We the Future
Henrietta Fore: How we can help young people build a better future
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A massive generation of young people is about to inherit the world, and it's the duty of everyone to give them a fighting chance for their futures, says UNICEF executive director Henrietta Fore. In this forward-looking talk, she explores the crises facing them and details an ambitious new global initiative, Generation Unlimited, which aims to ensure every young person is in school, training or employed by 2030.
Henrietta Fore - Child advocate
UNICEF executive director Henrietta Fore is a champion of economic development, education, health and humanitarian assistance. Full bio
UNICEF executive director Henrietta Fore is a champion of economic development, education, health and humanitarian assistance. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:13
Today, there are 1.8 billion young people
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between the ages
of 10 and 24 in the world.
of 10 and 24 in the world.
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It is the largest cohort in human history.
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Meeting their needs
will be a big challenge.
will be a big challenge.
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But it's also a big opportunity.
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They hold our shared future
in their hands.
in their hands.
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Every day, we read about young people
lending their ideas and passions
lending their ideas and passions
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to fighting for change,
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social change, political change,
change in their communities.
change in their communities.
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Imagine what they'll create:
breakthroughs, inventions.
breakthroughs, inventions.
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Maybe new medicines,
new modes of transportation,
new modes of transportation,
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new ways to communicate,
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sustainable economies
and maybe even a world at peace.
and maybe even a world at peace.
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But this opportunity, this youth dividend,
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is not a given.
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One point eight billion
young women and young men
young women and young men
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are standing at the door of adulthood.
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Are they ready?
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Right now, too few of them are.
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My favorite part of my job at UNICEF
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is a chance to talk to, meet with
and hear from young people
and hear from young people
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all around the world.
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And they tell me
about their hopes and dreams.
about their hopes and dreams.
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And they have amazing hopes and dreams
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for what they'll accomplish
in their lives.
in their lives.
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But what they're also telling me
is that they have fears.
is that they have fears.
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They feel that they're facing
a series of urgent crises.
a series of urgent crises.
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A crisis of demographics,
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a crisis of education,
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a crisis of employment,
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a crisis of violence
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and a crisis for girls.
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If you look at these crises,
you realize that they're urgent
you realize that they're urgent
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and they need to be addressed now.
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Because they tell us that they're worried.
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They're worried that they might not get
the education that they need.
the education that they need.
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And you know what?
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They're right.
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Two hundred million adolescents
are out of school worldwide,
are out of school worldwide,
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about the population of Brazil.
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And those that are in school
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feel that they may not be getting
the right skills.
the right skills.
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Globally, six in 10
children and young people
children and young people
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do not meet the minimum proficiency level
for reading and mathematics.
for reading and mathematics.
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No country can be successful
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if nearly half of its population
of young people
of young people
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are unable to read or write.
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And what about the lucky few
who are in secondary school?
who are in secondary school?
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Many of them are dropping out
because they're worried
because they're worried
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that they're not getting skills
that they can use to make a livelihood.
that they can use to make a livelihood.
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And sometimes, their parents
can no longer afford the fees.
can no longer afford the fees.
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It's a tragedy.
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And young people are also telling me
that they're worried about employment,
that they're worried about employment,
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that they won't be able to find a job.
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And again, they're right.
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Every month, 10 million
young people reach working age.
young people reach working age.
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It's a staggering number.
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Some will go on for further education,
but many will enter the workforce.
but many will enter the workforce.
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And our world is not creating
10 million new jobs each month.
10 million new jobs each month.
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The competition is fierce
for the jobs that are available.
for the jobs that are available.
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So, imagine being a young person today,
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needing a job, seeking a livelihood,
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ready to build a future,
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and opportunities are hard to find.
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Young people are also telling me
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that they're worried that they're not
getting the skills that they need.
getting the skills that they need.
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And again, they're right.
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We are finding ourselves
at a time in the world
at a time in the world
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when the world
is changing so fast for work.
is changing so fast for work.
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We're in the fourth industrial revolution.
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Young people do not want to be
on the farms and in rural communities.
on the farms and in rural communities.
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They want to go to the cities.
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They want to learn future skills
for future work.
for future work.
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They want to learn digital technology
and green technologies.
and green technologies.
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They want to have a chance
to learn modern agriculture.
to learn modern agriculture.
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They want to learn business
and entrepreneurship,
and entrepreneurship,
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so that they can create
a business of their own.
a business of their own.
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They want to be nurses and radiologists
and pharmacists and doctors.
and pharmacists and doctors.
