Youth and Social Entrepreneurship
After months of research I have finally decided to fully launch my blog! I will comment on my experiences in youth engagement in sustainability, international development, corporate social responsibility and entrepreneurship!
Youth have had a lot of media attention these past few days! There is an Op-Ed article by Nicholas Kristof where he talks about youth social entrepreneurs attending Davos, and a great series of articles at the Financial Times focusing on investing in young people.
I think both articles showcase the importance of fully supporting the work of young people to better their communities. In the case of Mr. Kristof, he mentions some familiar names; Jennifer Staple is a winner of the Global Youth in Action Award that I helped to coordinate while at the Global Youth Action Network, while Soraya Salti is the leader of Injaz – the Arab counterpart of Junior Achievement, my current employer.
I believe that the main issue facing young social entrepreneurs is not lack of passion or conviction, but difficult access to resources and support. In the case of the World Economic Forum, I would challenge the organization’s leadership to bring more young people and expand its Young Global Leaders program. This would help all young social entrepreneurs (especially those from developing countries) become successful and access networks usually not accessible to them.
I am convinced that more support structures will help young people succeed as entrepreneurs promoting social change in their communities.
Hi Luis,
I saw your link at the NY Times site. I agree with your ideas about young people. Let’s just hope Obama wins and help make some of this happen!
Best,
Lisa Smith