We are not waiting: Youth-led initiatives for a fairer, more sustainable world
Across the world, young people are not waiting for permission to act. They are already creating fairer, more sustainable futures through community organising, social innovation, cultural work, technological creativity and environmental stewardship.
We are not waiting is a joint initiative by the UNESCO–MOST BRIDGES UK Hub and The 50 Percent at the Club of Rome, with two linked outputs: a youth-led webinar series and an accompanying anthology.
The project centres young people aged 14–35 not as symbolic participants but as hosts, moderators, editors and authors — showcasing real-world initiatives across six themes: regenerative economics, climate justice, circular living, peacebuilding, mutual aid and arts and storytelling.
Running over June and July 2026, the webinar series will comprise three sessions, an introductory session to launch the project, and two webinar diving into the anthology's themes, bringing together contributors, editors and wider audiences in open conversation.
These sessions feed directly into the anthology: a 150–180-page, six-chapter open-access publication drawing on a global call for abstracts as well as influential youth voices, reviewed and edited by young people themselves.
The anthology is targeting a launch at the UNESCO MOST Forum in 2027.
The project is built around six themes that reflect what young people are already doing to change the world.
If you are between 14 and 35 and your work touches any of them, we want to hear from you.
Each theme is a question. Each question points to work already happening:
🌱 Regenerative economics: Are you creating or part of networks, cooperatives or alternative economies in your community?
🌍 Climate justice: Are you involved in climate activism, ecological restoration or environmental justice?
♻️ Circular living: Are you making more sustainable choices in your everyday life and want to share what you've learned?
🕊 Peacebuilding: Are you working on conflict resolution or social cohesion in your community?
🤝 Mutual aid: Are you part of a mutual aid network or a community care initiative?
🎨 Arts and storytelling: Are you using art, storytelling or culture to drive change in your community?
Are you working on any of these topics? You have a chance to contribute to the anthology!
Find out how: the50percent.org/programmes/we-are-not-waiting
Join us for an open Q&A session where we will introduce the programme and walk you through the call for abstracts, and help you find out if your work is what the anthology is looking for.
📅 18 June
🕒 09:00 ET | 15:00 CEST | 14:00 BST | 16:00 EAT | 21:00 PHT
This is also your first chance to learn about the two upcoming webinars and find out which one speaks to your work:
An open conversation with contributors exploring three of the anthology’s core themes: re-weaving the future through networks and economies that make the world anew; building resilience through ecological resistance and restoration; and living circular futures, where small changes make a big difference.
Join us to learn more about what we are looking for.
Date: 7 July 2026
Time: 09:00 – 10:00 ET | 15:00 – 16:00 CEST | 16:00 – 17:00 EAT | 21:00 – 22:00 PHT
The next webinar in the series is on 28 July:
A conversation with contributors delving into the final three chapters of the anthology: how young people are rebuilding fractured communities through everyday acts of peacemaking; the structures of mutual aid and collective care that refuse to replicate dependency; and the power of creative practice, narrative and culture to drive systemic change from the inside out.
Join us to hear from the editors and bring your questions.
Date: 28 July 2026
Time: 09:00 – 10:00 ET | 15:00 – 16:00 CEST | 16:00 – 17:00 EAT | 21:00 – 22:00 PHT
‘We are not waiting’ will produce an open-access anthology of six chapters. This will not be just a collection of essays, but a durable, policy-relevant record of youth-led systems change in practice.
What makes it different:
SUBMIT YOUR ABSTRACT
Whether you are organising your community, restoring ecosystems, building alternative economies or using art to shift narratives — your experience is what this anthology is looking for.
This call is open to anyone aged 14–35 who is actively working on one of the six themes. You do not need to be an academic or an established writer— and you do not need to have all the answers. What matters is that you are doing the work.
You may submit as an individual or as part of a small team.
Write in your own voice, clear and simple.
Abstracts should be no more than 500 words.
Contributions from the Global Majority and indigenous communities are especially encouraged.
If your abstract is selected, you will be invited to develop a full piece of approximately 2,000 words for the anthology. You will not be alone in the process, our editorial team will support you every step of the way.
Deadline: 31 August 202
About the partners
The 50 Percent at the Club of Rome works to place youth leadership at the centre of systems change. It supports and amplifies the work of young people who are already building the transitions that older institutions are still debating.
The UNESCO–MOST BRIDGES UK Hub generates humanities-informed research from the ground up, working with inclusive knowledge systems to drive social transformation and inform policy and practice.
