Collaborative on Global Children's Issues

Over the past 25 years, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) played a significant role in shaping global approaches to youth development and youth engagement in international development. As the global landscape changes, this event will consider how lessons learned can inform the future, including efforts to ensure young people are meaningfully engaged as partners in policy and practice.

This interactive event will also inform and contribute to an upcoming report on “Engaging Young People As Partners in Policy and Practice: Lessons from 25 Years of Global Youth Development and the Path Forward.” The report will document the evolution of the U.S. government's foreign assistance approach to youth in development and youth engagement between 2000 and 2025. Report findings draw on key public policies, projects, funding data, and strategic models, as well as interviews and focus groups with USAID staff, partners, researchers, advocates, and young people who contributed to the agency’s impact over the past two decades. The report will also look forward, capturing key lessons and recommendations from USAID’s experience as the development community charts a new path forward.

The event will bring together former U.S. government staff, current funders, practitioners, researchers, students, and other community members to reflect on the path forward for youth engagement. Participants will hear early insights and recommendations from the draft report, engage in interactive discussions, and build connections through informal dialogue and networking.

This event is in-person only and will not be livestreamed.