It’s August 12, a day that is recognized as International Youth Day by the United Nations, and we are joining in the global celebration.
Every year, the United Nations selects a different theme for International Youth Day, its celebration of the role of youth in creating a better world. This is how the U.N. describes the theme for this year: "The theme of the 2016 International Youth Day is “The Road to 2030: Eradicating Poverty and Achieving Sustainable Consumption and Production.” This year’s Day is about achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It focuses on the leading role of young people in ensuring poverty eradication and achieving sustainable development through sustainable consumption and production."
At Play for Peace, it is easy to identify the important role of young people in addressing the issues in their communities, including those issues identified by the United Nations. As our youth leaders help create more laughter, compassion, and peace among children and other youth, we believe this empowers them to create better lives and more peaceful communities and is a step toward lifting communities out of poverty. When our Play for Peace Clubs around the world participated in the Compassion Games: Serve the Earth Week back in April, we saw youth leaders engaging in many activities that related to sustainability: cleaning up parks and planting trees, which is a step toward the U.N.’s goal of achieving sustainable consumption and production.
Recognizing our Outstanding Youth Leaders In honor of International Youth Day, we recognize the nearly 1700 youth leaders who work with Play for Peace in their communities through our 56 Play for Peace Clubs in 20 countries. We have written about some of our youth leaders in our blog recently, such as Flor Jolon, a youth leader from Palencia, Guatemala; Atiqa Shahid Khan, who helps lead Play for Peace Clubs in Pakistan; Rita Nguyen, who leads the A New Day Play for Peace Club in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; Nikhil (Raahi) Mehta from Mumbai, India; and Esteban Sacalxot, who helps lead the Play for Peace Club in Cantel, Guatemala. There are many more outstanding youth leaders who are inspiring others in their Play for Peace Clubs and in their communities as well, and we thank them for how they model compassion in action. With their outstanding dedication and commitment, they are making their communities more peaceful and empowered.
