Journalists and Writers Foundation
ECOSOC YOUTH FORUM 2025SIDE EVENT
Youth Voices Driving Innovation for Quality Education, Social Inclusion
and Sustainable Development
16 April 2025 | 1:30 – 3:00 pm EST
Church Center for the UN, New York
ECOSOC Youth Forum 2025 Side-Event organized by the Journalists and Writers Foundation (JWF) commenced with the introduction remarks of Mehmet Kilic, President of the Journalists and Writers Foundation. In his opening remarks, Mr. Kilic welcomed distinguished guests, youth representatives, and attendees, emphasizing JWF’s dedication to promoting a culture of peace, human rights, and sustainable development. Based in New York and associated with the UN Department of Global Communications, JWF brought together a diverse group of participants to engage in meaningful dialogue under the theme “Youth Voices Driving Innovation for Quality Education, Social Inclusion, and Sustainable Development.”
Mr. Kilic highlighted the transformative role of youth in shaping communities and advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He emphasized the importance of youth engagement in areas such as health and well-being, education, gender equality, economic growth, and the promotion of global partnerships, particularly SDG 17. He pointed out that we are at a critical moment globally, as the aspirations of the Pact for the Future call for harnessing science, technology, and digital cooperation to address inequalities. Mr. Kilic stressed the need to elevate youth voices as key stakeholders in decision-making processes and encouraged participants to share their innovative ideas, experiences, and challenges during the session. He emphasized that collaboration and partnerships are essential for driving sustainable development and inspiring the next generation of leaders.
Following his remarks, Mr. Kilic introduced Maria Alejandra Guardado, Delegate of NATO Youth Canada, as the moderator for the session and passed the floor to her to lead the panel discussion.
Maria Guardado reflected personally on her journey at the event and spoke candidly about her experiences growing up as the daughter of Salvadoran and Venezuelan refugees in Canada. Her speech detailed the profound struggles she faced, including family separation due to war, homelessness, substance abuse, human trafficking and ongoing challenges with mental health and recovery. Despite these obstacles, Ms. Guardado emphasized how these lived experiences fueled her advocacy work focused on youth at risk, homelessness, gender-based violence, addictions, and empowerment. She urged the youth in the room to recognize their hardships not as setbacks, but as powerful tools for advocacy and change.
Ms. Guardado called on everyone to channel their experiences into action, embrace technology and digital innovation, and challenge outdated systems with creativity and compassion. She emphasized that young people today are resourceful, resilient, and capable of reshaping the future, highlighting the urgency to act now with Agenda 2030 approaching quickly. Encouraging the audience to take up space, support one another, and demand real representation in decision-making processes, Maria Guardado concluded her remarks with a strong call for collaboration, empathy, and hope, reminding everyone that the future lies in their hands. She then transitioned the session by introducing the next speaker, Marina El Khawand, Founder and President of Medonations, an NGO based in Lebanon.
Marina El Khawand delivered a deeply moving and powerful speech recounting the origins and journey of her humanitarian work. Ms. El Khawand shared that her life’s mission was shaped by a profound moment during the Beirut explosion. At just 18 years old, she found herself amid destruction, seeing blood, dead bodies, and chaos all around her. It was at that moment she internalized a lesson that would define her path: “Where you live shouldn’t determine if you live.”
This realization drove her to dedicate her life to ensuring that access to healthcare and medications would not be determined by geography or wealth.
She recounted a pivotal story from August 11, 2020, when she encountered her first patient, an elderly woman whose home had been destroyed and who was on the verge of death without access to her essential asthma medication. The pharmacies and hospitals had run out of stock, leaving her with no hope. Marina El Khawand described the personal connection she felt, imagining if it were her own mother in that situation, and decided she had to act. Through a simple Instagram story, she managed to secure life-saving inhalers within hours, thanks to a stranger’s generosity.
Marina emphasized that when it comes to health, there is no luxury of time – “When we talk about health, we’re talking about urgency. We do not have the privilege of minutes or hours.”
The emotional impact of saving that one woman’s life led to the founding of Medonations the very next day. From saving one life, her efforts grew exponentially, reaching 500 lives within a year, thousands within two years, and 20,000 lives after five years.
Ms. El Khawand also talked about the immense struggles, a lack of resources, and numerous obstacles ranging from legal hurdles to political barriers. Still, she pressed forward, powered by a strong sense of purpose, a supportive community, and an unwavering vision to ensure free, fair, and equal access to healthcare for everyone. Despite being a student of law with no prior experience in nonprofit work or healthcare, she mobilized a community-driven movement that now operates across 65 countries through volunteer-led medical collection points. She stressed that Medonations is not just an NGO, it is a collective belief in the power of community, compassion, and action. Marina El Khawand encouraged the young people present to take initiative, to move beyond ideas and paper plans into concrete actions. She noted that while the world has many excellent strategies on paper, the real challenge is execution, and the real transformation begins when young people dare to act. Closing her speech, Marina left the audience with a resounding call to believe in their ability to create change: “Everyone you meet has the power to be a changemaker, a hope creator, and a lifesaver.”
After Marina El Khawand’s inspiring speech, the floor was passed to Lyzianah Emakoua, Founder and CEO of the Center for Community Impact and Sustainability (CCIS), an organization advancing climate justice, gender equality, education, and peacebuilding across Africa, with a special focus on Sierra Leone. Ms. Emakoua emphasized that her focus for the session would be on gender equality, one of CCIS’s core thematic areas. In her remarks, Lyzianah Emakoua stressed that achieving gender equality must start at the grassroots level, where the impact is felt most acutely. “Gender equality must begin where the impact is felt most, within communities,” she stated. Drawing from her organization’s work in Sierra Leone, she highlighted the systemic barriers faced by adolescent girls, including poverty, lack of access to education, harmful gender norms, early marriage, and vulnerability to sexual exploitation.
She then introduced one of CCIS’s flagship initiatives: the Adolescent Girls’ Safe Space Project, launched on International Women’s Day 2025 across six marginalized communities in Freetown. Prior to the launch, CCIS conducted a thorough needs assessment through participatory engagement with the communities, affirming the organization’s commitment to tailored, community-driven interventions rather than top-down impositions. The Safe Space initiative aims to reach 300 adolescent girls, providing them with vocational training (such as sewing, soap-making, baking), life skills, leadership development, financial literacy, and psychological support. In particular, she emphasized the importance of addressing menstrual health inequity, describing it as a silent driver of school dropout, social exclusion, and gender inequality.
Ms. Emakoua shared a staggering statistic: in Sub-Saharan Africa, an estimated 98 million girls are out of school, with menstruation being a significant contributing factor. Many girls lack access to basic sanitary products, often forced to choose between buying food or menstrual pads, leading to stigma, absenteeism, and vulnerability to exploitation.
To address this, CCIS trains girls to produce reusable sanitary pads, offering a sustainable, dignified, and economically empowering solution. Lyzianah Emakoua explained that by learning to create reusable products, the girls can not only meet their own needs but also generate income to support their futures. “This initiative is not just about pads, it’s about power,” she passionately declared, underlining how control over their bodies, time, and income enables girls to become leaders, entrepreneurs, and agents of change. Ms. Emakoua also highlighted the broader environmental impact of disposable sanitary products, noting that commercial pads are made of 90% plastic, taking up to 500 years to decompose, thereby contributing to environmental degradation.
In her closing remarks, Lyzianah Emakoua stressed that gender equality is central to all global challenges: “Gender equality is not a side issue, it is the issue.” Whether tackling poverty, climate change, or conflict, no solution is complete without the leadership and empowerment of girls and young women. She called on policymakers, funders, and stakeholders to meaningfully invest in youth-led, grassroots innovations and ensure that young people have equitable access to resources and decision-making spaces.
The floor was then passed to Leyla Y., President of the Blossom Together chapter at Columbia University. Leyla, a senior majoring in economics at Barnard College of Columbia University and an aspiring attorney, warmly thanked the Journalists and Writers Foundation for the opportunity to speak, as well as her co-panelists for sharing their impactful stories. Ms. Leyla opened her talk by reflecting on how, as young people, it is easy to underestimate the power of collective action. Inspired by earlier remarks, she emphasized: “Each individual has the power to create real impact, as long as they dare to take action.”
She then introduced the organization Blossom Together, a student-led humanitarian group operating across multiple U.S. college campuses. Founded in 2017 initially at the high school level, Blossom Together has since expanded to major universities, including Harvard, Princeton, Georgetown, UNC Chapel Hill, Lehigh University, and Columbia. Currently, the organization has chapters in more than nine states and has raised over $300,000 since 2018, operating aid projects across five Sub-Saharan African countries: Benin, Mali, Tanzania, Burkina Faso, and Guinea. Ms. Leyla shared personal experiences from her time volunteering as a teaching assistant in Nigeria, where she witnessed firsthand the day-to-day struggles faced by students, children walking miles to fetch water, girls missing school due to gender-based violence or lack of menstrual hygiene products, and students fainting from hunger. She stressed that these real human stories moved her beyond viewing problems as distant statistics, inspiring her to get involved in direct action.
Blossom Together’s work primarily focuses on improving living standards by restoring and constructing water wells, delivering food and sanitary packages, supporting cataract surgeries, and conducting health checks. Leyla noted that even basic interventions can be life-changing: “It’s seemingly small actions, like a bake sale or a stadium cleaning, that build into transformative change when we work collectively.”
She explained how students fundraise through modest yet impactful methods like campus bake sales, stadium clean-up services after college games, partnerships with local businesses, and alumni outreach. For instance, one campus bakery donated proceeds from chocolate croissant sales, showing how creative, community-based fundraising can make a huge difference. Moreover, Ms. Leyla highlighted the essential role of global partnerships in ensuring effective aid delivery. Partnerships with organizations on the ground in Africa have been vital to tailoring interventions according to community needs, such as providing cataract surgeries, medical support, and sanitary supplies, ensuring that help was both meaningful and sustainable. Through these partnerships, not only did students gain deeper knowledge about global challenges, but local organizations also benefited from youth-driven problem-solving, technological strategies, and broader outreach ideas. Leyla stressed that Blossom Together’s mission is not just about immediate relief but about creating a sustainable pipeline of student leaders dedicated to humanitarian action and global equity.
After the main panel discussion concluded, the floor was passed to the selected youth oral statement presenters, each offering powerful reflections and innovative proposals aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
First, Akila Narayanan, a law student at Suffolk University Law School and a paralegal specialist in the U.S. Army Reserve, opened the youth presentations. Drawing on her experience as a former music teacher in India, Akila spoke about the urgent need to build inclusive and transformative learning spaces through STEAM education (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics). She emphasized: “We must empower students not just to learn about sustainability but to lead it.” Akila argued that STEAM is not just an academic framework but a strategy for systemic change, promoting peace, advancing human rights, and building sustainable communities. She urged for equitable, accessible education investments, especially in underserved regions.
Next, Yulin Wang, Founder and President of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Youth Foundation (SCORE Foundation), addressed the audience. Yulin shared his ambitious vision to empower 1 billion young people worldwide by 2050 through scholarships, international events, and development opportunities. He noted: “Investing in youth is investing in the future of the world.” Since its founding six months ago, the SCORE Foundation has already supported over 50 youth events and provided scholarships to more than 1,000 young leaders. Yulin emphasized the importance of fostering cross-cultural exchange, youth empowerment, and sustainable development through action-driven collaboration.
Following him, Saniya Lopez and Aissatou Sakho, both students at Stony Brook University, delivered a joint statement focused on leveraging advanced technology to improve healthcare in Africa. Saniya and Aissatou emphasized the transformative potential of AI diagnostics, telemedicine, and remote patient monitoring to bridge healthcare gaps in underserved African regions. Drawing from personal stories, they underscored how technology can bring medical services directly into homes, overcoming barriers like distance and lack of infrastructure. They cited real-world successes, such as AI-enabled fetal monitoring programs in Mali, which reduced stillbirths and neonatal deaths by 82%.
Finally, Zehra Hansa Girdap, a passionate high school student and advocate for human rights, addressed the pressing issue of menstrual health and chemical safety in everyday products.
She emphasized: “Menstrual health is not just a women’s issue, it is a human rights and public health priority.” Zehra warned about the harmful chemicals present in commercial menstrual products and their direct health risks, including cancer, infertility, and toxic shock syndrome. She called for ingredient transparency, increased research funding, safer menstrual products, and public health education to empower women and girls and to ensure menstrual health is a priority in achieving SDG 3.
In addition to the in-person oral youth statement presenters, two youth leaders were selected to present their statements virtually: Mesut Altiyev from the United States and Sheena Joy Palcis from the Philippines.
Mesut Altiyev emphasized the critical importance of bridging the digital divide in today’s world. He compared access to digital infrastructure to access to water, stating that in the modern economy, “Digital access is essential to economic survival and growth, just as water is essential to life.”
Mesut highlighted that without proper digital networks and devices, disadvantaged communities are cut off from educational, economic, and social opportunities. He stressed that building the necessary digital infrastructure, by delivering both connectivity and devices is vital to enabling these communities to achieve sustainable economic growth and development. His call to action centered around recognizing digital inclusion as a fundamental pillar for achieving equitable progress.
Following him, Sheena Joy Palcis from the Philippines delivered a passionate and insightful speech on the power of youth-led innovation and collaboration. Reflecting on her experience participating in the Asia Group Young Researcher Seminar in Budapest, Hungary, Sheena noted the lack of youth representation in discussions around science, technology, and diplomacy.
She stressed: “Today’s youth are not just participants, they are critical thinkers and visionaries shaped by a rapidly evolving digital society.” Sheena shared her journey of co-founding a climate adaptation startup through the Climate Hack Program of the Singapore International Foundation. Her team, composed of members from Malaysia, Indonesia, Pakistan, and the Philippines, developed Econ, an AI-driven platform connecting climate startups and project owners with funding and technical resources, while also amplifying the voices of marginalized groups such as women, youth, and indigenous communities.
The inclusion of these virtual statements powerfully highlighted the global spirit of the ECOSOC Youth Forum, showcasing how young leaders across different continents are making tangible contributions to shaping the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The youth session concluded with heartfelt congratulations to all presenters for showcasing how young leaders are taking concrete action to innovate, advocate, and drive global change. Their work exemplified the core spirit of the ECOSOC Youth Forum, collaboration, global citizenship, and action toward Agenda 2030.
Photos from the Event
