Day 1 - Tuesday, September 10
Theme: Problem Solving
Download a PDF version of the Agenda.
Download a PDF walking map to guide you to the Courtyard Marriott.
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9:00 AM - 11:30 AM
Designing Holistic Youth Economic Programming
Room: Ellsworth
Join us for an engaging and interactive training session on designing comprehensive economic programming for youth. This session will provide participants with the tools and knowledge needed to create programs that address the multifaceted needs of young people. Through a blend of theoretical insights and practical exercises, you'll learn key design principles that integrate holistic skill and asset building. Participants will explore ways to expand curriculum overviews and sessions to cover various aspects of youth development, from financial literacy and entrepreneurship to personal growth and community engagement. Our hands-on approach ensures you'll have the chance to apply these principles in real-time, crafting impactful and inclusive economic programming. Participants with all levels of experience with curriculum and program development are welcome.
Facilitators:
Hillary Proctor, Senior Director, Economic Opportunities, Making Cents International
Katherine Atkinson, Advisor, Youth, Y-RIE project in St. Lucia, Making Cents International
Applying YP2LE's MERL Practitioner Toolkit to Youth Economic Opportunities Program
Room: Fenton
Organization(s): USAID, Creative Associates, IREX and Youth Power 2 Learning and Evaluation (YP2LE)
In this training, attendees will learn about and practice applying USAID YP2LE’s newly published PYD MERL Practitioner Toolkit to improve MERL strategies, processes, and implementation. The Toolkit provides practical guidance on how to integrate PYD into MERL approaches for youth-focused, youth-led, and youth-relevant activities. This includes how to integrate PYD into context analyses; program outcomes, interventions, and theories of change; measurement approaches; CLA and monitoring systems; and research and evaluation activities. Cross-cutting topics including youth-responsive and youth-led MERL, systems approaches, inclusive development, and research ethics will also be discussed. Participants will be guided through the Toolkit-by-Toolkit authors and technical advisors, learn about how these approaches have been applied in three workforce development (WFD) and economic opportunities (EO) programs, and complete exercises to practice incorporating PYD into MERL activities.
Trainers:
Melissa Donaher, MEL Specialist, Center for Education, USAID
Sharika Bhattacharya, Advisor, Research, Evaluation, and Learning, Making Cents International
Chelsea Pallatino Trevelline, Senior Specialist, Research, Evaluation, and Learning, Making Cents International
Miguel Nunez, Senior Technical Advisor, Creative Associates International
Mark Meziere, Senior Associate (MEAL) and Research, Skills to Succeed, Save the Children
Brian Batayeh, Implementation Research Technical Advisor, IREX
10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
US Department of Labor Session: Youth Rights at Work
Room: Courtyard by Marriott
This workshop will focus on ways to integrate Youth Rights at Work globally and domestically through programming and policy. During this session, technical experts will share current U.S. government programming that supports youth (16-24 years) on decent quality work pathways from education/skills training to jobs. They will share tools and approaches for developing and implementing decent work opportunities, policy considerations, and ways to empower youth to know their rights in the workplace and/or as self-employed entrepreneurs. This workshop will also demonstrate ways to identify risks such as child labor, forced labor, unsafe work environments, exploitation, sexual harassment, etc., and how to mitigate them, whether you are a youth, program implementer, or policy maker.
Speakers:
Sara Hastings, Unit Chief of Department of Youth Services, Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration
Dieera Fitzgerald, Wage and Hour Associate Administrator, Office of Policy
Sarah Sunderlin Simpson, Senior International Relations Officer, Bureau of International Labor Affairs, Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Sponsor Led - Lunch and Learn Session:
USAID and Education Development Center (EDC)
Room: Spring
EDC Lightning Talk:
Youth in a Just Transition: Solutions at the Nexus of the Climate Agenda, Skills Development, and Youth Employment
Speaker: Melanie Sany, Director, Youth, Workforce Development and Green Economies, Education Development Center
Description:
This lightning talk will discuss the priorities at the nexus of climate action, skills development, and youth employment. EDC’s Melanie Sany will highlight examples of locally-led strategies and solutions for transitioning to a green economy. Participants will learn from the experiences and research findings of Our World, Our Work, EDC’s 10- year initiative to support 1 million youth in pursuing green jobs.