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And they want to have all of the skills
that they'll need for the future.
that they'll need for the future.
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They also want to learn the trades,
like construction and electricians.
like construction and electricians.
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These are all the professions
that a country needs,
that a country needs,
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as well as the professions
that have not been invented yet.
that have not been invented yet.
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And young people are also telling me
that they're worried about violence.
that they're worried about violence.
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At home, online, in school,
in their communities.
in their communities.
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And again, they're right.
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A young person can have
hundreds of friends on social media,
hundreds of friends on social media,
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but when they need
to find a friendly face,
to find a friendly face,
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someone who can be there
as their friend, to talk to,
as their friend, to talk to,
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they do not find one.
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They face bullying, harassment and more.
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And hundreds of millions
are facing exploitation
are facing exploitation
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and abuse, and violence.
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Every seven minutes,
an adolescent boy or girl
an adolescent boy or girl
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somewhere in the world
is killed by an act of violence.
is killed by an act of violence.
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And girls are telling me
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that they're especially worried
about their futures.
about their futures.
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And sadly, they're right, too.
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Girls face prejudice and discrimination.
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They face early childhood marriage
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and they face life-threatening
early pregnancy.
early pregnancy.
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Imagine a population of the United States.
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Now double it.
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That's the number of women who
were married before their 18th birthday.
were married before their 18th birthday.
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Six hundred and fifty million.
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And many were mothers
while they were still children themselves.
while they were still children themselves.
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One out of every three women
will face physical abuse
will face physical abuse
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or sexual abuse in her lifetime.
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So, no wonder girls are worried
about their futures.
about their futures.
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These urgent crises may not be a reality
in your life or in your neighborhood.
in your life or in your neighborhood.
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And perhaps you've had opportunities
for a good education
for a good education
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and for marketable skills,
and for getting a job.
and for getting a job.
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And maybe you've never faced violence,
or prejudice, or discrimination.
or prejudice, or discrimination.
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But there are tens of millions
of young people who are not so lucky.
of young people who are not so lucky.
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And they are sounding the alarm
for their futures.
for their futures.
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And that is why UNICEF
and our many public and private partners
and our many public and private partners
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are launching a new global initiative.
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Young people themselves have named it.
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And it's called Generation Unlimited
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or Gen-U or Gen you.
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So, what they're saying is,
it's our time, it's our turn,
it's our time, it's our turn,
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it's our future.
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Our goal is very straightforward.
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We want every young person
in school, learning, training,
in school, learning, training,
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or age-appropriate employment
by the year 2030.
by the year 2030.
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This goal is urgent,
it's necessary, it's ambitious.
it's necessary, it's ambitious.
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But we think it's also achievable.
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So we're calling out
for cutting-edge solutions
for cutting-edge solutions
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and new ideas.
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Ideas that will give young people
a fighting chance for their futures.
a fighting chance for their futures.
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We don't know all the answers,
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so we're reaching out to businesses
and governments, and nonprofits,
and governments, and nonprofits,
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and academia, and communities,
and innovators for help.
and innovators for help.
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Gen-U is to be an open platform,
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where people can come
and share their ideas and solutions
and share their ideas and solutions
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about what works, what does not work,
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and importantly, what might work.
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So if we can take these ideas
and add a little bit of seed money,
and add a little bit of seed money,
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and add some good partners,
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and add good political will,
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we think they can scale up to reach
thousands and millions of people
thousands and millions of people
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around the world.
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And with this project,
we're also going to do something new.
we're also going to do something new.
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We're going to co-design
and co-create with young people.
and co-create with young people.
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So with Gen-U, they're going to be
in the driver's seat,
in the driver's seat,
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steering us all along the way.
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In Argentina, there's a program
where we connect students
where we connect students
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who are in rural, remote,
hard to reach mountainous communities,
hard to reach mountainous communities,
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with something they've seldom seen:
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a secondary school teacher.
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So these students come to a classroom,
they're joined by a community teacher
they're joined by a community teacher
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and they're connected
to urban schools online.
to urban schools online.
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And there is the secondary school teacher,
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who is teaching them
about digital technology
about digital technology
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and a good secondary school education,
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without them ever having to leave
their own communities.
their own communities.
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And in South Africa,
there's a program called Techno Girls.
there's a program called Techno Girls.
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And these are girls
from disadvantaged neighborhoods
from disadvantaged neighborhoods
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who are studying the STEM program area:
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science, technology, engineering and math.
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And they have a chance to job shadow.
