About Young Cities

Our Approach

Five fundamental principles underpin everything we do, ensuring that our work with cities and young people remains pioneering and impactful.

Local

We work closely with local governments, civil society organisations and young people to tailor programmes that are relevant and responsive to their needs.

Our cities

Innovative

Our innovative approach enables future generations of young activists to develop their own solutions to issues that their communities face.

Projects

Cross-Sectoral

We collaborate with policy makers, human rights organisations, creatives and others, so that our programming is informed by different perspectives.

Policy & Practice

Evidence-led

We tackle the most pressing issues facing cities by ensuring our programmes are always rooted in research.

Publications

Empowering

We empower young people to work independently and sustainably, providing them follow-up opportunities.

Our Model

Our Story

In 2018, the Young Cities programme was launched to help young people and local governments address the challenges facing their communities.

The programme is the youth pillar of the Strong Cities Network, building on the insights and experience of Strong Cities collaboration with cities around the world – connecting sub-national leaders and driving impactful, locally-led policy. Young Cities further builds upon seven successive and successful years of programming by its sister project, the Youth Civil Activism Network (YouthCAN), which pioneered the approach it takes to training young activists around the world. By combining Strong Cities’ experience with supporting cities globally, and YouthCAN’s innovative methodology, Young Cities is fostering unique and collaborative solutions powered by young people and in tandem with local governments as they address the challenges of hate, polarisation and extremism.

All three projects are initiatives of the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD), a leading organisation in understanding and innovating real-world responses to the rising tide of polarisation, hate and extremism. Young Cities draws upon ISD’s expertise to improve engagement with young people in tackling these issues.

With the support of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), we have supported young people in nine cities across Kenya, Lebanon, Senegal and North Macedonia. In 2021 we launched in Jordan, and in 2022 our programme expanded to Belgium and Pakistan.

A Joint Initiative

Young Cities is a truly cross-sectoral and collaborative programme. It sits alongside other initiatives of the Strong Cities Network and is integrated with YouthCAN to deliver sustainable and local solutions led by young people and municipal governments.

Working closely with a team of local staff and partners, Young Cities leads locally-driven research with partners that understand their communities. We tailor programmes geared to mobilise young people and local leaders looking to make change, impacting hundreds of thousands of young people across our member cities.

Strong Cities Network

Launched at the United Nations in 2015, the Strong Cities Network is an independent global network of cities and other local governments dedicated to addressing all forms of hate, extremism and polarisation, while promoting a human rights-based prevention framework. Through in-person and online convening, exchanges and trainings, Strong Cities facilitates sharing and learning among mayors and other local leaders, civil society actors as well as other municipal-level practitioners, while complementing national, regional and global efforts.

Visit the Strong Cities Network website.

YouthCAN

The Youth Civil Activism Network (YouthCAN) is a global community for young activists that was created to understand, encourage and amplify positive grassroots efforts against violent extremism and hate speech.

YouthCAN encourages collaboration between young activists to make a positive change in their communities. The network informs, inspires and supports young people through capacity building programmes, micro-grants, campaign resources and support, as well as an online community young activists globally.

Institute for Strategic Dialogue

Founded in 2006, the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD) is a leading global ‘think and do’ tank dedicated to understanding and innovating real-world responses to the rising tide of polarisation, hate, disinformation and extremism in all its forms.

In addition to capacity-building programming for young people such as Young Cities, ISD utilises state-of-the-art data analysis tools to track hate, disinformation and extremism online; supports policy development through advice and training; and works with schools and local governments to improve digital education globally.

Visit the ISD website.

Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The Norwegian MFA’s generous funding of Young Cities has helped it grow from city to city. Their support enables us to impact the communities in the ways they need the most.

One of the fundamental tenets of the MFA is to further global peace, security and youth empowerment – not just in the interest of Norway but of the international community. We are grateful for their continued support of the Young Cities programme.

Visit the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs website.

Our Partners

Local partner organisations are integral to the implementation of the Young Cities programme in the countries in which it works. They ensure that youth participants receive the continuous support and guidance they need to build their projects from the ground up, tackling real issues in relevant and impactful ways. Local partners help further tailor the programme to their context, connect it to key community actors, and play a vital role in fostering creative talent among young people.