USAID Lightning Talk:
Strengthening Youth Workforce Development Systems: Lessons Learned from the Philippines, Tunisia, and South Africa
Speaker: Melissa Donaher, Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Specialist, USAID
Description:
The talk will explore youth workforce development (YWFD) ecosystem collaboration through findings from case study research in the Philippines, Tunisia, and South Africa. The speaker will discuss the role of government as a critical system actor in scaling sustainable YWFD reforms, and the importance of partnerships among the private sector, government, and civil society. The talk will present key findings and recommendations that are less commonly discussed around YWFD systems change, such as the importance of large-scale data systems, structures and mindsets which support iterative learning and adaptation, and the power of high-level cross-sectoral initiatives to shift how systems actors collaborate. This research was commissioned by USAID to support the design and implementation of more locally led, sustainable youth Activities, but is relevant to implementing partners and local system actors involved in youth education and employment.
Sponsor Led - Lunch and Learn Session:
Partnerships for a Green Future: Catholic Relief Services and Palladium
Room: Ellsworth
Palladium Lightening Talk: Partnerships for a Green Future
Speakers:
Andrew Ireland, Manager, Climate and Nature, Palladium
Katy Vickland, Director of Youth, Education and Workforce Development, Palladium
Description:
The lightning talk will share best practices from the Partnerships for Forests (P4F) program, which facilitates shared-value partnerships between local communities, government, and the private sector to improve forest conservation and reduce CO2 emissions. The session will dive into a case study of JAVARA, an Indonesian food company specializing in forest products and creating sustainable livelihoods for Indigenous youth. The session will also share best practices in forest-friendly partnerships that the audience can apply in their work.
Catholic Relief Services Lightening Talk: Transforming Youth Agriculture: Integrating Young Farmers in SPICES Value Chains
Speaker: Olivia Rasolomampianina, Chief of Party, TSIRO Alliance project, Catholic Relief Services
Description:
CRS' SPICES program offers a transformative path to young farmers. Across the globe, young farmers are leaving the agricultural sector due to challenges ranging from limited access to land to production knowledge gaps and limited incomes. However, there are opportunities to provide young people with sustainable livelihoods in agriculture. One such initiative, working in partnership with companies, is equipping the next generation of farmers with critical skills in production, processing and certification that are focused on high-value crops such as cacao and spices. So, join us to hear about CRS’ approach to support a new generation of farmers!
1:00 PM - 1:30 PM
Summit Opening: Welcome Music – Drummers
1:30 PM - 2:30 PM
Opening Plenary: Towards a Youth Inclusive Green Economy: Levers of Change
Room: Main Stage (Great Hall)
Organization(s): Education Development Center (EDC), United States Agency for International Development, Union Marocaine des Jeunes Leaders, Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet, and Environmental and Energy Study Institute
Youth hold the potential to drive a just transition of the world’s economy while speeding adaptation to climate change. To unleash this potential, evidence suggests that youth-inclusive green job growth requires a multi-stakeholder commitment—not only at the national level, but also at the subnational level.
Drawing from evidence from over 20 countries, this session explores this gap between global, national, and local priorities, and it highlights the key factors for greener, equitable, and sustainable growth. Leading experts will explore these factors along four main themes: education and skills needed for green jobs, the private sector’s role in promoting sustainable practices, the role of youth-inclusive financing, and youth’s role in awareness-raising and behavior change.
Speakers:
Daniel Bresette, President, Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI)
Bama Athreya, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Hub and the Inclusive Development Hub, Bureau for Inclusive Growth, Partnership and Innovation, USAID
Isabel Beltràn, Managing Director, Latin America and the Caribbean, Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP)
Houyame Hakmi, President and Founder, Union Marocaine des Jeunes Leaders; Founder and President, Green Universities for Sustainability
Moderator:
Melanie Sany, Director of Youth, Climate and Workforce Development, EDC
2:45 PM - 4:15 PM
Innovations in Labor Market Diagnostics and Assessments
Room: Great Hall
Organization(s): USAID, TAP-EG, Hillock Global Enterprise, Creative Associates International, World Learning, Education Development Center (EDC), and Education for Employment (EFE)
Labor market assessments (LMAs) have become a necessary first step in effective employment and inclusive market systems development programming. LMAs are recognized as a critical strategy for understanding the labor market demand which guides these types of programs and hopefully helps to deliver more and better jobs and just transitions for youth, women and others traditionally marginalized groups.
