A blog by Layne Robinson   You may be unfamiliar with the term “youth bulge”. The World Bank has defined it as a phenomenon in many developing countries where factors such as reducing infant mortality and high fertility rates have resulted in children and young people outnumbering adults.   It is often discussed within the context …

How the Commonwealth flipped the script on youth empowerment  Read More »

Nominations have opened for the 2020 Commonwealth Youth Awards which will see winners awarded a cash grant to scale-up development work benefiting their communities. The Commonwealth Youth Awards recognise the exemplary work undertaken by young people across the 53 member countries. Regional winners will be invited to an awards ceremony in London on Commonwealth Day in March …

Enter now: Commonwealth Youth Awards Read More »

Sixteen extraordinary individuals including innovators, activists and entrepreneurs from 12 countries have been shortlisted for this year’s Commonwealth Youth Awards. A pan-Commonwealth judging panel met in February and selected the top individuals in each of the award’s four regional categories. This year, the awards received more than 500 entries from 40 countries. Of those shortlisted, the …

16 finalists announced for the Commonwealth Youth Awards 2020 Read More »

Four outstanding young people have won Commonwealth Youth Awards for innovative projects that are delivering sustainable development in their countries. The awards recognise exceptional contributions by young people whose ventures are helping their countries achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We had more than 500 award nominations from 40 countries. A pan-Commonwealth judging …

Young leaders from Canada, Fiji, Pakistan and Uganda win Commonwealth Youth Awards 2020 Read More »

“True, I am young, but for souls nobly born, valour doesn’t await the passing of years “– this quote from Pierre Corneille is true of Galabuzi Brian Kakembo. At just 25 years, this Ugandan innovator and social entrepreneur will go down in history as the regional finalist for Africa and Europe, and the overall winner of Commonwealth Youth Awards for 2020. The young …

Ugandan wins Commonwealth Youth Awards Read More »

Sowmyan Jegatheesan, the regional winner of the Commonwealth Youth Awards for the Caribbean and Canada, is a born leader. His web portal SystemaNaturae.org has been helping research centres, think tanks and universities in more than 130 countries, to better understand the factors influencing climate change, wildlife migration patterns and human-wildlife conflict, among other things. Omeye …

Canadian wins regional youth award Read More »

Growing up, Commonwealth Youth Awards 2020 finalist Samuel Neil had lofty dreams of becoming a pilot. Now, as founder of The Aviation Club of Jamaica, a national initiative which encourages young people to enter the aviation sector, he is helping other young people’s dreams soar. Commonwealth Correspondent Tshwanelo Fokazi, 27, from Ekurhuleni, South Africa caught …

The sky is not the limit Read More »

Lalita Gopaul, one of the 2020 Commonwealth Youth Awards finalists, does not mind getting some dirt under her fingernails. As founder and CEO of Eco Club in the Guyana, she is passionate about educating young people about environmental conservation and protection. Promise Forsuh, a 23-year-old Commonwealth Correspondent from Bamenda, Cameroon, caught up with the eco-warrior to …

Making environmental awareness ‘cool’ Read More »

Young people make up more than half of Fiji’s population – but they are mostly excluded from policy formulation and decision-making. Broderick John Mervyn, one of this year’s Commonwealth Youth Awards finalists, is working to change that through his initiative Ignite4Change. Oghenekevwe Oghenechovwen, a 21-year-old Commonwealth Correspondent from Warri in Nigeria, spoke to Broderick about …

Igniting change for Fiji’s young people Read More »

Joshua Ebin from Nigeria was one 16 finalists for this year’s Commonwealth Youth Awards. The 29-year-old is the co-founder of Jumela Ltd., an agro-technology venture that specializes in the production of plant-based compost for crop farmers in Nigeria. Jumela also tackles poor food waste management, pollution problems and low agricultural yield in Africa. Sola Abe, …

One man’s trash, another man’s treasure Read More »