Conversation with Adria and Theresa
In the first podcast blog from Fondation Botnar, you’ll meet the third cohort of Young Professionals, Adria and Theresa.
In the first podcast blog from Fondation Botnar, you’ll meet the third cohort of Young Professionals, Adria and Theresa.
In this blog, you’ll meet Fondation Botnar’s Young Professionals, Manuel and Illan. They started with us last year and we ask them about their work and learnings so far.
In this blog, you’ll meet Fondation Botnar’s first cohort of Young Professionals, Namrata and Daniela. We ask them about their work and their passions before they take off to spend one year in the field.
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OurCity is one of Fondation Botnar’s flagship initiatives, supporting cities to develop youth-centred strategies by engaging young people in the design and governance of projects and policies that impact their lives. Through collaboration with youth networks, civil society, policymakers, innovators, and other city champions, the initiative fosters inclusive engagement, drives meaningful policy change, and advocates for youth-driven solutions. By contributing to locally-driven programming and implementation, young people actively shape their cities, creating vibrant and inclusive communities.
Discover how youth leadership is creating meaningful change in these cities.
We are not just the future; we are the present. Our voices need to be heard in the planning and execution of development projects.
Kofkro Youth Participant
Since its start, OurTanga (TangaYetu) has fostered important opportunities for young people, including through the establishment of East Africa’s first STEM park, a digital city observatory to enhance data-driven decision-making, providing access to local funding, improved school learning environments, and entrepreneurship and digital literacy training—all co-created with local youth, the Tanga City Council, and stakeholders. 2024 highlights included cross-sectorial collaborative design of the programme’s future funding focus with over 100 stakeholders led by Hon. Ummy Mwalimu (former Minister of Health, Community Development, Gender, Seniors and Children, Tanzania), and December’s Tanga Youth Conference with 230 participants, which emphasised youth leadership.
Since its establishment in 2020, OurCluj has provided several opportunities to young people in civic innovation, culture and arts, healthy lifestyle, entrepreneurship, education and more. In 2024, OurCluj hosted the annual OurCity global gathering brought together youth and municipal leaders from five cities to share valuable insights, documented in the #OurCity interview series to inspire both local and global audiences. During workshops, the OurCluj Workbook: “Imagining Futures, Sharing Power” was released. A youth groups mapping process and an interactive Wellbeing System Map were also launched in 2024, along with pioneering projects in education, health and civic participation.
In 2024, the OurManta (MantaMía) initiative, coordinated by Grupo Faro, advanced efforts to shape Manta into a more inclusive, youth-centered city. MantaMía mapped over 300 stakeholders working with young people in Manta, fostering a collaborative ecosystem of leaders, community groups, academia, and policymakers. Workshops and surveys engaged 900 young people, culminating in Manta’s first youth assessment report, which informed the city’s Development Plan. Additionally, six civil society organisations received seed funding to launch initiatives in art, reading, sports, and civic engagement.
In 2024, Phase 2 of OurBarranquilla, coordinated by Fundacion Corona and Diseno Publico, launched in Colombia, bringing together youth and city leaders to co-design strategies, policies and solutions inspired by the city’s vibrant culture. Through the Leadership Pathway “Baqanes,” 120 young leaders launched over 15 projects citywide, working with more than 20 organisations and youth collectives. The programme gathered 200 stakeholders to unveil Phase 2 plans, and launch the learning magazine “Collaborating to Build the City” which presents the programme “10 Practical Lessons for Strengthening Barranquilla’s Youth Ecosystem”, which include, among others, the topics of nothing for youth without youth, focus on local teams and context adaptation, the role of public leadership, evidence collection, action driven approach and a shared vision definition.
In Koforidua, Ghana, the activation of participatory governance mechanisms and co-creation workshops coordinated by the STAR-Ghana Foundation brought young people and the city council together to develop a shared vision. Priority areas of work include awareness and engagement of young people in urban governance, access to economic opportunities, access to essential services, digital literacy, and more. This collective effort resulted in strategy development for inclusive participation of young people in decision-making processes, such as the 2nd Annual Town Hall Meeting “Promoting Civic Engagement: The Role of Youth in Development,” which unites youth, local authorities, and traditional leaders to address municipal challenges. Additionally, a workshop trained youth peace ambassadors to promote peaceful elections in New Juaben South, emphasising youth leadership in community transformation. Throughout the year, the programme continued its efforts to strengthen youth networks and participatory mechanisms, led by young people for young people.
