The Need for Our Work
There is no question that today’s youth are growing up in a world with both globalizing and polarizing influences. We are being drawn both together and pushed apart at the same time. We can see the ways that lived experiences in other parts of the world affect our own communities and vice versa. And, we can see the ways in which our misunderstandings, disconnection and mistrust can breed the seeds of conflict, within our own communities and across national and ethnic boundaries.

Some young people have unfortunately already chosen negative weapons: hatred, violence and intolerance. But just as many more young people are choosing the path of peace and human rights.

It is these peaceful efforts that we must encourage and celebrate. We must support youth in overcoming cultural and other differences and tackle the causes of discord and violence between nations, cultures, communities, and individuals. Therefore, GYC is committed to empowering youth who are courageously standing up to ensure respect for the rights and dignity of others and to encouraging the development of collaborative projects aimed at eliminating the root causes of conflict.

We recognize that our vision is ambitious, but we are confident that every effort, no matter how small, will have a larger ripple effect in the world.

Motivations and Inspirations
A deep-rooted desire to help put an end to the dehumanization and devastation of genocide and mass violence inspires the work of Global Youth Connect. We believe that investing in youth and enabling them to serve as active bystanders to promote and protect human rights is a critical strategy to help prevent and minimize the escalation of conflict as well as heal divided and traumatized communities seeking to rebuild after conflict. Based on our experience, we believe that the concepts and strategies of human rights education offer today’s youth the most powerful tools of understanding and motivation to take action.

Who We Serve
Our programs are focused primarily on serving youth and young adults ages 14-30. We are supporting youth who are already leaders in their community and who are looking for ways to strengthen their skills, deepen their understanding and build a network of supportive allies. We are also connecting with youth who are at an earlier stage in developing their understanding of human rights and how they can best engage their unique talents and experiences on behalf of human rights.

The youth we work with come from all backgrounds – from the poorest communities to the wealthiest, from the “developed” world to the “underdeveloped” world, and from a wide range of ethnic, national, and religious backgrounds.

Goals and Objectives

-->Increase understanding of both the context and practice of human rights.  In particular, we aim to better understand how the promotion and protection of human rights can be used as an effective tool to help prevent conflict, minimize the potential for mass violence and eliminate the threat of genocide

-->Build the skills, knowledge and confidence of youth to raise awareness, take action and work collaboratively on projects to promote and defend human rights

-->Facilitate meaningful dialogue, enable critical thinking and analysis of complex issues and encourage joint problem solving to address shared human rights concerns.

-->Foster personal and emotional growth by testing boundaries and limitations, reflecting critically on our own cultures, exploring how the choices we make affect the lives of others, building strong cross-cultural connections and finding positive outlets for service to promote human rights

-->Create, inspire and nurture both new and existing youth-led projects aimed at promoting and protecting human rights

Human Rights Framework
It is no coincidence that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was agreed upon on the heels of the Nazi holocaust. In 1948, the UDHR was proclaimed as “a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations,” directing all humans to “strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms.”

We believe that the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights provide us with a guide for action. We also believe that it is critical to embrace the entire spectrum of human rights – the economic, cultural and social as much as the political and civil with a consideration for both individual and collective rights – in order to work towards implementation of the ideals offered by the UDHR.

The promotion and protection of human rights needs to be at the forefront of any youth movement dedicated to peace building, reconciliation and violence prevention. At the same time, we also seek to explore the complexity and interconnectedness of human rights challenges as experienced in the real world. And we aim to identify the ways in which nations, institutions, individuals as well as ourselves must take responsibility to act in order to ensure human rights and dignity for all.

Educational Methodology
Our educational methodology is drawn from a mixture of techniques and strategies used by the popular education movement. Our programs are highly interactive and experiential. We promote a “whole person” approach to leadership development as well as understand the importance of providing experiences for participants to connect with others in to engage in meaningful shared work. Our goal is to help young leaders learn about the ideas, concepts and strategies of human rights through engaging in meaningful dialogue, promoting critical analysis, encouraging self-reflection and fostering action. Emotional and psychological development and community-building are just as important to us as intellectual content.