Today Is All About YOU!
Written by Cassie Licari & Dominique Houle on 12/08/10
Photo by S. Houle
August 12th is an especially important day to celebrate: it’s International Youth Day! Brought to us by the United Nations, this day aims to celebrate and embrace youth diversity, spirit, and initiatives from around the world. This year’s theme is “Dialogue and Mutual Understanding,” which seeks to express the value of communication between youth of all different cultures and ages. Also, August 2010-August 2011 is the International Year of Youth; something that we can all celebrate and be proud of! This year aims to involve and embrace the participation of youth within our society. Organizations around the world are encouraged to listen to the voice of youth, and to acknowledge their importance in our communities! (United Nations).
Check this out to learn more about International Youth Day and its history! You can also take a look at this website for information on how you can participate during the International Year of Youth!
Fun Facts about Youth around the World!
- There are around one billion youth in the world today. That means that 1 in 5 people is a youth between the ages of 15 and 24 – 18% of the world’s population.
- About 85% of the world’s youth live in developing countries within Asia, Africa, Latin American and the Caribbean.
- There is almost an equal number of male and female youth in the world; approximately 500 million each, with the slight majority being male.
- As of 2005, there are 41 million youth in North America.
Get out there, celebrate and spread the word about International Youth Day! Check out this website brought to us by the United Nations, for ideas on how to get involved in your community.
A big part of International Youth Day is recognizing positive youth projects and initiatives from all over the world, and you can be a part of that! For step-by-step information on how to start your own initiative, check out our Project-Planning Guide. It gives you an in-depth and detailed look about how you can make a difference in your area. If you start your own initiative, we can post the details on our online Youth Initiatives Database for all to see, and what better time to do so?