Wednesday, August 18, 2021

Youth collaboration, sustainability, health and innovation take the spotlight at 2021 Global Youth Summit

“Be creative and innovate continuously. Even if an idea is ahead of its time, as long as the problem to be solved remains, I think one should hold steadfast and really push after that problem.” ~Ernest Cu, Globe Telecom’s President and CEO

SM Cares and Global Peace Foundation (GPF), in partnership with Consuelo Zobel Alger Foundation, CIE British School, Rotary Club of Makati Circle of Friends, Nestle Philippines, Unilever, and Globe Telecom, held the second virtual iteration of the Global Youth Summit (GYS) in conjunction with the Global Peace Convention, which facilitated meaningful discussions on many of the issues affecting the youth today. The event was held from August 13 to 14 via Zoom and On24, and broadcast live on Facebook and YouTube.

The two-day summit revolved around achieving the 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals through youth collaboration, by addressing the most critical issues related to five goals—SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being; SDG 4: Quality Education; SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities; SDG 2: Zero Hunger; and SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth. The topics were selected through a poll that involved 1,996 youth respondents, and presented through inspiring talks delivered by some of today's industry leaders, change-makers and social media influencers.

“What’s more important than what you were doing, is really what will you do? What will you do starting today? What will you do tomorrow? Because our future actions will have to be much greater than the actions we have taken in the past.” ~Raymond Rufino, NEO Offices CEO

On its ninth year, GYS 2021 had a total of 6,481 attendees on Zoom and On24, more than 14,000 views on Facebook and counting, and 343,049 people reached. It was also #10 among the top trending topics on Twitter in the Philippines during its run. Of the attendees, 68 percent came from the Philippines, 12 percent from the rest of Asia, 9 percent from North America, 7 percent from Africa, and 4 percent from Europe.


Day 1 consisted of the following speakers: Licensed physician and online content creator Dr. Kilimanguru Tiwaquen, and Department of Health OIC and Undersecretary Dr. Maria Vergeire, who both delivered presentations on ensuring community safety in the time of the pandemic; and SM Foundation Trustee Chito Macapagal and Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization Dr. Ethel Valenzuela, who delivered presentations on education for future success.

“In our country, there should be more citizen participation. I believe, especially the youth, that we should be more participative. To me, every line we draw, if we do a good job, we should think of the beneficiaries. If we do a lousy job, let’s think of the sufferers.” ~Arch. Palafox, Renowned Urban Planner

Meanwhile, day 2 speakers included renowned urban planner Arch. Jun Palafox and NEO Offices CEO Raymond Rufino, who discussed sustainable urban planning and green buildings; Nestle Philippines Head of Public Affairs, Communications & Sustainability Arlene Tan-Bantoto, and Local Roots Agricultural Farming and Services Founder Leo Casaclang, who both talked about various ways to achieve food security, nutrition, and sustainable agriculture; and Globe Telecom’s President and CEO Ernest Cu and Wonderful Employee Experience Director, Atty. Nicolette Bambao, who gave presentations on creativity and innovation as important skills for the 21st century.

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