1. BACKGROUND

In commemoration of the 75^th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 30^th anniversary of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, OHCHR has developed a yearlong Human Rights 75 (HR75) initiative, involving a preparatory phase of dialogues and consultations (April – October 2023) aimed at eliciting take-aways, pledges, and positive impact stories from all actors, culminating in a high-level event (11-12 December 2023) to reinvigorate worldwide commitment for human rights. Monthly thematic spotlights complement these two phases throughout the year. The two main envisaged outcomes of the HR75 initiative are:

(1) the High Commissioner’s Vision Statement for Human Rights, which will bring together the different inputs received and feed into the 2024 Summit of the Future;

(2) the Pledging Tree and its follow-up mechanism, which will combine the pledges made by all actors, including Member States and businesses.

To inform these two outcomes, OHCHR (leads: Child and Youth Rights Unit/DESIB and Human Rights Education and Training Unit/METS) is organizing HUMAN RIGHTS 75 YOUTH DIALOGUE: Amplifying the HR75 initiative among young people, to ensure that young people play an active role in the HR75 initiative and in shaping human rights commitments for the future. OHCHR encourages meaningful participation of young people—where they are not considered beneficiaries, but equal partners in decision-making processes. To this end, the Human Rights 75 Youth Dialogue will allow young people to express their concerns and expectations about the future of human rights and share their vision of what States, the UN and young people should do to strengthen human rights in the coming years.

The Youth Dialogue will boost the HR75 initiative in several ways:

• Transformative change cannot be promoted without the buy-in and contributions of young people, as equal partners, as highlighted in the Secretary-General Policy Brief on Meaningful Youth Engagement in Policy and Decision-Making Processes, issued in April 2023 ahead of the 2024 Summit of the Future.

• The Youth Dialogue will embody the UN’s commitment to amplify young people’s voices and to promote young people’s right to participate in public affairs, as affirmed in the UN Youth Strategy Youth 2030 (fourth priority: “Youth and Human Rights”). Young people are specifically recognised a strategic priority in OHCHR Management Plan, and constitute one of the spotlight populations that warrant targeted efforts in order to contribute to leaving no one behind.

• The December HR75 thematic spotlight is dedicated to “human rights education for, with and by youth”, which is the focus of the current fourth phase (2020-2024) of the World Programme for Human Rights Education, coordinated by OHCHR[1].

Youth Declaration

In August 2023, OHCHR together with the HR75 Youth Advisory Group (see below) conducted an online global youth consultation, where young people from all over the world shared their concerns and aspirations with regard to human rights and discussed what should be done by youth, States and the UN to reinforce human rights in the future. In parallel with the consultation, an online survey and a call for input have been launched to collect views of young people and youth organizations on the topic. The outcomes of the online global youth consultation, the survey and the call for input informed the development of the Human Rights 75 Youth Declaration.  

Youth Rights Advocacy Toolkit

The Youth Rights Advocacy Toolkit is the result of a partnership between OHCHR, Education Above All Foundation and Silatech. The toolkit aims to empower youth in all their diversity to advocate for their rights, and particularly young people in situations of vulnerability or marginalization.

Documentary “Changemakers: Stories of young human rights educators”

Since 2021, OHCHR has been developing, together with Amnesty International and Soka Gakkai International, the documentary “Changemakers: Stories of young human rights educators”. The film documents stories of young human rights educators from around the world and showcases how human rights and human rights education have changed young people’s lives, inspiring them to take action for human rights in their communities through human rights education. The documentary will be presented and discussed during the Youth Dialogue.

2. OBJECTIVES

The objectives of the Youth Dialogue are:

• To gather and amplify the concerns and aspirations of young people in the context of the Human Rights 75 initiative;
• To launch the Youth Rights Advocacy Toolkit microsite;
• To launch the OHCHR documentary “Changemakers: Stories of young human rights educators” as an advocacy tool for human rights education for, with and by youth;
• To encourage meaningful participation of young people in shaping the future of human rights;
• To inspire young people to take action to promote and protect human rights.

Hafsar Tameesuddin, Co-SG of APRRN is speaking at this side-event: HUMAN RIGHTS 75 YOUTH DIALOGUE

Room: XVII, Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. 

Human Rights and Alliance Civilisation Room