11. Language

civic engagement and civic space

In our network, youth civic engagement is described through the multiple ways in which young people get involved to improve their communities’ well-being. This can range from advocacy, educational, social, and electoral political activism and engagements for the common good. In contexts where political and civil rights are respected, civic engagement can flourish and involve a wide range of activities in both the civic and the political/electoral space. In contexts where political and civil rights are not respected, that is, those of dictatorial rule or violent conflict, civic spaces are narrowed, affecting the forms and levels of civic engagement. For example, volunteering in associations that are allowed to register and operate by the government (often many are not), being active in media but not being able to cover all issues (auto or government censorship), or being able to mobilise on some issues and not others, more or less overtly. Where elections take place, they may be limited to legal parties and may be subject to political persecution or harassment.

community

We mean the group of people living in the same locality and jointly contributing to its social fabric - the linkages and solidarity in a said community.

decisions and policies on peace and security

We mean to encompass all structures, decisions, policies, instruments, and platforms that have a relevance to peacebuilding. This means thinking youth participation: 1) in all forms of political processes and governance platforms at all levels; 2) in formal and informal peace processes; and 3) not just in but also out and around the room for all processes (informal, dialogues, mediation, public debate, post-conflict arrangements, etc.).

empowerment

The notion of 'empowerment' is infused throughout all UNOY’s objectives and is grounded in UNOY’s network approach, which constitutes the backbone of its actions. However, we use this term with caution as it has been overused and often abused, with development actors bestowing power on 'marginalised' groups or putting the onus to change societies on the 'empowered' individuals rather than focusing on structures and 'power holders' that are unjust and inequitable. At UNOY, when speaking of 'empowerment' we refer to three notions of power:

• Power within: youth are empowered through strengthened self-awareness, confidence, skills on an individual level;
• Power with: meaning youth are empowered to unite, build common understandings and take collective action with their peers and other actors;
• Power to: meaning power to act to initiate change within existing systems and the power to make a difference.

intergenerational approach

Youth participation in peacebuilding does not by definition exclude the participation of adults. Conflict prevention can only be achieved on the basis of collaborative efforts between youth and older generations as equal partners. An intergenerational approach is also key to finding common ground for action, developing mutual respect, and bridging trust gaps between youth and other members of society.

intersectionality

At UNOY, we use the term when discussing how multiple forms of systemic youth exclusion (due to age, race, sex, gender, class) are connected and mutually reinforcing. In this strategy, we focus on how this notion, for instance, is relevant in challenging unequal partnerships.

non-youth peace and security actors

With this we mean all potential partners of young peacebuilders above 35 years old.

ownership

People have ownership when they have a sense of appropriation for the initiatives they are involved in. This means that they accept and lead these initiatives that, in turn, stand more chances to be impactful. Ownership can be facilitated through different methodologies (such as consultations), and stems from the inclusion of key groups in society to decisions that affect them. Including youth, who often form the majority of the population in countries that are affected by conflict and other forms of violence, is a way to ensure ownership of peace processes and programmes.

peace and security

The main purpose of the United Nations, as outlined in the first item of Article 1 of the UN Charter, is the maintenance of international peace and security, in a number of ways ranging from preventive diplomacy, to military intervention, and to peacebuilding. We understand 'peace and security' as the absence of all forms of violence within a society and in reference to UN agendas and international efforts build peace. When asked what peace and security meant to them, young people surveyed for the Progress Study expressed that peace and security are more than just the absence of violence, or the end of violent conflict, but also about their values and aspirations, and about belonging, dignity, and living with hope and without fear. These aspirational concepts of peace and security also included positive visions of free and democratic societies with environments conducive to development and dignity, which address social, political and structural inequalities.

power-holders

Power-holders refers to all formal public, private and informal actors at all levels (local, national, regional, global) that have control over something (policies, decisions, processes) or someone, and that such control relates to the existence of structural barriers to youth participation (whether physical, technical, legal & political, socio-cultural, socio-economic, digital and financial).

peacebuilding

The term peacebuilding has several definitions, but most peace organisations use a broad definition based on the theoretical underpinnings of Galtung and Lederach. UNOY Peacebuilders understand peacebuilding as a vehicle to promote positive and negative peace, instead of thinking of it as an end in itself. The process of building peace therefore aims to address the roots of conflict, to prevent and mitigate all forms of violence, and work towards the construction of just and inclusive societies. This vision can only be met by the inclusion of all members of society, particularly youth, through intergenerational dialogue and the practice of nonviolence. Nonviolent and peaceful means strive toward the promotion of a culture of peace in all societies.

resilience

We understand resilience as the individual capacity to adapt to and recover from change or conflict, and societal capacity to collectively peacefully transform relationships to address the factors that generate violence. Resilience can be linked to the very nature of youth as being creative and innovative in tackling challenges around them. While traditional power structures often tend to exclude youth participation from decision making, young people employ ingenious methods to make themselves heard.

youth

We adopt a broad definition of youth as a transition phase between childhood and adulthood, as defined by social and cultural markers. International institutions and governments take different age ranges as youth for statistical and programming purposes. For example, the United Nations considers youth as those between 15 and 25 years old, and the African Youth Charter (2006) those between 15 and 35 years old. Youth is not a homogenous group; other social factors and identities shape the lives of youth, such as culture, ethnic origin, disability, gender, status as a refugee or migrant, role as a carer for younger siblings, position as an ex-combatant, etc. 

youth, peace and security (YPS)

YPS refers to the international agenda which aims at recognising and promoting the positive role that youth play in preventing conflict and building peace. This agenda was formalised in 2015 through the adoption of UN Security Council resolution 2250, the first to recognise this positive role, marking a paradigm shift in the perception of youth: from sources of conflict to resources for peace and development, and further reaffirmed through later adoptions of UNSCR 2419 (2018) and 2535 (2020). It is important to note that the agenda was already being promoted on the ground prior to these resolutions through the work of many youth-led grassroots peacebuilding organisations (many of them UNOY peacebuilders!) and a number of international NGOs.

young peacebuilder

We consider a young peacebuilder as any person between 15 and 35 years old engaged in some form of peacebuilding initiative around the world, such as (and not limited to): upholding human rights values for all people; promoting the participation of all youth in decision-making processes; fostering a culture of peace; transforming conflicts at all levels; preventing all kinds of violence; protesting and dissenting peacefully; engaging in political discourse.

young peacebuilder vs young people

We use the term ‘young peacebuilders’ when talking about capacity development and networking approaches aimed at supporting youth already engaged in peacebuilding. When we use ‘young people’, we refer instead to young people at large, beyond those that are directly involved in peacebuilding.

youth inclusion, mainstreaming or participation?

Non-youth actors can 'include youth' as a passive beneficiary; they can 'mainstream youth' views, needs and concerns into every aspect of an organisation; but they can’t 'participate youth'. We talk about youth participation because it underlines young people’s agency and their active participation in conflict prevention and peacebuilding. Youth participation is understood as young people’s ability to shape decisions that affect their lives. Participation that is meaningful can only occur if it entails the active, informed, and effective involvement of youth in decision-making at various levels in an organisation and within different stages of a programme. To the contrary, participation is not meaningful (and instead tokenistic) when it is only an afterthought to tick a box without real agency and leadership from youth. Instead, genuine youth participation moves beyond tokenism, towards meaningful inclusion and ownership.