In November 2025, the third annual OurCity gathering is planned to take place, this time in Barranquilla Colombia, and will focus on civic innovation for youth participation in urban governance and policy design. The gathering provides an opportunity for OurCity network partners to share best practices, challenges, and strategies to foster the participation of young people in urban development decision-making processes.
By amplifying youth voices and fostering meaningful partnerships, OurCity is helping create vibrant, inclusive spaces where young people can thrive and shape the future of cities.
Building highly desirable hard skills among young people, especially in data collection, helped to ensure that young people could have a clear role, hold significant responsibility, and feel confident they were contributing in a way that was recognised as highly valuable to the overall success of the community.
TangaYetu
Pictures by: TangaYetu (OurTanga), Roland Vaczi (OurCluj), Grupo Faro (OurManta), NuestraBarranquilla (OurBarranquilla) and STAR Ghana Foundation (OurKoforidua)
In November, the World Urban Forum (WUF12) in Cairo showcased the critical role of youth leadership in urban governance. Under the theme “It All Starts at Home: Local Actions for Sustainable Cities and Communities,” 42 young leaders, known as City Shapers, demonstrated how youth-led initiatives are reshaping cities into inclusive, sustainable, and liveable spaces.
Representing Fondation Botnar-supported programmes like OurCity, S²Cities, and Healthy Cities for Adolescents, the City Shapers shared innovative solutions, showing the power of linking local action with global frameworks. Their participation reinforced that young people are not just participants but key drivers of urban transformation.
Young people should not just be the recipients of policy but the co-creators of policy that affect us.
Sarah Syed
UN-Habitat Youth Advisory Board
The City Shapers at WUF12 reaffirmed that young people are not just future leaders but essential in driving the movement for sustainable and inclusive urban development. Fondation Botnar remains committed to creating spaces for and with young people to lead—not just consult—ensuring their voices shape the cities of today and tomorrow.
In September, Fondation Botnar and Restless Development co-hosted the Youth Power Summit in New York City, a youth-led event running alongside the UN Summit of the Future. Bringing together over 300 intergenerational participants, the event provided a platform for young people to share their vision, solutions, and demands, focusing on one question: how can they have a meaningful voice in shaping our global future?
Young people are often the #MissingMajority in decision-making. The Youth Power Summit underscored the essential role of youth-led discussions on accountability, evidence-based action, and political engagement. Through workshops, panels, and dialogues, participants addressed global challenges such as education, mental health, digital safety, and gender equality. They explored tools for holding leaders accountable, strategies to meet youth needs, and pathways to influence policymaking.
Don’t just ask for a seat at the table, dismantle it, break it down. We need to create a more collaborative space that is not hierarchical, where we can all relate to one another.
Marie Mokuba
Global Youth Mobiliser, Restless Development
In addition, organisations like MTV Staying Alive Foundation, Born This Way Foundation, and Amnesty International led intergenerational sessions on topics such as advancing girls’ education and youth leadership in humanitarian crises.
Watch summit highlights and hear directly from young participants on our website.
Read our reflections on the event
Experience the energy of the Youth Power Summit through videos that capture the voices, insights, and passion of young participants.
We cannot possibly know what is best for the youth without youth being at the table.
Youth participant,
Youth Power Summit
Earth is home to over 10,000 cities; 40 years ago, half of these didn’t exist, and many of the growing cities we see today are built and developed at a rapid pace. While cities are home to over half of the people in the world, they only occupy two to three per cent of the world’s land area.
Cities can offer the best of health, education, culture, and opportunities, but the speed and the scale of growing cities also bring challenges, and some cities are struggling to keep up with our dreams for a sustainable future. 75% of the places that will be urbanised by 2030 are yet to be built – this offers an enormous opportunity for everyone, especially for young people, to contribute to shaping their cities for generations to come.
Think creatively and think big. Discuss with friends and family, online and offline, about the opportunities and challenges your city is facing. Imagine how you want your home to look to best meet your needs, and then show us! From street art to writing a story, taking a photo, making a video, or drawing something – your imagination is the only limit.
Download our guidelines for group submissions or individual submissions.
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