Building on the established approaches and considerations for conducting labor market assessments, this panel will share various innovations on LMAs including youth-led LMAs, the use of AI, tools for analyzing green job opportunities, and approaches for analyzing labor market dynamics in conflict contexts. The session will include small group presentations for participants to learn more in depth about each innovation and then identify implications for further programming or broader uptake of these tools.
IDG
International Development Group (IDG) will present a Youth, Women, and Green Jobs Diagnostic (GJD). The tool is a comprehensive, multi-sector, evidence-based, and data-driven inquiry into the conditions and key constraints that hold back the creation of more, better, inclusive, climate-resilient, and environmentally-friendly jobs, and what prevents people from accessing them.
EDC
Through an interactive Local Labor Market Assessments (LLMA) process, the session provides participants hands-on experience on supporting youth transitions to green employment and entrepreneurship. The session will share EDC’s approach and tools for critically analyzing LLMA data while integrating youth voices to bring about concrete and sustainable actions, such as creating a skills map that highlights priority sectors and training programs to provide meaningful youth employment opportunities.
Creative Associates
Youth-led research, including youth-led labor market assessments, empowers young people to significantly influence the future economic landscape. By highlighting their perspectives and actively understanding labor market demand, youth-led initiatives become instrumental in shaping economic policies and opportunities. We will present our inclusive approach to strengthening youth-led research, even in non-permissive environments.
EFE
Labor market assessments based on employer interviews are common and useful but may not provide an overview of the market or assist in identifying emerging or “greening” opportunities. This session will explore the value that AI can add to qualitative skills gap information. In collaboration with the UK Government, EFE used an AI tool to collect and analyze more than 30,000 job offers in Algeria to determine geographical distribution, occupations, professions, requested skills, and levels of required education.
World Learning
As the green economy grows, we need local, cost-effective and sustainable ways to identify emerging opportunities and communicate them to young people, training providers and other stakeholders. World Learning will share an Algerian model of equipping training providers to play this catalytic role and to do so with a gender equity and inclusion lens. Participants will be invited to share their own innovations in creating local, sustainable labor market information systems.
Framing Speakers:
Phillippa Mary Omolo, Hillock Global Enterprise
Sara Johansson de Silva, TAP-EG Project USAID Technical Assistance Project for Economic Growth (TAP-EG) and USAID REFS and IPI Youth, Women and Green Jobs Diagnostic Activity
Breakout Session Speakers:
Daniela Farinas, Senior Manager, Workforce, Entrepreneurship, and Youth, IESC
Aziza El Kolei, Field Director, World Learning Algeria
Jhon Hayden A. Bale, USAID Opportunity 2.0's Youth Technical Lead, EDC
Kelly John Robillos, President of USAID’s Opportunity 2.0 youth network in Iligan City, Philippines.
Karla Yoder, Senior Youth Workforce Specialist, World Learning
Abbey Walsh, Education and Training Manager, Education for Employment
Why Waste it When You can Market It? – Opportunities for Multi-stakeholders in Africa’s Waste Recycling Sector
Room: Spring
Organization(s): Catholic Relief Services, Government of Malawi, Challenge Fund for Youth Employment, VSO, and INCLUDE Knowledge Platform
This interactive workshop highlights the barriers and drivers influencing green youth employment in Africa’s waste recycling sector, sharing research conducted by the INCLUDE Knowledge Platform and the Challenge Fund for Youth Employment, specifically focusing on examining the barriers and drivers from both the business and youth perspectives. The session will also present the case study of CRS’s Malawi Green Corps as an innovative example of a sustainable waste management solution. As a final segment of the session, participants will work in small groups to discuss and further develop recommendations for different stakeholder groups according to the 4 pathways to youth employment in Africa’s waste recycling sector from the presented research: Green Innovation, Green Finance, Green Awareness & Sector Alignment.
