Earth Charter Young Leaders Participated in the VI Youth Forum of the Americas

Since 2019, Earth Charter Young Leaders (ECYLs) from Colombia, Costa Rica, India, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama and Venezuela have collaborated and carried out Youth Dialogues, organized every year by the Young Americas Business Trust and the Organization of American States with the aim of promoting the Earth Charter document internationally. In these dialogues, young people discuss important themes such as climate change, nonviolence and peace, sustainable lifestyles and education for sustainable development and add their voices of youth of the Americas to the leaders of the hemisphere through the Youth Forum of the Americas. 

Young Americas Business Trust (YABT) is an international non-profit organization that works in cooperation with the Organization of American States (OAS), to promote the social and economic development of young people around the world. Since its inception, it has empowered more than 100,000 youth in 75 countries through programs and activities that enable young people to be productive members of their communities.¹ 

The Youth Forum of the Americas is a permanent, open and inclusive channel that allows youth to contribute and influence the definition of priorities and coordination of action in the continent, through a platform of participation, in which they have the opportunity to actively participate , as a social actor in the Summits of the Americas,  the OAS General Assemblies and other high-level meetings.² 

The Earth Charter was mentioned In the Declaration Of Commitment and Action Plan Of The VI Youth Forum Of The Americas 

Thanks to the active participation of the ECYLs, it was successfully achieved that, in the Declaration of Commitment and Plan of Action of the VI Youth Forum of the Americas, they proposed to “Adopt the Earth Charter as an instrument of international law and democracy, to promote a culture of nonviolence and peace as a basis for eradicating the social and economic inequality that gives rise to violence”, mentioned in Theme 4 – Combating Corruption, point 5 – Eradication of corruption and violence. 

The ECYLs in conjunction with the Allied organizations: International Network of SDG Promoters Chapters Colombia, Mexico and Panama, Santa María La Antigua University, CIAP Uma Kiwe Foundation, Climate Reality Leadership Corps, UNACHI Think Tank, Afropanamese Youth Network, Ecopeace Teen Cafe, World Interfaith Harmony Week, United Religions Initiative, Inventiva Consulting, The Mindshift Game, Academy of Entrepreneurs,  Soka Gakkai International of Panama, the Center for Research, Democracy and Policies of the Faculty of Law and Political Science of the University of Panama, Youth and Student Unit, Young Peruvian Leaders, Scouts of Argentina, We found the Scout Foundation Childhoods and Youth, the Rosario Community Management Center, the City Council of Cintalapa de Figueroa, Chiapas in Mexico and Generation 2030 of the United Nations Population Fund Mexico,  held four Juventu Dialogues to add their contributions at the international level: 

Virtual Mode: 

• The Earth Charter as a tool to meet the SDGs – 11 May 2019 

• The Earth Charter acts for the Youth of the Americas – March 21, 2020 
• The Earth Charter in Action with Entrepreneurship, Youth and the SDGs – Decade of Action – March 12, 2022. 

As a result of the organization of the Youth Dialogues, the ECYL had the honor of participating in the face-to-face and virtual modalities as Delegates, Rapporteurs, Spokespersons and Youth Representatives in  the following events organized by the YABT and the OAS: 

• Youth Dialogue of the Americas – July 01, 2020 / Virtual Modality 

Youth Delegate: Pablo Julián Arias Varela – Costa Rica 

Youth Spokesperson: Rocío Milagros Collantes González – Panama 

Speech: “Youth and the Sustainable Development Goals – Decade of Action”. 

• Hemispheric Dialogue of the VI Youth Forum of the Americas – May 16, 2022 / Virtual Modality 

Youth Representative: Rocío Milagros Collantes González – Panama 

Theme: Collaborating with Youth. 

• VI Youth Forum of the Americas – June 08 to 09, 2022 / Face-to-face and Virtual Modality 

Youth Delegates: Dennis Pérez-Umaña – Costa Rica, Carlos Salinas – Nicaragua and Génesis Pinzón – Panama 

Rapporteur: Rocío Milagros Collantes González – Panama. 

• USAID |  Round Table: “Preparation of the Labor Forcel in the Nineteenth Century” – June 10, 2022 / Face-to-face modality 

Youth Delegate: Carlos Salinas – Nicaragua 

Theme: Collaborating with Youth. 

• NAU FEST JA Americas | Workshop: Weaving Actions Post VI Youth Forum of the Americas – June 21, 2022 / Virtual Modality 

Youth Delegate: Rocío Milagros Collantes González – Panama 

• USAID | Youth Conversation on the Impacts of Russia’s War on Ukraine – June 28, 2022 / Virtual Modality 

Youth Delegate: Rocío Milagros Collantes González – Panama 

The VI Youth Forum of the Americas was held from June 08 to 09, 2022 in the face-to-face and virtuous modalities, through the Youth Consultation Process, in which the 5 C’s of Youth Development were  framed: (1) Climate Change, (2) COVID-19, (3) Collaborating with Youth, (4) Fighting Corruption and,  (5) Connectivity and Digital Transformation, considered as current priorities  resulting from a series of consultations with youth and the thematic axes of the IX Summit of the Americas. 

The Earth Charter International Secretariat expresses its sincere thanks and congratulations to the Young Americas Business Trust and the Organization of American States for inviting EC Young Leaders to participate in the side events of the IX Summit of the Americas and the VI Youth Forum of the Americas. To the ECYLs: Laura Restrepo Alameda – Colombia, Pablo Julián Arias Varela – Costa Rica, Dennis Pérez-Umaña – Costa Rica, Greshma Pious Raju – India, Ana Karen Proa Rebolledo – Mexico, José De Jesús Cruz Figueroa – Mexico, Carlos Salinas – Nicaragua, Astrid De La Lastra – Panama, Génesis Pinzón – Panama and Valeria Santos – Venezuela and the allied organizations for their support and contribution in the face-to-face and virtual activities to promote the Earth Charter document that led to international success. Especially, Rocío Milagros Collantes González – Panama who represented the ECYL for the first time in the Workshop 2 Corruption and Sustainable Development of the V Youth Forum of the Americas in 2018 and dedicated herself since then, to organize and participate together with the ECYL and the allied organizations, in the Youth Dialogues, both in face-to-face and virtual modalities, with the YABT and the OAS, which resulted  in the mention of the Earth Charter document in the Declaration of Commitment and Plan of Action of the VI Youth Forum of the Americas.