This year, over 500 young participants from all over the world gathered on the occasion of the 8th UNESCO Youth Forum, from 29 to 31 October 2013 at UNESCO’s Headquarters in Paris, to exchange views, share experiences, reflect together and, above all, identify common preoccupations and problems.

Peace Architect Tissione Parmar was chosen to participate as an observing representative of the United Kingdom as well as representing the work of Peace Revolution.

Taking up the evaluation of the 7th Forum (2011) and consultations with youth, the 8^th edition of the forum strove to improve effective participation, ownership and co-management of the event, in order to build strong bridges between the Organization, its Member States, youth and their organizations. Importantly, it also aims at reinforcing the competencies of young people as key actors driving change in their communities, and active partners in peace building and the promotion of sustainable development.

The 8th Edition is conceived to have more time dedicated to break-out sessions and space for exchange and dialogue, giving youth delegates, observers and other young participants, sufficient opportunities to exchange, to reinforce their skills, as well as to showcase their struggles, paths and innovative initiatives.

The Forum lasted for three days, from the 29th to the 31^st of October 2013.

The format of the Forum has been redesigned based on the suggestions made by the youth participants of the last UNESCO Youth Forum (October 2011) and by young women and men across the world who participated in the preparatory online youth consultations that UNESCO conducted in February-April 2013 to identify the theme, format and agenda of the 8th UNESCO Youth Forum.

The Forum included more interactive and youth-led debates; created  opportunities and spaces to network; built synergies between youth and institutional partners; and allowed exchanging practices, showcasing actions benefitting youth, strengthening capacities and creating artistic content.

More specifically, it included:

• Working group sessions on the theme of the Forum, structured around the three axes of the UNESCO Operational Strategy on Youth 2014-2021. These sessions will serve to debate and finalize the recommendations  of the Forum.
• Regional working group sessions that will be dedicated to the selection of the 15 action projects that will receive the label of the “8th UNESCO Youth Forum”.
• Capacity-building workshops aiming at introducing to the young participants of the Forum the diverse opportunities offered by public, private, and civil society actors.
• A “marketplace” where other partners will exhibit their work and host one-to-one discussions or coaching/mentoring sessions for young participants.
• A multimedia exhibition (including photos, videos, etc.) presenting the work of young creators and innovators in the fields of education, natural and social and human sciences, culture and communication.
• Parallel side events will also be organized to showcase specific programmes or practices. Among them, moments dedicated to “15 minutes of fame” will allow young leaders to present their actions and paths, and exchange about their successes but also specific risks..
• The UNESCO-Juan Bosch Prize for the Promotion of Social Science Research in Latin America and the Caribbean will be awarded at the end of Day 1 (29 October).

 
   
 
 
Highlights from Day 1:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSbygvqBNWs
Highlights from Day 2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVK6Zjst1Rc
Highlights from Day 3:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZLSwFlSY3Y