E-News on the Pacific Youth Festival... N° 1... E-News on the Pacific Youth Festival... N° 1... E-News on the Pacific Youth Festival... E-News on the Pacific Youth Festival... N° 1... E-News on the Pacific Youth Festival... N° 1... E-Ne

Pacific young minds together to lead changes in their communities (Tahiti from 17-22 July, 2006)

In July 2004, the Third World Youth Festival took place in Barcelona, Spain. Approximately 10,500 young people gathered for a nine-day forum where youth platforms from different continents presented activities, shared their experiences and views on major and current challenges youth face in today’s world. Only very few people from the Pacific region attended the event.

The Ministry for youth affairs in French Polynesia and the "Union Polynésienne pour la Jeunesse (UPJ)", Tahitian major youth organisation, want to offer the young Pacific people an opportunity to have their voices heard and  invite you to come to the first Youth Festival in the Pacific.

1,400 young people from all over the Pacific are expected to join their minds to the Youth Forum in Tahiti, in July this year. Pacific key speakers selected for their advocacy role in fields that are covered by the Festival (see below the themes for the Festival) will address the young people and hopefully inspire them to lead changes in their communities. There will also be workshops led by young people themselves which aim at fostering exchanges between youth leaders.

If you are between 16 and 30 years old, if you are a youth leader active in civil society and you want to contribute with ideas and proposals during the general conferences and topical workshops, register for the Festival. We need your full participation and involvement. We need you to take interest in this event.

You are between 16 and 30 years old. You are either a member of a youth organisation or you are an individual interested in the event. In either case, you will need to complete a registration form and send it to the focal point of your country called hereafter "head of delegation". [Download the Registration Form (PDF 106 ko)]

If you are under 18, your parent(s) will need to sign a parental authorisation allowing the head of delegation of your country to be responsible for you during the Festival. [Download an example of a Parental Authorisation (PDF 8 ko)]

Here is the list of heads of delegation in different countries around the region.

School system: Truancy, Illiteracy, Learning problems (Why? How to remedy?)

Cultural approach to school: Traditional school systems versus Western school systems, Complementarities of the two systems, Adapting educational teachings and methods to our cultures

Awareness and Complementarities of: Formal education (school, university), Non formal education (NGOs), Informal education (family, media, friends)

Continuing Education: Vocational training, Non vocational: opportunity to get back to education, alternative options 

Regional training system: Training mobility (i.e. Erasmus, Socrates), Degrees’ recognition and equivalence within the region, Uniformity of school holidays – common periods of holidays to enable regional meetings

Regional Exchanges: Common foreign languages: French/English, Cultural exchanges in the region

Involvement of Youth in School: Participative role of youth at school and in the school system: conception of educational programmes, Involvement in decision making at primary and secondary levels (not only in universities)

Work Law: Values, rights and responsibilities, Exploitation of young employees, Adjusting work laws to cultural and local specificities, Local jobs for young people during their free time, Regulations adapted to sectors (e.g.: tourism…)

Governmental policies against work hardship

Unemployment: Smallness of the work marketplace

Poverty: Need to redefine poverty in Oceania

Child labour and exploitation: lack of regulations to protect children and youth

Notion of work in traditional culture: Work versus cultural views, Value of work in traditional system, Reconciliation between the Western concept of work and the Pacific traditional concepts, Flexible work contract : temporary, seasonal, according to the needs

Support and promote: Youth initiatives in free enterprise, Community jobs, Local jobs : Positive discrimination : priority of jobs for locals &  Protection and promotion of local jobs

Need to help youth join the labour force and be aware of work perspectives: Building bridges: Alternate learning opportunities, Equivalence of Acquired Experience : social promotion, Contract for Volunteers to Development (CVD) : for example system in French Polynesia to help students with Masters degrees acquire a professional experience

Use our natural resources today without jeopardising the heritage of the future generations

Rational and reasonable management of natural resources: Find solutions to use environment as a source of activities and resource, Economic development to be reconciled with respect of nature (notion of rahui: fallow)

Responsible consumption: Respect of social, economic and environmental development, Eco tourism, Eco citizenship,    Waste management, Waste recycling and treatment, Waste management and public health: prevention of diseases (dengue, leptospirosis, malaria ….), Water management : Drought issues: threat of fires…, Water sanitation, Pollution; Development and promotion of renewable energies; Atolls drowning (climate change)

Fair trade:  Promote and favour local products against the cheaper imported goods

In traditional culture: Transmission of legacy: how?, Necessary preservation for the future, Harmonious life with nature

Unity in cultural diversity

Cultural and linguistic rights: Law to protect cultural and traditional knowledge : copyright – intellectual rights of a community, Preservation of culture, Reinforcement of cultural expression in school to counteract the rampant western influence

Identities: Importance of native language, Importance of native cultures (traditions), Point of view of youth in an independent or non independent country

Right of a nation to self determination

Protection of traditional culture: Lost of values because of the disintegration of the family, Omnipresence of  religion:    Spiritual culture, factor of social peace and cohesion?, Respect of spiritual differences

A sound mind in a sound body

Prevention policies: Methods: Assessing the current situation, Evaluating the situation, Promoting through young volunteer ambassadors (focal points), Action plans: Education for health: Prevention of obesity &  Fight against malnutrition; Family planning: Parents’ roles & Education of teenage parents; Campaign against drug addiction (smoking, alcohol, drugs …); Prevention of suicide; Mental health; Place of discussion and hearing for youth voices; Hygiene and sport activities

Sexuality, still a taboo subject: Free access to condoms and any means of contraception (funds UNAIDS, Global Fund), Fight against discrimination, Violence and abuse, Fight against trivializing of aggressive behaviours

HIV and AIDS: Lack or no access to information and education; Other means of prevention than abstinence, Campaign against discrimination, Safe sex

Access to public health service: Free health service for youth; Health Services not very welcoming for young people; Disparity in health service : isolation of the islands, Vulgarization of the medical  language to be more accessible for young people

Policies to promote equality of treatment according to: Gender: Gender equality, Gender and development, Roles and duties of youth in traditional society; Sexual orientation; Sense of belonging to a culture; Age

Fight against all forms of discriminations

Equality of chances: Gender equality, Equal access to leisure activities, Equal treatment for specific groups: disabled…

Existing conventions: For child rights, young women… (CEDAW…)

Youth for peace

Liberty of: Ideology,  thinking, information, expression; free circulation of ideas and people

Inter generation

Openness: Search of dialogue, Multiculturalism, Mobility, Peaceful meetings in the Pacific

Resolutions of conflicts: Combat against all forms of violence (oral, behavioural, psychological…), Conciliation, Reconciliation,  Forgiveness

Actions for peace: Forum of discussion on peace launched on the web in January 2006, Support for humanitarian causes

Active and responsible citizens

Education for citizenship: The young, actor of his or her own development, Training of young delegates in the school system,   Emergence of responsible youth at all levels, Education to choices : development of the critical sense; Solidarity

Participation and promotion of youth involvement in: Youth associations, National organisations, Youth councils

Participation of youth to the life of the city: Different levels of responsibilities, Implication for youth in politics

Education of citizenship and civics: Rights and duties of the young citizens, Knowledge of the institutions, Promoting national pride

Political morals: Political integrity, Political accountability, Institutional transparency

Exercise of democracy: Mode of expression and citizens’ participation, Democracy shortcomings

National Youth policies: Participation of youth to the definition and implementation of youth policies, Development of an evaluation system to measure the impact of these policies on youth, National youth policies adopted by government for sustainable development