If You Could Redesign the World...

Inviting Youth Voices to the

Global Redesign Initiative of the

World Economic Forum

An initiative of the Young Global Leaders Youth Task Force

Welcome!

The World Economic Forum • Is an independent, not-for-profit

organization that is committed to improving the state of the world.

• Is made up of leaders in the fields of business, politics and economics.

The Global Redesign Initiative (GRI)

• Is a ‘global dialogue’ between leaders of governments, civil societies, media, business, politics and economics to redesign the global economy and its major components.

Young Global Leaders (YGL)• a unique, multistakeholder community of exceptional young leaders who

share a commitment to shaping the global future. • Each year the World Economic Forum identifies 200-300 extraordinary

individuals, drawn from every region of the world.

Why Youth?

"Young people should be at the forefront of global change and innovation. Empowered, they can be key agents for

development and peace.

If, however, they are left on society's margins, all of us will be impoverished. Let us ensure that all young people have every

opportunity to participate fully in the lives of their societies."

-- Kofi Annan

Youth Participation is Key

Town Hall Concept Overview

• Six Pillars for Redesign• Problem Identification • Imagine Solutions • Commit to Action

If you could redesign the world...

How can we redesign the world so that there are not extreme gaps between the rich and the poor?

How can we ensure that every person has an opportunity to be employed with a job that is related to their skills and interests?

How do we end corruption?

People in situations of desperation often turn to violence and crime; creating a sense of fear in society.

How can we create a world where people feel safe and free from terror?

How can we find peace in a world with war and conflict?

Our forests' sources of fresh water are being depleted, our oceans are being polluted and ecosystems are being destroyed.

How can we protect our planet and our natural resources so that we are not threatening current and future generations?

According to Youth, How Sustainable Is the World Currently?

15%

22%

25%

44%

29%

50%

28%

33%

5%

5%

9%

1%

1%

4%

28%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Advanced

Newly industrialised

Middle East & North Africa

Strongly agree 2 3 4 Strongly disagree

22% of youth in advanced industrialized countries see climate change as a serious factor affecting their lives, 37% of youth in the same nations also believe that more responsibility must be taken for carbon footprints created.

For newly industrialized nations, the figures are 49% versus 35%.

Fig. Current Levels of Economic Activity Are Not Sustainable Graph and Data Source: One Young World & YouGovStone Presentation, June 2009

The graph above shows the percentage of young people who consider the current levels of economic activities in their respective regions to be unsustainable.

Our world is becoming more globally connected yet our legal systems exist at the national level and often conflict or are ignored at the local and international level.

How should the world be run and governed in a way that is fair and meets the needs of everyone?

1%

5%

2%

9%

19%

7%

36%

36%

16%

33%

27%

34%

21%

13%

42%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Advanced

Newly Industrialised

Middle East & North Africa

Strongly agree 2 3 4 Strongly disagree

Do Young People Trust Their Leaders?

Fig. Trust in the World’s Political Leaders: ‘I Trust the World’s Political Leaders’ (Graph and Data Source: One Young World & YouGovStone Presentation, June 2009)

Values are a part of what defines us. They guide our daily decisions and actions and make us who we are. While there are differences in values across cultures, what are the common values that we share as a global community?

How do we teach these values?

The Question of Corporate and Business Ethics

Fig. Multinational Corporations Must Behave Ethically and Responsibly Graph and Data Source: One Young World & YouGovStone Presentation, June 2009

Overall, the YouGovStone and One Young World figures show a strong agreement in many parts of the world for multinational corporations to take the lead to introduce help economies develop without giving values and moral standards. At the same time, 29% of youth in advanced and 33% in newly industrialized also feel that there is to much power concentrated with global corporations.

We can never know for sure when a crisis may hit, whether it be a disease that spreads like wildfire, or a natural disaster instantly killing thousands of people.

How can we be prepared to respond, be aware of the risks and plan to protect what we can?

Which Issues Are Most Important According to Young People?Table and Data Source: YouGovStone and One Young World Presentation, June 2009

Advanced nations

Newly industrialised

nations

Middle East & North Africa

World poverty 3.2 3.6 2.9

Population growth 3.8 3.8 4.6

Spread of disease 4.0 3.9 4.5

The environment 4.0 4.1 3.4

Global economic stability 4.7 4.6 5.4

Social justice 4.7 5.1 4.2

War on terror 5.6 5.7 5.1

Combating religious intolerance

5.9 5.2 6.0

Problem Identification

Organize yourself into groups of 5-7 and identify about the following:

What do you see as the most important global challenges

facing your generation?

Imagine SolutionsWith your group of 5-7

Prepare three concrete recommendations to world

leaders on how to address the problem you have identified.

Commit to Action

What actions can you take within your own scope of influence to

have an impact on the issue you have identified?

Join the Online Discussionshttp://taskforce.tigweb.org/ygl_youth

Thank You!