Young women and men can and do play active roles as agents of positive and constructive change. This was validated in December 2015 by the adoption of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2250 on Youth, Peace and Security.[i] While acknowledging the prominent threat posed by the rise of radicalization among youth, UNSC Resolution 2250 formally recognizes the positive and important contribution of young people in the maintenance of international peace and security, emphasizing that youth must be regarded as key partners, rather than as victims or perpetrators. The implementation of UNSCR 2250 requires the meaningful engagement and representation of young people in all processes of decision-making and societal transition.

More than six hundred million young people live in fragile and conflict-affected contexts today. They are among the most affected by the multiple and often interlinked forms of violence – from political violence and criminal gangs to organized crime and terrorist attacks.[ii] An estimated one in four young people are living in situations where they are exposed to such violence, although this number is likely understated.[iii] The human, social and economic costs of this violence are enormous and long-lasting.

As well as being victims, however, young people are the primary perpetrators of armed violence and conflict in some areas, particularly in fragile contexts. In such contexts, where the disenfranchisement of young people from political processes leads to widespread feelings of injustice, frustration, and mistrust, youth can be involved in electoral-related violence, which might occur at different stages of the electoral cycle, mostly during voter registration, campaigning, voting, and tabulation of results.

While young people are disproportionately affected by violence, the vast majority of them are not participating in it, even in the face of legitimate social, political, and economic grievances. Indeed, many young people throughout the world are undertaking peacebuilding and violence prevention activities, initiatives, and projects. These efforts to appease tensions, rebuild trust, and foster social cohesion range from volunteer grassroots groups to transnational networks. Some are youth-led while others are youth-focused.

In the study prepared for the UN Security Council, the Missing Peace: Independent Progress Study on Youth, Peace and Security, mandated by Resolution 2250, an array of endeavors that aim to build and sustain peace, varying in size, depth and impact were reported. The various types of youth peacebuilding engagements intersect and overlap but one way of categorizing them is by context:

• situations of relative peace – youth-led or youth-focused work to prevent the outbreak of violent conflict, including early-intervention (longer-term) models with young children, as well as more immediate prevention approaches (shorter-term interventions) with youth in divided societies

• ongoing and escalating violent conflict – interventions to mitigate the impact of violent conflict where it has emerged, and to build peace and social cohesion (e.g. peer-to-peer dialogue and disengaging and reintegrating former fighters); providing humanitarian support, food and aid (even where international organizations are in retreat because of the escalating risks of war); monitoring and documenting human rights violations during conflict

• post-conflict – engaging in efforts to ensure that various forms of violent conflict do not recur or re-emerge; recognizing continuity and change in how violent conflict transmutes and evolves over time; addressing new fault lines of exclusion, which often reflect the underlying causes of past conflict that have not been adequately resolved.[iv]

Example: In Tunisia in 2015, a group of young entrepreneurs ran a one-day event “Entrepreneurship against Terrorism” in which young participants were given training in leadership and business development and then, in groups, challenged to come up with alternative and innovative ways to contribute to the country’s struggle against radicalization. The winning group pitched the idea of an app to make it easier for people to report suspicious and potentially disruptive activities, such as incitements to violence. The app, based on the premise that many people are too intimidated to pick up the phone and make a call, enables a witness to report the incident, giving its exact geographical location, with one click.[v]

Example: In Somalia, Elman Peace and Human Rights Center in Mogadishu presents an alternative to militant groups by giving young people vocational skills, education, investment to start social enterprises, and leadership training aimed at compelling their peers who are still in armed groups to defect.[vi]