Youth know where they want to go and what they need to get there. Just as IYF is committed to ensuring our work incorporates and responds to young people's perspectives and lived experiences, it’s important for those in positions of power—the leaders of organizations, corporations, and nations—to listen to young people.

In 2017, in partnership with Hilton, IYF published the Global Youth Wellbeing Index, the culmination of a study incorporating objective data about the state of affairs in 30 countries with the perspectives and opinions of young people about the state of their own wellbeing.

Serving as a benchmark for seven of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by world leaders, the Index shows that—even when progress remains to be made at the country level—youth are overwhelmingly open-minded, optimistic, and enthusiastic about the future and their place in it.

The Index also functions as a call to action for those in positions of power. Youth envision—and expect—a future where they can secure the employment they want, and where women and men are accorded the same rights, opportunities, and respect. While the Index reveals heartening news, it's important not to squander the tremendous resource youth optimism and enthusiasm represent. Rather we need to encourage and enable youth to tap into that potential and recognize their own agency.

The time is now for leaders to listen to, heed, and engage with young people in meaningful ways. The future depends on it.

In the knowledge economy, technical skills have expiration dates, and smart machines perform job functions that once required human hands and minds. Critical thinking, creative problem-solving, and the ability to adapt to new situations are just a few of the life skills that are timeless, transferable, and future-proof.

Our History of Life Skills Training

In 2004, IYF partnered with GE to develop Passport to Success® (PTS), our flagship life and work readiness skills program. Noted for its adaptability and focus on experiential learning, PTS has evolved to meet the changing demands of the market and the needs of employer and employee alike. In 2013, IYF partnered with Hilton to develop a PTS curriculum specifically for the hospitality industry. After a successful pilot year, the program was expanded to benefit thousands of Hilton employees worldwide through a delivery system consisting of multiple options—in-person, online, and blended learning.

Measuring Life Skills and Work Readiness

Employers want a means of measuring life skills and work readiness in their current and prospective employees to identify reskilling opportunities, and employees want a way to document and demonstrate their life skills competencies to current and future employers.

To satisfy this demand, IYF and partner ACT are developing a life skills and work readiness assessment based on the most relevant advances in the science of non-cognitive testing. Currently, ACT is revising the assessment based on findings from the recent pilot phase. When it is made available in the near future, the work readiness assessment will be compatible not only with IYF’s Passport to Success, but also with a range of other life skills curricula on the market.

To succeed in an uncertain future, learning will become a lifelong endeavor. It will take place not only in traditional academic settings, but also in specialized technical and vocational training facilities, as part of on-the-job upskilling and reskilling programs, and in other contexts that meet the needs of employees and employers alike.

Of course, not all youth are afforded the same opportunities to succeed. Some young people lack access to quality education, market-relevant skills training, fundamental life skills, or mentorship and career guidance. Others face factors like cultural norms and prohibitive gender stereotypes that prevent them from following their interests and aptitudes.

In 2017, through a combination of new and continuing partnerships and initiatives, IYF worked to ensure that youth everywhere have the training, resources, support, and opportunities to transform the future they envision into reality.

Featuring leaders and change-makers from around the world, IYF’s Board of Directors shares a commitment to helping young people everywhere succeed in work and life. In 2017, we gained two new board members whose extraordinary experiences, perspectives, and knowledge will contribute to advancing IYF’s mission and vision. We proudly welcome our new board members to the IYF family.

Umran Beba is Global Diversity, Engagement and Talent Officer at PepsiCo. She joined the company in 1994 in her native Turkey, and her prior roles include President of PepsiCo’s Asia-Pacific Region and SVP and CHRO for PepsiCo Asia, Middle East, and North Africa. Committed to diversity and inclusion, she has led female talent development efforts for PepsiCo in dozens of countries. Ms. Beba received her MBA and a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial engineering from Turkey’s Bogaziçi University. She joined the IYF board in 2017.

Read an interview with Umran

A champion for children in Chicago and beyond, Sheldon Smith is the Founder and Executive Director of The Dovetail Project, an organization dedicated to equipping young African-American fathers with the skills, support, and opportunities they need to be “better fathers to their children and better men in their communities.” With over 330 graduates since 2009, The Dovetail Project is making a profound impact in the lives of families and communities while helping to change the negative narrative about young black men—especially fathers—in Chicago and elsewhere. A 2011 YouthActionNet® Laureate Global Fellow, Mr. Smith was recognized with a 2012 Sargent Shriver Youth Warriors Against Poverty Award, named one of the Top 10 CNN Heroes of 2016, and included in Forbes magazine’s 2018 30 Under 30 for social entrepreneurs. Among these and many other achievements, he is most proud of being a devoted father to Jada, his daughter—and greatest accomplishment.

Read an interview with Sheldon

We cannot know exactly what the labor landscape will look like in the future, but it’s clear that our world—where quantum jumps in technology happen seemingly overnight, and market demands change almost as quickly—is not slowing down. From the assembly line floor, to the office of the accountant, robots and smart machines are performing an increasingly complex range of tasks effectively and efficiently.

So, what should we tell our young women and men about how best to prepare for the future of work?

We should emphasize the importance of lifelong learning. Graduating from high school, or college, or from a vocational and technical training program, is certainly worthwhile, but learning can’t stop with the obtainment of any diploma, degree, or certificate. When they secure employment, young women and men must be ready and able to reimagine their roles and functions and to reskill when necessary. It’s up to all of us—public and private sectors, academic and training institutes, governments, businesses, youth-serving organizations, and young people themselves—to ensure that opportunities for learning as a frequent, continuous endeavor are available and meet the real needs of youth.

In addition, we should remember that while machines can perform some functions well, perhaps even better than humans in certain cases, they can’t do everything. The ability to encounter and respond to novel circumstances, to read the non-quantifiable nuances of a situation, to solve never before encountered problems with innovative thinking—this requires something that humans have, and machines don’t, and likely never will: creativity.

In fact, it is our creative capacity that fosters the kind of grit and growth mindset needed to persevere in the face of challenges, to reinvent ourselves when the need arises, and to thrive in times of uncertainty. So, from the traditional academic setting, to training facilities, to on-the-job skill-building programs, providing avenues for young people to develop their creativity, and a host of other life skills like stress management, effective communication, and the ability to work on a team, will be critical.

The future is always uncertain, but young people are always up to the challenge. We see evidence of their innate agency all around us as young people are standing up for what they believe, making their voices heard, and taking action to make real change in the world.

Perhaps the most important thing we should tell young people about the future is that we are listening, we hear them, and we are ready to equip and support them to create a future they want, and a future the world needs.