International Youth Day is an awareness day designated by the United Nations. The purpose of the day is to draw attention to a given set of cultural and legal issues surrounding youth. The first IYD was observed on 12 August, 2000.
Combating Ageism
According to the U.N website, which is the original sponsor of the international youth day, “To achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the world needs to leverage the full potential of all generations. Solidarity across generations is the key for sustainable development. Ageism continues to present a significant – yet, not sufficiently discussed – challenge to fostering collaboration and solidarity across age groups. The World Health Organization defines ageism as “the stereotypes (how we think), prejudice (how we feel) and discrimination (how we act) directed towards others or oneself, based on age”.
Get Over Prejudices
We must get over the prejudices that we have towards certain age groups and we must also get over the stereotypes that we have while being in a certain age group about how we must think, act, communicate, see, observe, be active and all the other characteristics that manifest depending on the age bracket that you are in. Ageism is similar to racism and sexism and we must strive to get over this completely in order to reach our full potential and contribute more effectively to the communities in which we are living.
The Global Report on Ageism launched by the United Nations in March 2021 highlights the many data gaps that exist with regards to ageism against youth. Despite this lack of research, young people continue to report age-related barriers in various spheres of their lives such as employment, political participation, health and justice. On an individual level, these age-related obstacles can deeply impact wellbeing and livelihoods not only during the youth years, but also in adulthood. On a societal level, ageism prevents us from thinking and designing policies and social services that adopt a life-course approach and are fair for all ages. (Source - United Nations)
Intergenerational Solidarity
The point is to promote more intergenerational solidarity by increasing the cooperation and support between different age groups. While the young could be involved in more important decision making, we also have to give credit to the seniors and elderly for their priceless experience and know how which will help to make the world a better place. No one’s helpful voices should go unheard.
The United Nations is conducting webinars and conferences on the topic as well. To know more about the International Youth Day, watch this video:
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