'Beyond Right and Wrong' - Allies Across Generations and Sectors Unite to Break Glass Ceilings Holding Young People Back

"Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there." - Drawing inspiration from Rumi's timeless words, ComMutiny - The Youth Collective and the vartaLeap Coalition hosted a landmark convening of 150 youth allies from across sectors on December 20th 2024: Beyond Right & Wrong: Youth Leadership is Changing the Game.

Young Climate Champions Celebrated by Intergenerational Allies from Across Sectors

Held at Gandhi Darshan in Delhi, the convening celebrated a national movement of allyship, envisioning a youth-driven future free from judgment, fear, or hierarchy. Mistakes became stepping stones for bold experiments, paving the way for sustainable change. Rooted in the values of the Indian Constitution, it called for reimagining leadership as a flow of daring ideas and micro-change experiments. A space where youth could rise beyond right and wrong to find their voice, take bold action, and shape the future, knowing they will be supported.

The event brought together an inspiring mix of influencers and leaders, including Jayant Chaudhary (Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship & Education, Government of India), Yamini Mishra (Country Director, MacArthur Foundation), and Pragya Vats (Communications Specialist). Participants ranged from civil society organizations like Development Alternatives, WildTales, and vartaLeap Coalition, to philanthropic leaders like Rohini Nilekani Philanthropy and USAID, media voices like Citizen Matters and CSR Journal, and academic institutions such as Azim Premji University and ISDM. Youth leaders from Assam, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, and beyond also took center stage. Their dialogues tackled pressing questions on youth engagement, ranging from building a strong case for youth-centric development to reimagining success metrics in an increasingly corporatized world.

In reference to the unemployment situation in the country Jayant Chaudhary, Minister of State Skill Development and Entrepreneurship & MOS Education, GOI said, "Skilling cannot work without placements. Corporates need to step up to create more job opportunities in alignment with the needs of young people and offer wages, commensurate with market growth."

Ashraf Patel, Co-Founder of Pravah, ComMutiny - The Youth Collective, and the vartaLeap Coalition, added, "Skilling programs must broaden their horizons to include tough-to-define professions like music, art, theater, and other creative fields. These fields resonate with young people, offering alternative career and livelihood opportunities while enabling them to discover themselves and social issues in meaningful ways. Such explorations offer constructive spaces for navigating identity and ideological differences, moving beyond right and wrong polarities, and building a social fabric on the foundation of love and learning."

The minister concluded the dialogue on a hopeful note, saying, "This coalition has consistently highlighted the critical need for active citizenship. I'm eager to see how these Jagrik journeys unfold and contribute to shaping the future!"

Key Highlights

• Grand Finale to a Climate Action Championship: Top 6 of 120+ intrapreneur teams, from across the country, pitched bold ideas, competing for grants to amplify their climate positive narratives. Kajal Kanaujia and Pankaj Ghute from We the Yuva, Gujarat; Md. Sadique Jahan and Alomani Tigga from Karra Society for Rural Action, Jharkhand; and Madhur Bhardwaj and Archana Sangulle from SHEDO, Madhya Pradesh; earned second runner up, first runner up and champion titles, respectively.

• Wicked Challenges of Youth Engagement: Allies explored wicked challenges, generating actionable insights to strengthen and improve youth engagement practices.

• Commitment to Change: Toward shaping a future where youth leadership is the norm, influencers pledged to mentor young leaders and help turn their social change visions into impactful realities.

• Exchange of Experiences: Seasoned leaders exchanged their youth leadership stories and insights through dialogues, roundtables, an interactive gallery and an experience corner.

Leading up to this event, 12 regional dialogues were organized by grassroots leaders, aggregating the voices of over 600 allies who committed to supporting and promoting the youth leadership. Together, these efforts exemplify how allies, moving from intention to action, can collectively redefine youth leadership and inspire systemic change.

If you see yourself as a youth ally, this is your invitation to rethink your approach to youth engagement. Leaders aren't born, they emerge from the fields of action. Join this movement and co-create this youth-centric field of change… beyond right and wrong!

About ComMutiny - The Youth Collective and the vartaLeap Coalition

ComMutiny - The Youth Collective is a community of practice that aggregates, accelerates and amplifies youth empowerment spaces. Through collaborative programming, public initiatives, and award-winning media products, ComMutiny has nurtured a nationwide ecosystem for youth leadership.

Recognizing the need to mainstream youth-centric development systemically and at scale, ComMutiny incubated vartaLeap in 2019 as a cross-sectoral coalition working toward the shared vision of 'Every Youth a Jagrik, Every Space Nurturing Jagriks.' (Jagrik is a self-awakened, active citizen) Together, this ecosystem of 250+ organizations has supported the learning and leadership of over 1 million young people and engaged 45.5 million individuals through campaigns.