International Youth Day: Embracing a digital and sustainable future

The International Youth Day, celebrated each year on 12 August, takes a forward-thinking approach in 2024 with its theme centred around ‘Digitalisation and Sustainable Development’. Young individuals can lead the way towards reaching the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the United Nations. While there are still challenges in accessing digital tools, young people are the largest demographic group of users and developers who can shape global digital trends.   

Digital connectivity is one of the six key transitions defined by the UN that can have a large impact on reaching the SDGs. The estimation is that digital technologies and data can contribute to at least 70 per cent of the 169 SDG targets. At the same time, these technologies and data can potentially reduce the cost of achieving the goals by 50 trillion euro. Our platform gives youth access to publicly available data from European countries, enabling them to make informed decisions. 

The European Union (EU) has set up the Youth Action Plan (YAP) for 2022 – 2027, to increase young people’s voices in policy and decision-making, foster worldwide networking, and empower youth by providing them with the necessary skills and tools. With the Youth Empowerment Fund, the EU set up a partnership of EUR 10 million to provide opportunities for youth to develop and contribute to the SDGs in their country. To track the YAP, a monitoring framework has been developed, building on existing data sources. 

With International Youth Day 2024, the focus is on fostering a digitally fluent youth population that is prepared to tackle global sustainability challenges. With the help of open data, young people can support evidence-based decision-making and continue innovative activities to achieve sustainable development. 

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