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This is the way that they then
can see themselves
can see themselves
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in jobs that are in engineering,
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in science, and maybe
in the space program.
in the space program.
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In Bangladesh,
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we have partners who are training
tens of thousands of young people
tens of thousands of young people
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in the trades,
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so that they can become
motorcycle repair people,
motorcycle repair people,
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or mobile phone service people.
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But these are a chance to see
their own livelihoods.
their own livelihoods.
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And maybe even to have
a business of their own.
a business of their own.
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And in Vietnam,
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there's a program where
we are pairing young entrepreneurs
we are pairing young entrepreneurs
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with the needs in their own
local communities.
local communities.
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So with this program, a group gathered
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and they decided that they would
solve the problem of transportation
solve the problem of transportation
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for people with disabilities
in their communities.
in their communities.
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So with a mentor
and a bit of seed funding,
and a bit of seed funding,
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they've now developed a new app
to help the whole community.
to help the whole community.
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And I've seen how these programs
can make a difference.
can make a difference.
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When I was in Lebanon,
I visited a program called Girls Got IT,
I visited a program called Girls Got IT,
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or Girls Got It.
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And in this program,
girls who have been studying
girls who have been studying
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computer skills and the STEM program
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have a chance to work side by side
with young professionals,
with young professionals,
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so that they can learn firsthand
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what it's like to be an architect,
a designer or a scientist.
a designer or a scientist.
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And when you see these girls,
smiles on their faces,
smiles on their faces,
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the hot lights in their eyes,
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they are so excited,
they have hope for the future.
they have hope for the future.
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They want to change the world.
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And now, with this program
and these mentors,
and these mentors,
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they'll be able to do it.
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But these ideas and programs
are just a start.
are just a start.
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They'll only reach a fraction
of the young people that we need to reach.
of the young people that we need to reach.
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We want to take these ideas
and find ways to scale them up.
and find ways to scale them up.
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To reach more young people
in more communities,
in more communities,
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in more places around the world.
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And we want to dream big.
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Could every school,
everywhere in the world,
everywhere in the world,
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no matter how remote or mountainous,
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or even if it's in a refugee camp,
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could they be connected to the internet?
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Could we have instant translation
for young people,
for young people,
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so that you could get a good education
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in your own language,
anywhere in the world?
anywhere in the world?
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And would it be possible
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that we could connect
the education in your school
the education in your school
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with skills that you're going to need
to get a job in your own community?
to get a job in your own community?
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So that you actually can move
from school to work.
from school to work.
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And more.
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Can each one of us help?
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In our everyday lives
and in our workplaces,
and in our workplaces,
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are there ways that we could
support young people?
support young people?
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Young people are asking us
for apprenticeships,
for apprenticeships,
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for job shadowing, for internships.
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Could we do this?
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Young people are also asking us
for work-study programs,
for work-study programs,
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places where they can learn and earn.
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Could we do this and could we
reach out to a community that's nearby,
reach out to a community that's nearby,
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that's less advantaged, and help them?
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Young people are also saying
that they want to help other young people.
that they want to help other young people.
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They want more space and more voice,
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so that they can gather
to help each other.
to help each other.
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In HIV centers, in refugee camps,
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but also to stop online bullying
and early child marriage.
and early child marriage.
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We need ideas, we need
ideas that are big and small,
ideas that are big and small,
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ideas that are local and global.
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This, in the end, is our responsibility.
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A massive generation of young people
are about to inherit our world.
are about to inherit our world.
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It is our duty to leave a legacy
of hope and opportunity
of hope and opportunity
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for them but also with them.
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Young people are
25 percent of our population.
25 percent of our population.
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But they are 100 percent of our future.
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And they're calling out
for a fighting chance
for a fighting chance
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to build a better world.
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So their call should be our calling.
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The calling of our time.
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The time is now, the need is urgent.
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And 1.8 billion young people are waiting.
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Thank you.
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(Applause)
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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Henrietta Fore - Child advocateUNICEF executive director Henrietta Fore is a champion of economic development, education, health and humanitarian assistance.
Why you should listen
Henrietta Fore became executive director of UNICEF, the United Nations Children's Fund, on January 1, 2018. Previously she served as the administrator of USAID and director of the United States Foreign Assistance (as the firrst woman to serve in these roles), managing billions of dollars in assistance annually, including support to people and countries recovering from disaster. Prior to this appointment, Fore served as Under Secretary of State for Management, the COO of the Department of State, under President George W. Bush. She also served on the boards of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and the Aspen Institute among others.
More profile about the speakerHenrietta Fore | Speaker | TED.com