15 Exceptional Young Leaders Selected as UN Youth Champions for Disarmament

NEW YORK, 26 February (Office for Disarmament Affairs) — In October 2023, the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs called on young people between the ages of 18 and 24 from across the globe to apply for an innovative learning programme aimed at empowering them to work for disarmament in their communities.

Out of over 1,000 talented applicants from 128 countries around the world, the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (ODA) is pleased to announce the selection of 15 exceptional young leaders as the new group of Youth Champions for Disarmament.  Participants have been chosen for their passion, commitment and innovative approaches to promoting disarmament, non-proliferation and arms control, and include a medical doctor and health activist, a poet, artists, peacebuilders and gender and youth rights activists, among others.

With generous financial support from the Government of Germany, the second edition of the United Nations Youth Champions for Disarmament training programme will enable this geographically diverse group of young leaders to share their regional perspectives and connect them to the global disarmament discourse.  This programme, together with the previous edition and other learning programmes supported by the Office are part of its targeted efforts to engage, educate and empower young people for disarmament.

“At ODA, we firmly believe that what Secretary-General Guterres calls a ‘networked and inclusive multilateralism’ also depends on how well we meaningfully include and empower youth,” said Izumi Nakamitsu, the United Nations High Representative for Disarmament Affairs.

The Youth Champions for Disarmament will receive training in the general principles of disarmament, non-proliferation and arms control and its linkages to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.  Throughout the programme, they will engage with disarmament experts, participate in regional workshops and develop innovative projects to raise awareness and promote change for a more peaceful and secure world within their communities.

For more information about the training programme, including the profiles of the 15 new Youth Champions for Disarmament please visit https://www.youth4disarmament.org/.