to lend valuable insights into community life.  

The Health and Rights Education Programme in Malawi used their community network of young advocates and partners to help shape a case on investment in health (26). This campaign resulted in an almost 4% increase in the national budget allocated to health by the government: essential for improving the health of women, children and adolescents.  

A similar example in Kenya led to removal of family planning service fees (26). The Organisation of African Youth Kenya leverages their youth partnerships spread across localities to produce a representative assessment of adolescent and youth health. This in turn resulted in the creation of the first Adolescent Health Policy for 2024-2030, which has since protected and prioritised youth health in the country, and has influenced budgeting and service provision.  

So…what does “Local Youth Actions for the SDGs and Beyond” mean?

Reflecting on the examples listed here, and countless others, the key messages from this year’s International Youth Day theme become apparent.  

  • Youth perspectives are essential to ensure policies, systems and services at a community level can serve the whole population. 
  • Young people have valuable lived experiences and ideas which can be incredibly impactful in healthcare and innovation within their communities.  
  • Empowering young people and taking an inclusive approach is key to motivating and amplifying voices for local and wider action.  

So, if you are a young person who sees a potential area for improvement in your community, remember that you are capable to make an impactful change – be it for health or otherwise! 

Written by: Dr Ishani Sharma. WHOCC Intern

Edited by: Rachel Barker, WHOCC Support Officer

To read more global stories of youth-led movements for local health, explore the initiatives below: 

References: 

  1. United Nations. Youth localizing SDGs: 2025 International Youth Day spotlight on local solutions [Internet]. New York: UN; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.un.org/en/desa/youth-localizing-sdgs-2025-international-youth-day-spotlight-local-solutions 
  2. United Nations. International Youth Day [Internet]. New York: UN; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.un.org/en/observances/youth-day 
  3. National Geographic. Community map [Internet]. Washington (DC): National Geographic Society; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/community-map/ 
  4. Johns Hopkins Medicine. 4 pillars of healthy weight toolkit [Internet]. Baltimore (MD): Johns Hopkins; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/-/media/migration/all-childrens-hospital/documents/healthy-weight-toolkit/4-pillars.pdf 
  5. Our World in Data. Diet affordability [Internet]. Oxford: Global Change Data Lab; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://ourworldindata.org/diet-affordability 
  6. Hawai‘i Public Health Institute. Join the council [Internet]. Honolulu (HI): HIPHI; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://sites.google.com/hiphi.org/hyfc/join-the-council?authuser=0 
  7. Bite Back 2030. A tidal wave for child health: over 750 young people join Community Food Champions [Internet]. London: Bite Back 2030; 2022 Oct 1 [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.biteback2030.com/our-activists/stories/a-tidal-wave-for-child-health-over-750-young-people-join-community-food-champions/ 
  8. Bite Back 2030. Bite Back 2030: Community Food Champions [Internet]. YouTube; 2022 [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCJQjnDOmlU 
  9. Health Action Research. The role of education in tackling obesity [Internet]. London: HARP; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.healthactionresearch.org.uk/tackling-obesity/the-role-of-education/ 
  10. UNESCO. 250 million children out of school: what you need to know [Internet]. Paris: UNESCO; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/250-million-children-out-school-what-you-need-know-about-unescos-latest-education-data 
  11. HundrED. These youth-led social impact projects will inspire you [Internet]. Helsinki: HundrED; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://hundred.org/en/articles/these-youth-led-social-impact-projects-will-inspire-you 
  12. World Health Organization. WHO Youth Council [Internet]. Geneva: WHO; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.who.int/initiatives/who-youth-engagement/who-youth-council 
  13. International Association of Public Transport. Why public transport is key to achieve the SDGs [Internet]. Brussels: UITP; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.uitp.org/news/why-public-transport-is-key-to-achieve-the-sdgs/ 
  14. Campbell M, Delbosc A. Public transport and health outcomes: A systematic review [Internet]. Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice. 2023 [cited 2025 Aug 14];175:103707. Available from: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0966692323002387 
  15. International Finance Corporation. Addressing gender-based violence and harassment in transport [Internet]. Washington (DC): IFC; 2020 Jul [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.ifc.org/content/dam/ifc/doc/mgrt/sectorbrief-addressinggbvh-transport-july2020.pdf 
  16. Plan International. The world’s best youth campaigns – and why they worked [Internet]. Plan International; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://plan-international.org/campaigns/the-worlds-best-youth-campaigns-and-why-they-worked/ 
  17. World Health Organization. Climate change and health [Internet]. Geneva: WHO; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/climate-change-and-health 
  18. World YMCA. Youth‑Led Solutions: Climate Action in Ndola, Zambia [Internet]. 2022 Feb 10 [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3Pc‑WMjIHY  
  19. Students for Global Health. Coordinated theme: Health & the climate crisis [Internet]. London: SfGH; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://studentsforglobalhealth.org/coordinated-theme/ 
  20. International Labour Organization. Work Wise Youth: A framework for youth employment [Internet]. Geneva: ILO; 2024 Apr [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.ilo.org/sites/default/files/2024-04/Work%20Wise%20Youth%20.pdf 
  21. International Labour Organization. Work Wise Youth – Safe and Healthy Work Environment. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBqHBFq6rvk 
  22. OECD. Youthwise 2023 [Internet]. Paris: OECD; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.oecd.org/en/about/programmes/youthwise/youthwise-2023.html 
  23. Diverse Youth NI. Hi M8 mental health awareness campaign [Internet]. Belfast: Diverse Youth NI; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://diverseyouthni.com/hi-m8-mental-health-awareness-campaign/ 
  24. Fondation Botnar. Young Experts: Tech 4 Health (YET4H) [Internet]. Basel: Fondation Botnar; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.fondationbotnar.org/project/young-experts-tech-4-health-yet4h/ 
  25. TEDxPasadena. Tales from a teenage mental health advocate. Amanda Southworth. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLOagmZTWmM 
  26. Global Financing Facility. Civil society and youth engagement [Internet]. Washington (DC): GFF; [cited 2025 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.globalfinancingfacility.org/partnership/csos-youth