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UN Youth Townhall
Young people are driving change around the world — from climate action and peacebuilding to technology, education, human rights and entrepreneurship. At the same time, many young people still face barriers to participating in decisions and processes that shape their lives and futures.
The first-ever UN Youth Townhall will bring over 1,000 participants together in Heidelberg, Germany, to build intergenerational trust, strengthen connections and create new opportunities for collaboration.
Convened by the United Nations Youth Office together with partners, the Townhall will bring young people, governments, the United Nations, civil society, the private sector and others into one space. At its core, the Townhall seeks to:
Strengthen inclusion and diversity — broadening participation in global youth engagement by reaching young people and communities too often excluded from international spaces and processes.
Reduce fragmentation across the ecosystem — creating stronger connections and collaboration between the many actors working across the global youth agenda.
Shape a collective path forward — enabling stakeholders to transform dialogue into commitments, build partnerships, and agree on actionable measures to accelerate progress on youth priorities, their participation in decision-making and global cooperation.
What to expect
The Townhall will put intergenerational dialogue and co-creation at the centre of the convening.
Alongside larger sessions, the programme will feature fireside chats, roundtables, small-group discussions and other interactive formats designed to build intergenerational trust by fostering meaningful exchange between young people, decision-makers and participants from different generations and sectors.
Selected contributions from partners across the United Nations, civil society, academia, the private sector and other fields will help inform parts of the programme and bring a wider range of perspectives into the conversation.
It will also offer organizations and partners structured spaces to showcase their work, initiatives and opportunities, and connect directly with young people.
Who will take part?
More than 1,000 participants are expected to join the Townhall, including young leaders and representatives of youth-led organizations and movements, public sector leaders, entrepreneurs, innovators and researchers, as well as representatives from governments, the United Nations, civil society, academia, philanthropy and the private sector.
The Townhall seeks broad geographic representation, gender balance and the inclusion of young people and communities that are often underrepresented in international policy and decision-making spaces.
