28
October 2024
6
November 2024
Youth Voices and Beyond GDP Take Center Stage at UN Summit for the Future
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At the UN Summit for the Future's Action Weekend, youth voices emerged as vital contributors and thought leaders in shaping the global discourse on moving beyond gross domestic product (GDP).
This progress was significantly influenced by the impactful policy and advocacy efforts of the Beyond Lab, UN Geneva's collaborative space leading on social innovation for long-term sustainability.
Moving beyond GDP is a key action of the Summit’s freshly-adopted political declaration – the Pact for the Future. The document now calls on the United Nations, under the leadership of the Secretary-General, to convene an independent high-level expert group to develop recommendations for a limited number of country-owned and universally applicable indicators of sustainable development that complement and go beyond GDP.
As part of the Summit of the Future, the Beyond Lab was at the forefront of promoting meaningful youth engagement in global conversations about developing a more comprehensive approach to measuring prosperity and well-being.
Davide Fanciulli, Assistant Program Management Officer at the Beyond Lab, joined representatives from national governments, international organizations, and civil society at a collaborative side event organized by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), the Lab’s NGO partner.
Mr. Fanciulli shared his insights on the necessity of engaging youth voices in critical discussions surrounding the transition away from GDP given its singular and narrow focus on measuring economic growth. He also highlighted the ongoing efforts of the Beyond Lab, in collaboration with UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and Rethinking Economics International, in launching the Youth Moving Beyond GDP, an initiative focused on young peoples’ perspectives on the values and principles that should be emphasized in a framework moving beyond GDP.
The initiative began in early 2024 with a global call for essays, inviting youth aged 30 and under to submit their insights on the values that should shape a framework beyond GDP. The call attracted 630 submissions, from which a panel of experts selected 10 outstanding essays, later featured in a special publication. Efforts are now underway to integrate insights from the essay competition into a broader #YouthMovingBeyondGDP initiative.
At the Summit, the Lab was pleased to involve one of the essay competition writers, María Alejandra Pérez Rodríguez, who participated in-person at the 20 September opening of the Summit of the Future’s Action Days.
“There is not a single person in the world who is not touched by care.” - Maria Alejandra Pérez Rodríguez, student and Beyond Lab Beyond GDP Youth Essay Competition Participant
Maria, a law student at NYU from Colombia, called for rethinking the care economy by advocating for the proper valuation of care work and emphasizing the need to invest in quality paid care as essential components of public services and social protection systems. (Her speech, titled The Hidden Currency of Caregiving and Time, can be found here.)
At its own virtual side event, held as part of the Summit’s official Action Weekend programme, the Beyond Lab, UNCTAD, and Rethinking Economics amplified additional youth voices. Felix Vicente and Rose Holm, both participants in the Lab’s essay competition—Rose being one of the 10 winners—engaged directly with policymakers and civil society actors, sharing their perspectives on the beyond GDP debate.
Özge Aydoğan, Director of the Beyond Lab, opened and moderated the event, followed by insights from Kumi Naidoo, an international human rights and environmental justice activist, and Giovanni Valensisi, Economic Affairs Officer at UNCTAD.
In his remarks, Kumi Naidoo challenged young people to reject the limiting notion that they are ‘just’ the leaders of tomorrow, urging them to claim their leadership today and demand that their voices be heard. He stressed the urgency of youth-led action to drive transformative change, rather than settling for superficial recovery efforts seen during the COVID-19 crisis. Mr. Naidoo also underscored the need for systemic transformation over incremental adjustments, urging the rejection of the status quo in favor of meaningful and long-term progress.
Paula Fernandez-Wulff, Director-General for the 2030 Agenda with the Government of Spain, and Choolwe M. Chikolwa, First Secretary for Political and Administrative Affairs with the Permanent Mission of Zambia to the UN in Geneva, shared national government perspectives. They highlighted their governments’ strategies for integrating youth into policymaking and reinforced the need for inclusive, collaborative change to foster innovation that reflects basic human and planetary rights as well as intergenerational equity.
In her closing remarks, the Lab’s Director invited participants to stay connected and engaged with the Beyond Lab’s initiatives, emphasizing its ongoing commitment to championing pragmatic, inclusive, and multi-stakeholder approaches to redefining human, social, and economic progress beyond GDP. She reaffirmed that fostering youth voices and facilitating meaningful intergenerational dialogues will remain central to the Lab’s mission of building an inclusive future anchored in the pursuit of long-term sustainability.
For a comprehensive recap of the 2024 Summit of the Future, visit the following links:
For more information on the activities of the Beyond Lab at the Summit of the Future, visit the following links:
