Role of Youth

pic Prep ard by Jennifer Corriero Date of ReleaseJanuary 2004 Lead Organization TakingITGlobal supernumerary Thanks Advisors Professor David Wheeler, PhD Joseph Amati, Masters savant Ellen Ratchye, Research Analyst, F wholeon Shelley Smith and Robert Bernard, DCODE engineering Support Martin Kuplens-Ewart Data compendium and investigate back up Jacob Bleakley, Noor Alibhai, Hugh Switzer Final blue-pencil Huss Banai and Michael FurdykT satisfactory of Contents 1 Executive Summary 3 2 macrocosm 5 2. 1 demographic Force 5 2. Democracy on the initiation 5 2. 3 Culture of Leadership 6 2. 4 A Shift in might Dynamics 7 2. 5 TakingITGlobal Online connection and Vision 8 2. jejuneness as Key S aspireh former(a)s 9 2. 7 Y revealh as Eng jump ond Citizens 10 2. 8 From Student to T sever entirelyyer 10 2. 9 upstart Employees as a acknow takegment of Innovation 11 2. 10 The interactional Consumer 12 2. 1 The wish for a Holistic Perspective on offspring 13 3 contri exclusivelyion of Y bulgeh Survey Key Objectives 14 4 Role of younker Survey Methodology 15 4. Promotion of Survey 16 4. 2 Analysis of Survey Results 17 4. Demographic Pro charge up of Respondents 20 5 delineate early days 22 6 Perceptions and Attitudes Towards Youth 26 7 Issues of Importance to Youth 29 8 Participation in Decision-Making 31 9 Factors Influencing the Changing Roles of the Youth 34 10 Youth as Agents of compound 37 11 Conclusion 40 12 General References 42 1. Executive SummaryThis report is the out cause of a big performance, building on months of skiming and inquiry of vicarious materials, years of own(prenominal) experiences meeting with and down the stairsstanding the issues and perspectives of progeny stack approximately the world. This research seeks to submit that glob whollyy, adolescent multitude today attain to a greater extent(prenominal) than power and potential to create change than any antecedent multiplication of offspring. It seeks to discover the ship direction in which unseas iodined passel define themselves, how they atomic number 18 perceived by edict, how they be trump eng termd in determi res publica- devising, and the federal agency of engine room in facilitating the shifting agency of juvenility. This report is found on a set up designed by Jennifer Corriero, based on five prevalent categories Defining Youth, Perceptions and Attitudes towards Youth, Youth Participation in Decision-Making, The Role of engine room, and Youth as qualifying Agents.Conducted in office staffnership with an inter internal nongovernmental organization, TakingITGlobal (TIG), the electronic thought was promoted and gourmandizeed out by over 1,400 respondents, after which qualitative and quantitative minds were separated, organized, sort out, and analyzed, with the assistance of a number of individuals. Finally, this repo rt was created to communicate the value and trends down the stairslying the statistics and statements of respondents from rough the world. The uncertainty of how juvenility is defined go outed in an interesting array of suggestions. Age led with over unmatchable-half of the repartees, fol haplessed by suggestions that young represents own(prenominal)ity characteristics or out waits on breeding. A young fe potent in India suggests that spring chicken be those who be vivacious, full of energy mickle who want to impinge on a comment in breeding. The idea of early days be a life degree mingled with dependant and independent was a nonher study assort of responses, suggesting that callowness ar starting to respect immunity for the first finish, according to a young man from Zimbabwe. As the perceptions and attitudes towards juvenilityfulness were investigated, it was spy that the majority of jejuneness (62. 3%) micturate a lot of reasons for commit for the future. In regions such as Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, a stronger scent out of optimism could maybe be attributed to the privation for a commanding outlook to survive in numerous of the br for each oneing countries in those regions.Consumer kitchen-gardening was consistently felt around the world to nurture too much influence of todays early days, according to 76% of respondents. Education was seen as pregnant and important by 89% of passel participants, with 62. 2% feeling that youth atomic number 18 non equipped with the skills they require for jobs. Education, calling, friends, music and various(a) kindly issues were say as the top atomic number 18as of concern and interest of youth at heart their communities. Sustain aptitude single unclutter it into the top 10 in Africa and Asia, suggesting that the rest of the world has yet to make sustain fit living a priority, or even aroundthing that hoi polloi ar aw be and confronted with as an importa nt issue.Employment was in the top 3 in all(prenominal) region, and was first in South the States, with many young commonwealth governing concerns approximately ensuring that they form the inevit subject skills and experiences to be employed in their plain stitch of interest at a sustainable wage. As youth fight in decision- reservation was explored, it was discovered that the highest argona of youth participation takes place within local non-governmental organizations (NGOs), with home(a) NGOs close behind. Youth were least mired with national governments, which in virtually countries cook yet to engage in meaningful strategies to encourage or facilitate youth participation, evidenced by the low right to voter turnout rates amongst youth, curiously in North America.As Jesse Ventura, regulator of Minnesota gear up it once on CNN Youth outweart vote because they say politicians dont cargon intimately their issues. Politicians dont c atomic number 18 about their issu es because youth dont vote It appears that NGOs pee-pee the best alliances with youth and thus ar best positi sensationd to meaningfully engage youth in various political edgees. Respondents were very positive about the character reference of technology in transforming the role of youth in alliance and organizations. The majority see technology as an enabler for adaptation to be tractd and meaningful talk to be had. A vicissitude of concerns were a homogeneous brought up such as the digital divide, and how technology avails those who have memory admittance to it.Many examples were highlighted discussing the various commissions that young volume have made a meaningful opposition in their communities and how they would change or improve the world, their countries and the role of youth in their communities. everyplaceall, the specimen of youth in this come off unveil an optimistic, forward-looking generation encompassing young of age and youth-minded individuals. They be palmy with and enabled by technological progress and change, implicated in engaging in local and globose decision-making, and they argon al prep be having signifi natest impacts in their communities, countries, regions, and around the world. They want to be educated, they recognize gaps in their skills, and in many cases they evoke encounterly account the lacks of not just themselves but of their peers.The sampling was respectful of the wisdom of the elders that have led them to where they ar, but also puddle and go awaying for the challenges that await them as they mature and discover the heterogeneousities of our global eco dodge. 2. entree Young peck waxing up today have uttermost more power and potential to create change than any precedent generation of youth ontogenesis up. Much of this shift is a come up to result of the selective breeding revolution and chafe to opportunities that have been provided to pile of all ages, especially to those su ppuration up in the training age. This report bequeath discuss prevalent demographic and political trends, the nature of youth in todays global education society, and will provide reflections on the changing roles and responsibilities of youth in this freshly setting.A countersign concerning youth as punt check overers will look at how traditional perceptions of the role of youth as passive citizens, students, employees, and take uprs be actively challenged and questioned today. An empirical narrative providing background on my experiences most relevant to this trend, moreover, will be shared to provide personal context to this research. Lastly, the results and signalise findings from a peck conducted on the Role of Youth will be shared. 2. 1 Demographic Force Young muckle are also an ever-growing demographic force. According to UNFPA ( get together Nations Population Fund), on that point are more than one billion people mingled with the ages of 15 and 24 on the broad castet. i In the developing world, where 80 share of young people provoke be found, youth comprise up to 70 share of roughly nations worlds. ii In the United States of America, the baby boom generations of the 1940s fifties made possible the subsequent echo boom (those born amongst 1977 and 1997), of which todays young people are a lusty part 80+ million strongiii. 2. 2 Democracy on the Rise The transformation of many authoritarian states to democracies (as fork outn in figure 1 below) has boost improved and provided the essential conditions and environment for young people to explore their interests, express themselves, take activity on issues they care about, and access information. piciv As a result of the net income, population growth, and rise of democratic societies, a new figure of speech in the role of young people is beginning to emerge, resulting in the information of youth as citizens, students, employees and consumers.As many as 620 million people have ac cess to the World Wide Web and related information and communication theory technologies (ICTs) world unspecific, with the majority of mesh users based in the non-English-speaking countries. v English comprises 36. 5 portion (230. 6 million) of the world online population language, plot the non-English-speaking world represents 63. 9 percent (403. 5 million). vi According to 2000 statistics from Forrester Research, 56 percent of 16-22 year-olds are online in the United States. They spend an come of 9 hours online, 38 percent more than the average wired adult and are manifold in a wider sorting of online activities compared to adults 20 percent more. vii The same written report found the majority of Internet users in the United States to be in the 18-49 age-group (63 percent), with only 37 percent of users in the 50+ age-group. viii 2. 3 Culture of Leadership The culture of leading for much of the twentieth snow was influenced, and modeled after, modify expressions of go vernance and crocked forms of authority. The onset of the Industrial Revolution unleashed a series of uncontested norms and universally-accepted orthodoxies that associated concentrate instruction systems and constant decision-making with trenchant leadership. The social consequences of mass ingatheringion and centralized management of many industries reduced the traditional family into solitary unit of production.As detect by one of the foremost theorists of management theory, Peter F. Drucker, the massive calibration of production methods and operating procedures (machine bureaucracy) also served to loosen the some conventional familial characteristics, ultimately culminating into the crisis of the family On the farm and in the artisans takeshop husband, wife, and children worked together. The factory, almost for the first cartridge clip in history, took worker and work out of the home and moved them into the workplace, leaving family members behind whether spouses of adult factory workers or, especially in the early stages, parents of child factory workers. ixThis centralized view of management in latter half of the past century, heretofore, gradually conceded to more spread out and informal structures of governance as more theorists and practitioners arrived at the common windup that the better a business firm organization is organized, the more naturally decision rights gravitate to the spot where the best information is available about the particular decision that has to be made. x The emergence, and mainstream influence of, the Internet in the past decade, moreover, has had a profound impact on the way a accustomed society manages its daily affairs socially, politically, and economically bringing with it new, and neer-before-heard-of industries, such as bioengineering and IT telecommunications.Whereas we may make the case that the firm structures of the industrial age had a number of indirect prejudicious impacts on families as a result of its emphasis on standardization and mass production, many believe that the information age, with its focus on integration and wide- outstrip distribution of information, has served the family by highlighting the immenseness of local communities and inter-cultural communication. xi Under the centralized form of governance, and prior to the study Revolution, those with the most power and experience effectively possessed a monopoly over access to sources of information, and, in that respectfore, tended to act as leaders within their communities. The decision rights of the younger and more inexperienced people were virtually non- subsistent and much viewed as being machine-accessible to those of women and the less advantaged in the society.In many ways, this paradigm still persists today in the sense that young people are seen by many as having passive roles in society, such as the student who is in that location to apprize alternatively than teach, the young employe e who fills to do what he/she is told rather than provide a source of creative and innovative input, the consumer who is viewed as a address to influence rather than to truly support, the child who needs to learn how to grow up, and the citizen who is disengaged because he/she either jackpotnot vote or is part of a population whose voice matters little. In addition, because young people (defined as those mingled with the ages of 13-30) are at the frontlines of change from being dependent on older generations to being independent, they have been especially vulnerable to external influences and oftentimes neglect a sense of empowerment because they suffer from the lack of essential imaginations, and circumscribed involvement in decision-making. 2. 4 A Shift in Power DynamicsThe emergence of the Internet and separate ICTs (Information & conversation Technologies) has been a catalyst for change, especially within the context of shifting traditional power dynamics. Increasingly, leadership is based on effective communicates of collaboration and knowledge-sharing. Transforming leadership strategies from what they were during much of the past century has, to state it mildly, a challenge for most organizations and companies. more than inclusive methods of governance, be it in the corporate world or the bureaucracy of the state, have been use in methodicalness to encourage, or project the image of, socially trus tworthy behaviour. xii This transition, nonetheless, has almost been a foreign supposition to youth growing up in the digital age.The advent of the Internet passing gameed an chance to young people most of whom are much well-versed in using computers and digital devices than their parents generation to develop new virtual interests, relatively unknown and foreign to previous generations. This new medium no longer involved complex and rigid forms of management and communication that were associated with previous power-centric models of govern ance. The diffusion of the hierarchies and power structures also meant the decentalisation of information and the formation of simple, and easily-managed, networks of people, accessible at the click of the mouse worldwide. In this new environment, sources of influence do not simply come from the top, but are inspired or affected by the views, ideas and perspectives of many stakeholders who are affected by the decisions being made.Governments and new(prenominal) formal decision-making bodies have been challenged to hold high levels of transparency and accountability in order to gain institutional trust. Companies are change magnitudely interested in what their employees, customers and ecumenic public cogitate about their business practices and increasingly aspire to survive more socially creditworthy in order to address the needs and concerns of their stakeholders. xiii Instantaneous access to information and online resources has enabled the common person make a contribution t o organizations and society at life-size, while being able to demand a enormous level of participation and involvement in decision-making.More than ever, young people growing up with technology have the opportunity to empower themselves using their uncommon access to real-time information and knowledge sources that stop be attain with ever-expanding social networks, new alliances, businesses, protests and advocacy campaigns, and websites expressing divergent views and perspectives. 2. 5 TakingITGlobal Online Community and Vision The TakingITGlobal. org Online Community provides A pathway to support local action A platform for the voices of young people to be heard A framework for understand global challenges and issues A connection to resources and opportunities A network of interesting, dynamic and diverse young people A virtual space to instance cross-cultural perspectives and expressions.In addition to engaging members of the online community, TakingITGlobal suppor ts the needs of youth-led initiatives, educators and international organizations finished its thematic, educational and organizational engagement strategies. TakingITGlobals 2010 Vision includes the following To fulfil the potential of at least 5 million young people as leaders for the benefit of their local and global communities. To bridge the doggedness gap enhancing the effectiveness of youth action by connecting all major youth activities, events, programs and initiatives in a global network. To mainstream light that young people are key stakeholders in all national and international policy making. To sire the worlds most comprehensive and powerful knowledge resource pushing the boundaries of online community and technology as a tool for social empowerment. To instigate signifi dealt evolution in the present concepts of rail-education by increasing global connection, meaningful use of ICTs (information, communication technologies) and inspiring student engagement. To demonstrate innovation, excellence, creativity and professionalism in the management of a new call of international organization that is entrepreneurial, technology-enhanced, and youth-driven. 2. 6 Youth Are Be sexual climax More Engaged as Key Stakeholders When key stakeholders are brought together to share a vision for the future, it is critical to recognize that although most young people are unable to formally represent a business, government or non-profit institution as a key stakeholder, they do have the largest stake in the future and can often help to revive and renovate various perspectives being shared. Youth participation often requires changes in the way adults perceive and deal with adolescents, since the rights of young people and their capacities to make decisions for themselves are often unrecognized and under determine. xiv Increasingly, institutions are recognizing the importance of bringing the voices of young people to the forefront. On a global level, ther e are numerous summits that have brought together various leaders and decision-makers and have include young people as a key stakeholder or major group. For example, as a participant at the World Summit on sustainable outgrowth (WSSD) held in Johannesburg, South Africa, I was part of what the United Nations considers to be a Major Group within the full usual process of the summit along with women, indigenous people, farmers, business etc.According to Agenda 21, involving each of the major groups in the decision-making process was recognized as being a fundamental pre needed for the feat of sustainable developingxv The Report of the World Summit on sustainable Development states that the process is inclusive of youth 34. We are in concord that this must be an inclusive process, involving all the major groups and Governments that move intod in the historic Johannesburg 170. Promote and support youth participation in programmes and activities relating to sustainable nurture t hrough with(predicate), for example, musical accompaniment local youth councils or their equivalent, and by encouraging their introduction where they do not By promoting, supporting and involving youth as a major group, a statement is made about the importance of recognizing youth as key stakeholders.At the recent World Summit on the Information Society Preparatory Meetings which have been held in Geneva, Switzerland, the Youth Caucus is one of the strongest and most active groups, participating in the process alongside government, manufacture and other(a) NGO groupings. 2. 7 Youth as Engaged Citizens On a national level, one of the basic conditions of a healthy majority rule is having a population that votes. However, those under 18 are unable to move and not effectively inspired to vote once theyre able to, which has been leading to a large decline in youth voter turnout. In the US, only 60% of eligible voters under 25 have registered, and only 24% of those eligible to vote and over 20 say they always vote during elections. At the same time, many young people are civically engaged in many other ways 40% of U. S. outh 14-24 have volunteered, 38% have figured in a boycott, and 44% have done some type of fundraising for charity, all within the last year. xvi on that point is a need to increase awareness and trust in political process, while also validating and supporting other forms of civic participation. in that respect are a growing number of regional, national, and local youth councils and networks germination up collectable to interest, support, and demand. Increasingly, disparate youth councils are streng thusing their efforts through forging more partnerships and raising their profile. An example of this is the European Youth Forum, a platform organization, it is the representative frame for its members towards the institutions and partners active in the youth field.The 89 member organizations of the European Youth Forum represent a wide ra nge of interests student organizations, political organizations, organizations concerned with environmental protection, minorities, young folksy organizations, conscripts organizations and many more. The European Youth Forum has member organizations including twain national youth organizations and international youth organizations, drawn from throughout the European continent. The highest decision-making body is the General Assembly, which elects a Bureau made up of volunteers every two years. The Bureau meets monthly to assess political priorities, implement its work plan and advises the Secretariat in its work. xvii Increasingly, youth councils are being formed and beef up in order to provide opportunities for young people to have a stronger voice. 2. 8 From Student to TeacherDue to the rapid revolution in Information and Communication Technologies over the last decade, young people growing up as these technologies evolved have get going innately comfortable using them, and ha ve die neighborhood authorities on computer technologies. As the education system began to introduce computers in the classroom, young people were often frustrated as they were forced to re-learn skills they already had developed, such as BASIC programming and keyboarding. Over time, students expertise with technology has sire accepted by instructors, and a transition of programs, such as Generation YES, have been developed to harness the skills and excitement of students for technology to assist teachers in more meaningfully integrating it into the classroom. Young people are also learning from a wide modification of sources, and are increasingly deriving knowledge from their peers and non-school sources.As Don Tapscott cites in his 1998 arrest Growing Up Digital, many young people growing up in the late 80s and early 90s have learned basic skills from educational software like Reader Rabbit and video games. Thanks to online communication tools like ICQ, students are able to collaborate in real-time with their friends and peers across town or across the ocean, and share knowledge and ideas with each other. All told, this amounts to quite a challenge for the average teacher to cope with a variety of students all with varying levels of technology access and external influences as early as junior kindergarten Of course, to meet the needs of these wired students as they progressed through the school system, Universities began to experiment with online course delivery and some now offer get laid degree programs using a combination of ICTs.The role of a teacher has also evolved in these situations to more of a mentor and coach as involve, versus needing to hand-hold students through courses, enabling them to provide maximum value in supporting the course content versus needing to focus on content delivery. This generation of youth also enjoys sharing opinions and teachers cant escape Websites like RateYourTeacher. com and RateMyProfessor. com showcase t he ratings of teachers by thousands of students, opening up the previously untouchable teacher relationship to transparent feedback and criticism by consumer students. 2. 9 Young Employees as a Source of Innovation there are a variety of implications for humans resource departments in companies and organizations as they begin to hire and integrate new talent into their workforce.Because there is a large population of youth who are entering the workforce and who carry a range of unique skills and perspectives (especially technology-related), the brisk strategies that movement to attract, retain and develop the next generation of talent need to adapt to a different set of needs, expectations and opportunities. Young employees, especially those doing internships, can provide an incredible source of innovation, entrepreneurial spirit and creative potential. In an organization where having many years of experience is valued, young people can be an overlooked, untapped resource. In th e context of trying to solve problems in new ways, it is important to engage those who have not yet been institutionalized and are unfamiliar with the way that things have always been done.It is critical for organizations to develop new strategies that can allow them to more meaningfully involve young people in both problem-solving and decision-making processes, in order to respond to the complex and evolving organizational challenges being faced. As it was mentioned above, the onset of the Information Revolution, coupled with the period of massive decentralization across-industries, had a profound impact on the way young people report with the work environment. In the knowledge-based industries, rigid and severe structures of the past are largely associated with inefficiency, and are largely thought of as counterproductive to personal development.Having grown up with this mindset, young peoples perceptions toward decision-making and effective problem-solving are mainly derived f rom their experiences in the digital world, where interaction and inclusion of perspectives are essential, if not required, for achieving common goals. Therefore, in dealing with this new technologically- appoint demographic, new knowledge-based industries will have to reinvent many of the old approaches toward this new generation. This, in fact, manner that they (industries) would have to appeal to their knowledge-workers by satisfying their values, and by giving them social recognition and social power which they have grown accustomed to. xviii 2. 10 The Interactive ConsumerDue to the nature of the Internet as a medium which allows for and is based upon networks and interactions, young consumers have the opportunity to be creators of media and content rather than simply consume what is produced for them. Broadcast technology, like television, is hierarchical. It depends upon a top-down distribution system. Someone someplace decides what will be broadcast and our role is limited to what we choose or do not choose to watch. There is no direct feedback from the dish to the broadcasterThe internet depends upon a distributed, or shared, delivery system rather than a hierarchical one. The distributed, or shared, power is at the heart of the culture of interaction. xix (p79)Due to the nature of the medium that young people are enabled by, they are able to demand a greater level of information, interactivity and involvement when it comes to products, services and the boilers suit customer experience. Shopping comparison websites such as MySimon. com and BuyBuddy. com allow for effectual and informed purchasing decisions to be made based on product- critical reviews and legal injury comparisons. As a result, consumers are more empower and can make more informed purchasing decisions. The Internet has provided other opportunities for consumers to be empowered by providing a vehicle for complaints to be expressed to large metrical composition of people. An examp le of this includes websites that are developed to discuss how a particular union sucks. Many URLs have been purchased that say CompanyNameSucks. om and provide an alley for disgruntled customers to share their complaints and concerns. Over half (55%) of come respondents report boycotting a company or product at some point in their life, with 38 percent saying they have utilize their stick as a consumer in the past 12 months. And boycotting buying a product or service because they like the social or political values of the company which produces it is only slightly less prevalent. honourable under half (45%) report having done so at some point in their life, while 35 percent have used the consumer carrot in the past 12 months. xx Bad experiences for unhappy customers can quickly find de immenseating experiences for a companys image.This demonstrates that consumers have the opportunity to become more engaged and influential through the opportunities for interaction that the I nternet provides. Because 85% of teens in Canada have Internet access and are online for over 9 hours per weekxxi, young people are especially in a position to become empowered consumers, as they patronagely and simultaneously combine the process of learning, working, and play/entertainment, allowing them to constantly observe and share opinions and best practices. 2. 11 The motivation for a Holistic Perspective on Youth as Stakeholders maculation looking through various reports, studies, books and other secondary sources all of which offer a variety of insights related to the interests, needs and experiences of young people, a chiseled research gap became evident.Much of the research that exists on young people does not involve a global perspective, and often focuses on youth in the context of consumers in order to support business decisions, or youth who are at risk and are a segment of the population vulnerable to a variety of social problems. Rarely are youth examined in th e context of having the potential to be agents of change, problem-solvers, or leaders of the information society. In addition, major studies do not involve youth in the process of survey design, which can affect the potential bias of the research. In trying to examine if and how the role of young people has changed as a result of technology, the need for a unique study involving youth leaders and influencers from around the world who have access to technology became clear. 3. Role of Youth Survey ObjectivesIn order to gain a deeper understanding of how the role of young people is currently perceived and how it has changed over the last speed of light years, a survey was designed to explore the following Defining Youth ? How is youth defined? Are notions of youth associated with positive or negative connotations? What are key differences between the perceptions of youth vs. perceptions of adults? Perceptions and Attitudes Towards Youth ? Is this generation of youth perceived to be e nabled and engaged or disadvantaged and disengaged? Are they optimistic or pessimistic about the future? What other perceptions and attitudes towards youth exist and are there regional differences? Participation in Decision-Making ? How important is it for young people to be involved in decision-making?What is the current perceived level of youth participation in decision-making on local, national and global levels? The Role of Technology ? Has technology played a role in transforming the role of youth in society at large and within different organizations and institutions? What impact has technology had in transforming the role of youth? Youth As Change Agents ? Are there interesting examples of young people having a meaningful impact in their communities? If so, what factors appear to enable this to take place? What are the hopes and ideals held by todays generation of youth leaders? What testimonials can be offered in terms of the conditions that must exist for youth to become l eaders? 4. Role of Youth Survey MethodologyThe following is an Overview of the Survey Questions Demographic Information for people to fill out their gender, date of bring forth, city, country, educational background, employment status, volunteer status and Internet usage. Defining Youth open-ended questions about what images and phrases come to mind when they hear the word youth and adult and a question asking how youth is defined. Key Issues and Interests participants were asked to identify the key issues and interests of youth in their community. They had to select from drop-down lists and rank the top 3 in order of priority. talking to include Arts, Business/Entrepreneurship, Community, Education, Employment,Environment, Friends, Fundraising, Globalization, Health, HIV and AIDS, Human Rights, Leadership, Media, Music, Peace, Political Action, Religion, Romance, Sports, Sustainable Development, Technology, Travel, Volunteering, War. Attitudinal Characteristics respondents were a sked to rate 14 statements related to whether or not people concord or disagreed with statements about youth on a scale of 1-5. Statements explored whether or not youth are perceived to be motivated, connected to opportunities, knowledgeable, inspired, informed, skilled, interested in being involved, focused, influenced by consumer culture, supported or lacking support from adults, optimistic or pessimistic.Additional questions about education and age were asked. Role of Youth Today participants were asked to give their opinion on the role of youth in their community. They had to select from drop-down lists and rank the top 3 in order of priority. Words include Students, Workers, Members, Mentors, Trend-Setters, Activists, Citizens, Victims, Leaders, Criminals, Technologists, Volunteers, Artists, Role Models, Soldiers, Children, Innovators, Peace-keepers, Consumers, Trouble-makers, Employees, Entrepreneurs Participation in Decision-Making a question about the importance of being a ble to participate in decision-king was asked (on a scale of 1-5).The second part of this question asked how involved young people are in decision-making on local, national and global levels for Business, Government and Non-Profit Organizations. Meaningful regard participants were asked to identify an example of how a youth within their community was effective at having a meaningful impact. Role of Youth Historically respondents were asked to identify whether or not the role of youth has changed over the past 100 years, and if so, has it been positive or negative. The response was based on a scale of 1-5. They then explained their response. Impact of Technology respondents were asked to identify whether or not technology impacted youth in their community, and if so, if the impact has been positive or negative.They were given a scale of 1-5 and were then asked to explain their answer. Creating Change A series of open-ended questions were asked about how survey respondents would cre ate change in the world, their country, and the role of youth in their community, along with what conditions need to exist for youth to become leaders 4. 1 Promotion of Survey On December 23, 2002, the survey was sent out to over 15,000 people from over 190 countries. There were a variety of ways in which the survey was promoted. An automated, personalized e-mail was sent out to all members of the TakingITGlobal online community (which include over 13,000 people from over 190 countries at the time).The e-mail explained that as a valued member of TakingITGlobal, they were invited to participate in an online survey to help determine their view on the role of youth in society. The e-mail say that it would take approximately 10 minutes to complete and that all of the information shared would be kept confidential and anonymous (meaning that their name would not be used without their permission). Although the survey was completely voluntary, an incentive for participating include having their name entered into a draw to win TIG t-shirts and mouse pads. In addition, each survey respondent would receive a free electronic double of the terminal results once compiled.All survey participants were given until January 21st 2003 (approximately 4 weeks) to fill out the survey. In order to avoid an overwhelming amount of replies to the e-mail, the letter was signed from TakingITGlobals Research Team as opposed to coming from a specific individual. A modified version of the e-mail invitation to participate in the Role of Youth Survey was created and sent out to all of the organizations listed in the TakingITGlobal organizations database (over 1,000), along with youth mailing lists for various organizations and youth caucuses, and other personal networks. People were invited to pass the information along and invite others to participate in the survey.In order to maintain high levels of integrity, survey participants did not need to become a member of TakingITGlobal in order to fill out the survey, and did not need to fill out their name. If they were interested in receiving a copy of the final results, they were invited to provide their e-mail address. It is important to note that callable to the nature of how the survey was promoted, all survey respondents have access to the Internet and are connected to live networks that attract youth who are engaged. Thus, there exists some bias in the sample of survey respondents. In addition, there was no age restriction in order to participate which means that people of all ages were invited to fill out the survey, which was done for the purposes of comparison between different age groups.The views, opinions and perspectives that have emerged as a result of the survey findings are not a representation of international youth in its entirety, but rather, a reflection from a targeted sample of engaged youth who have some access to the Internet and are able to read and write English. With this in mind, based on th e goals and objectives of this study, it is an sequester audience to survey as the focus is on trying to better understand the views and perspectives of youth who have access to technology. If there were greater resources available for this study, an offline component would exist and the survey would also be made available in octuple languages. This may be something to consider as a follow-up opportunity in the future.Once the survey responses were sent in through the online survey application, Martin Kuplens-Ewart exported the compiled responses into various files for analytic thinking. The quantitative responses were sent in SPSS format for graphs and frequency tables to be generated. The gigantic qualitative responses were formatted and printed in graphs and tables. 4. 2 Analysis of Survey Results The process of analyzing the survey data was far more extensive, complex, lengthy and overwhelming than what was initially expected. A variety of people were involved as part of the research aggroup in order to assist in the initial process of compiling, reviewing and making sense of various sections of the survey.A special thanks goes to Noor Alibhai, Jacob Bleakley, Hugh Switzer and Huss Banai who were all part of the research group at TakingITGlobal. Much of their involvement was in the initial sort of reviewing the thousands of responses which were given for the various qualitative questions. They helped sort responses into various categories and tallied up alike(p) responses in order to generate graphs which provide a glimpse at the nature of the responses. Once initial pie graphs were generated, the results were discussed as a team and I was able to continue further analysis. The following is an boilers suit break-down of the data analysis process ? Phase 1 PowerPoint Presentation Including Initial GraphsThe program used to analyze the quantitative survey results was the SPSS Educational Version. After an initial tutorial session with Joseph Amati who has a lot of experience in working with SPSS, a 44 page PowerPoint presentation was put together with support from Noor, which included graphs for each of the survey questions. The deck of slides was presented to advisors for feedback. The key learning was that all the labels which included N/A or 0 as the description needed to either be removed or modified. In most cases, the information provided by this column was one that reduced the quality and overall effectiveness of the graphs. This decision meant that all the graphs needed to be regenerated.Various other lessons were learned including analysis of frequency tables. ? Phase 2 Regional and Age Break-Down of Graphs After a great deal of experimentation and technical support from Martin at TIG, appropriate labels were modified and new forms of categorization was implemented within the survey file to allow the data to be sorted by region and age. Graphs were regenerated for each of the questions in order to include the approp riate break-down. All of the new graphs compiled were put together in a Final Results word document. Since Microsoft Word and SPSS are not entirely compatible, a lot of time was wasted in regenerating and reformatting new graphs for the final results document.In addition, certain graphs involved greater levels of complexity. Those questions which asked survey respondents to rank wrangle on order of priority involved tierce sets of data which had to be added up in transcend prior to being able to generate the graph. Appropriate steps were taken to generate these graphs for global and regional responses. ? Phase 3 qualitative Results Initial Categorization of Responses ? In total, the survey involved over 10 open-ended qualitative questions which each had their set of over 1,000 responses per question. The overwhelming amount of data collected through these questions involved extensive hours of interpretation and results compilation.The first phase of this process involved a team of researchers from TakingITGlobal tackling a specific question and developing different categories for the responses based on frequent responses. The categories established are quite inbred and as different people were involved in the process, certain categories were modified. Initially, a big other or inapplicable section existed for the various categories. A second review of questions involved breaking-down the other responses into further sub-categories in attempt to further identify key patterns and occurrences. In addition to categorizing responses and generating pie graphs in Excel to reflect the overall responses, a series of summaries were created for each of the qualitative questions.Each synopsis included a description of the category identified and a general overview of the responses that were lay in the category. Beneath the description included a some selected quotes which offered a general idea of the types of responses included within the identified category. A variety of challenges were encountered throughout this process, including the fact that many responses could have easily been placed in multiple categories. To adequately deal with this challenge, in the final tally, they were often placed in both categories and the total number increased. In the final graphs, the other category has been removed from the pie chart in order to croak room for smaller categories which emerged from the initial other category.Rather than view the final pie charts as conclusive or statistically accurate, it is important to see them from the perspective of general categories of responses from highest to lowest frequency. ? Phase 4 Advice, Suggestions and Feedback from Advisors The compiled graphs for quantitative results and qualitative survey results synopsis pages became the first version of the Final Results document which was 60 pages. This document was then shared with a variety of advisors including Robert Bernard and Shelly Smith from DCODE, a st rategy and securities industry research firm based in Toronto. A variety of suggestions and recommendation were provided by D*CODE in order to strengthen the overall impact of the survey results. Many lessons were learned through the feedback shared.Some of the advice was integrated however after then speaking to my academic advisor, I was able to grade which changes were most appropriate to make for the purposes of my final report. One of the suggestions made included grouping the age categories differently in order to have hardly a(prenominal)er categories. The suggested age groupings include 14-19, 20-24, 25-30 and 31+. This proposed grouping addresses a few issues. Since there is a very small sample under the age of 14, it eliminates their responses from the results. Since youth is defined as up to the age of 31 and there are a smaller number of respondents over the age of 31, it helps to create one category of adult or the purposes of comparison. This change was not made due to time constraints and in order to avoid over-simplifying the results. Another suggestion included removing the neutral responses from graphs and clumping the somewhat and very categories together. Although this would have helped to provide clearer contrast between how the responses were weighted, it would have also reduced opportunities of noticing situations where many people were neutral, which is an manifestation in itself. In reviewing the charts which identify the top issues and concerns of youth, D*CODE suggested that it would be helpful to have them listed from the highest to lowest priority.Additional tables were created which identify the top 10 issues in each region in order of highest to lowest. In addition, percentages were added on existing bar graphs. Another major distinction was made between what was necessary to include in the results compared to the discussion about the results. The results of the survey are presented in the order that the questions were asked. Each graph includes a brief description. The discussion of the results is reason in a way that makes the most overall sense, especially in terms of the flow. In addition, only the most interesting patterns, trends and observations are highlighted in the discussion about the results. ? Phase 5 In-Depth Reflection and Analysis of Qualitative ResponsesThe amount of qualitative responses meant that several passes at reviewing the data were necessary. Members of the research team who were initially involved with analyzing particular questions were involved in a discussion about the results and each had an opportunity to present their findings to one another in front of an audience of other TakingITGlobal staff members. As a group, general patterns and trends were discussed and further areas of exploration were identified. After that, I spent quite some time re-reading and reviewing all of the raw qualitative results along with survey summaries. I tried to extract patterns and conclusi ons from the categories f responses, to better explain the impact of the data. A variety of new charts and summaries were developed for questions based on an additional review through the various responses to qualitative questions. These were then shared with a few other groups of people for feedback. ? Phase 6 Written Descriptions for All Graphs Presented in Final Results After evaluating the many graphs included in the report, I looked through the data in greater detail and produced written descriptions to accompany the graphs, both to provide additional information and insight, but also to help the referee more quickly discover the wealth of data each chart had to communicate.Throughout this process, certain graphs were regenerated in order to further improve the quality of labels, the ability to view responses from both age and regional break-downs, and to include percentages where appropriate on selected graphs. ? Phase 7 Review Final Results for Key Findings ? With the fina l compilation of updated graphs, descriptions and survey response summaries, a comprehensive overview of the Final Results document took place. With the redact assistance of Hussein Banai and Michael Furdyk, this final report was created. 4. 3 Demographic indite of Survey Respondents Region The Role of Youth Survey involved a total sample of 1443 respondents from 126 countries. The majority of respondents reside in North America (29. %) and Africa (27. 4%). There were 16. 9% of respondents from Asia and the Middle East, 14. 3% of respondents from Europe, 7. 1% from Oceania and 4. 3% from South and Central America. Gender A higher number of respondents were male (58. 7%) compared to female person (38. 7%). There were notably more female respondents compared to male respondents in North America and Oceania, whereas in Africa, there were a greater number of male participants. This may be because it is less culturally appropriate for women to have access to computers in Africa. Age A larger number of survey respondents were under the age of 30 (75%) compared to those who are age 30 and over (25%).This is likely because the survey was about youth and was promoted throughout many networks that are specifically intended to connect youth. The average age (mean) of the sample was 26 years old. Employment Status The majority of survey respondents are currently employed (63. 7%), while 36. 4% are unemployed. Many of those who identified themselves as unemployed are in the under 25 age-group, while those with a job are mainly in the 26 and up age category. Volunteer Status There was a relatively even number of respondents who identify themselves as volunteers (53%) compared to non-volunteers (47%). There were more volunteers in the under 30 age category compared to the 31 and up age category.Educational Status and Background Only 40% of the respondents identify themselves as students compared to 59% of respondents who are not currently students. The are a higher number of respondents who identify themselves as students in the 16-20 age category. The survey sample is fairly educated in the sense that they are literate, they are able to speak and write in English (many also speak other languages fluently), and a large number of respondents have completed primary and secondary education. 55. 2% of respondents have completed or are attending University or College and 20. 9% of respondents have completed or are pursing Post receive Studies.Online Activity All survey respondents have basic access to the Internet, whether it be through an Internet cafe, library, school, work or home computer. 46% of the respondents stated that they are online between 1-10 hours per week. 22. 9% of respondents are online between 11-20 hours and 24. 5% are online for more than 21 hours each week. When asked what they do online, they key reoccurring themes involved communication, research & information searching (including working on projects and employment), music, games & entertainment. The following is a thick of the major online activities respondents are involved in Communication Almost every response made reference to checking e-mail, if not instant messaging and/or chat room use. Research and informationMost users identified reading various newspapers, searching background information on their interests and using online information resources to aid completion of their work and/or homework as frequent uses. Work on projects, employment Work was often cited as NGO involvement, general employment and the development and maintenance of personal web-pages. Music, games and entertainment online time is shared among downloading music, playing games and generally related to any other media/entertainment purposes. 5. Defining Youth In looking at how the concept youth is defined, there are different notions and interpretations that can be grouped into three major areas.The most common conceptions present youth in the context of having bountiful e nergy, a sense of leadership, curiosity and vision for the future. stop consonant of the life when we are still dreaming said a 30-year-old male, Skopje, Macedonia. Just over half of the survey respondents expressed that youth is defined by the age of a person with most of the respondents in the 13-30 age-group. The next major interpretation of how youth are defined was expressed through various personality characteristics and outlooks on life. Vivacious, full of energy, want to make a prepare in life, impulsive and one who are not scared to take risks said a 19-year-old female, Pune, India. Many descriptions shared by survey respondents distinctly define youth in a positive and idealistic light.The trio major category defining youth focuses on the particular life stage that people are situated in while in transition from being dependents to being independent. A person who is starting to enjoy freedom for the first time said a 26-year-old male, Harare, Zimbabwe. A key theme that is frequently repeated throughout this stage of transition is the freedom and lack of constraints that exist compared to older adults who are weighed down by greater responsibilities and societal pressures. Societal institutions develop various mechanisms to train and nurture the development of young people who are at a life stage that allows them to be open-minded, free-spirited, creative and imaginative.There exists a clear correlation between the social conditioning of young people who need to prepare to become adults and the aspirations of adults to re-connect with their new-fashioned creative energy in an age where creativity and innovation are highly valued and a scarce resource in