RCS Ottawa
Aug 11, 20161 min
Establishing a youth desk in every government ministry so young people can influence policy, ring-fencing at least 17% of GDP for quality, inclusive and relevant education, and conducting a Commonwealth-wide gender audit, were just some of the pioneering ideas that Queen Young Leaders awardees proposed to Commonwealth Secretary-General, Patricia Scotland, today.
Secretary-General Scotland praised the 64 Young Leaders, all aged 18-29, for stepping up to her challenge to come up with strong and practical actions Commonwealth countries can take to achieve the internationally agreed Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The awardees also had to decide what role young people should play in supporting the SDGs.
Networking, partnerships and sharing best practice were common themes in the solutions presented by the leaders. They also stressed the need to raise awareness of the SDGs through education, suggesting universities weave the subject into their curriculums, and task students with creating and implementing a small project to support the Goals. Full Story