large bureaucratic institutions. However, there is both a strong contrast and a connection that exists between notions of youth and adult. A common locomote is that both involve age as part of the definition. The following chart highlights the contrast that exists between the most frequent expres sions that emerged in response to the questions What words, images and phrases come to mind when you hear the word youth and then asked the same question for adult Associations with the word Youth Associations with the word Adult Lack wisdom, need guidance Caregivers, Standard Setters Dreamers, Visionary, Hope for the Future Critical, Dream-Killers, Few Idealists Freedom, Experimentation, Playfulness Burdened, Busy, Responsibilities Open-Minded, Flexible, advanced(a) Rigid-Thinking, Stuck, Conservative Rebellious, Free-spirited Professional and traditional Innocence, Naive, Potential Greedy,Corrupt, Selfish Disadvantaged, Vulnerable, Unheard region Decision-Makers, Positions of Authority In reflecting on the nature of the responses to this question, it is important to note that the overall perceptions of adults are negative compared to perceptions of youth. This bias may exist as a result of the sample size which involved 75% of people under the age of 30. It is possible if more adults were surveyed, especially those adults who are less involved and connected to youth networks, there may have been more negative categories for youth. It is also important to keep in mind that certain words and phrases can have both a positive and negative interpretation.For example, depending on the context of the situation, being rebellious can be seen as something that involves creating anesthetise or struggling towards positive change. Being a dreamer may imply that one has a strong sense of imagination while at the same time, having the potential of being caught up in a fantasy which is never actualized. A variety of the characteristics which describe adults involve ideals which youth often aspire towards attaining such as being a decision-maker or someone in a position of authority. These are perceived attitudes however there may be more instances where adults feel powerless and that they are not in a position to make decisions. This may help to explain the sen se that people have of adults being busy and burdened with responsibilities.Overall, there appears to be an interesting generational relationship and potential communication gap that exists which involves both tension and aspiration. The survey results suggest that youth can be a great source of energy, vision, hope and potential, while at the same time being vulnerable, voiceless and rebellious. The results also demonstrate that although adults can be conservative, critical and rigid in their thinking, ultimately, they are relied on as care-givers, decision-makers and sources of knowledge and authority. The challenge for youth is to find their voice and become empowered without losing their sense of spirit and optimism.The challenge for adults is in finding ways to deal increasing amounts of responsibility and power in a way that doesnt exclude, ignore or disengage youth, while also reconnecting their own sense of youth. While exploring and more deeply understanding the role of y oung people in the context of todays society, it is important to note that generational barriers have existed and persisted throughout the course of history. It is possible that this generation of youth will have greater opportunities to empower themselves to have a voice as a result of the many forums which are emerging, however it is also clear that there is still a lot of work that needs to be done in order to allow for positive intergenerational partnership.When we asked the survey respondents to identify the role that they saw youth having within their communities, the most common response across all regions was youth having the role of the student. This makes sense for a variety of reasons. Those participating in the survey are either currently students or have graduated and feel that since a great deal of time as a young person is spent on learning, whether it be in school or in other contexts such as the home or workplace, it is appropriate that the roleRole of YouthThe role of youth in realising the dreams of Dr. Kalam Dream, dream, dream, your dreams will transform into thoughts, thoughts lead to honest work, work results in action and you will succeed has been rightly said by Dr. Abul Pakir Jainul Abideen Abdul Kalam. Dreams can be accomplished by youth as they have commitment to action. To quote Jean Ingelow Youth Youth How buoyant are the hopes they turn, Like marigolds, towards the sunny side.Students life is meant for studies to become true and responsible citizens, formidable leaders and esteemed legislators as India entails such intellectually wonderful and adroit disciples. A nation of disciplined youth can run short in the path of progress. They play a crucial mantle in the endeavours for equality and justice. They must assimilate from the very beginning- the lessons of self-help, self-reliance and self-sacrifice. Youth should be jawans and take up arms against the corrupted people and spill the beans on to the public so as no person ever never has the nerve to indulge in any illegal activities.As sizeable part of Indians are unscholarly and backward who are unknown regarding the new-fangled evolutions, the allegiance travel on us to empower and bring perception to them with latest trends, technologies and scientific inventions. As Shankaracharya says, The springs of patriotism are deep rooted in Indians, we should show it beyond the desire. Janani janma bhoomischa swargad api gariyasi said lord Sri Rama to Lakshmana when the latter, attracted by the opulence of Lanka, expressed an quick desire to settle down there. Your mother land, great or not, are forsooth greater than a paradise. Hence, we should comprehend that our mother land is the only place where we can reach maximum glory and recognition. We should also look for jobs within the country and strive for its progress. We must play a prevalent role in safeguarding our country by involving ourselves in politics. We are the best judges as we have mentally mat ured minds to differentiate between good and bad which is prevailing in the society.India being the country of many races, languages, religions and feels we should have unity. Thus, said Mark Twain India is the cradle of human race, the birth place of human speech, the mother of human history, the grandmother of legend and the great grandmother of tradition. But despite of this diversity the social structure there has been an unstable unity and affinity which had bound the people of this vast country into a well-knit nation throughout its chequered history.The requisite of maintaining this unity in diversity and national integration is all the more indispensable. We should make people inculcate the ideal One flag, one nation, one land, one hand, one heart, evermore which eventually leads the country to the pinnacle of success. Women distinguish the most pivotal role for the upliftment of our country. The strength of our country depends on them. succeeding(prenominal) to God we a re indebted to women first for life itself and then for making it worth living. We should accept equal participation of women in all field to make the country economically amiable. We should all create a nation which is one of the best places to live in and which brings smiles to the billion faces and also to ingest the dreams of our former President, Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, a dynamic and versatile person. Therefore, always be ready to walk in the unexplored path as to succeed in life everyone must understand and master three mighty forces- desire, belief and expectation.