Speakers:
Dr. Anika Altaf, Executive Director, INCLUDE Knowledge Platform
Joscha Betke, Knowledge Manager, INCLUDE Knowledge Platform
Carolyn Chidzungu, District Environmental Officer, Government of Malawi
Baxton Chirombo, Program Manager and Youth Focal Point, Catholic Relief Services
Benjamin Nyangulu, Project Officer, Catholic Relief Services
Camee van Knippenberg, Senior Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Associate, Challenge Fund for Youth Employment
Building an Opportunity Youth Led Equity Leadership Program and Network
Room: Fenton
Organization(s): Global Opportunity Youth Network, Aspen Institute
Youth engagement, partnership, and leadership are foundational to the GOYN mission and cut across all aspects of the GOYN approach, from shaping program design to supporting youth-led research to peer-to-peer mentoring. Of critical importance to GOYN is the role of young leaders in steering change, be it through devising innovative solutions, influencing decision makers, or engaging peers to believe that their actions matter.
Against that backdrop and inspired and informed by the GOYN Structural Justice and Equity Framework, GOYN young leaders and partners have designed the global Equity Leadership Program (ELP) - a leadership development program created by and for global opportunity youth to share the skills, tools, and practices they need to enact systems-level change for youth economic mobility.
This youth-led training and session will share important design elements when designing with opportunity youth, the skillsets and mindsets that will advance equitable systems change, specific tools that will help your organization and partners engage in equity focused conversations, with young people at the center.
Trainers:
Joel Miranda, Senior Manager for Global Opportunity Youth Leadership and Partnership, Aspen Institute - Global Opportunity Youth Network.
Scally Manga, Youth Advisor and Equity Leadership Program Facilitator, GOYN Mombasa, SwahiliPot Hub
Rotho Mohammed, Chairperson, GOYN Mombasa Youth Advisory Group
My Golden Circle is Green!
Room: Ellsworth
Organization(s): Aflatoun International
My Golden Circle is Green, which is built around the model “Golden Circle” by Simon Sinek, empowers participants to introspectively define their professional aspirations and motivations with a sustainability-first, pushed, guided, and lead mindset. Utilizing the Golden Circle framework, participants start by envisioning their 'WHAT,' the career goals, then identifying their “WHY” working on backend of “WHAT.”
From here, to bridge between “WHY” and “WHAT,” this session sets the stage for “HOW” (the middle part of the circle). To strategize this “HOW” greenly, the session works through transformative explorations and discussions on effects and emerging trends and need for green economies and skills, skills readiness and solutions for youth to be better prepared and fit into changing self/paid employment opportunities.
By the end, attendees will re-frame their career planning to better fit, adjust with changing economic landscape due to green transitions and contribute meaningfully to the green economy.
Trainers:
Abdullah Alam, Director of Education and Innovations, Aflatoun International
Zunara Nauman, Education specialist, Aflatoun International
Chandni Mehta, Education Specialist, Aflatoun International
Jobtech Platforms: The Greatest Private Sector Partners for Youth Employment Programs
Room: Courtyard by Marriott
Organization(s): BFA Global, Rwazi, and Shortlist
The sector is incredibly poorly understood - that is why the Jobtech Alliance came into existence. Few funders/implementers have engaged with jobtech platforms, and of the few that have, they often failed due to poor partner selection (not understanding what makes for a good vs bad platform), or poor partnership mechanics. Having worked with hundreds of jobtech platforms in Africa, we have built a strong understanding of the business models and impact outcomes of these platforms. By providing frameworks for participants to both understand the sector and make decisions about how to engage with it, we hope to stimulate collaboration.
Trainers:
Michelle Hassan, Program Director, BFA Global
Joseph Rutakangwa, CEO and Founder, Rwazi
Paul Breloff, CEO and Founder, Shortlist
4:15 PM - 4:35 PM
Transition/Break
4:35 PM - 4:50 PM
Headline Address - Dean Karlan
Room: Main Stage (Great Hall)
Organization(s): USAID
Speaker: Dean Karlan, Chief Economist, United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
4:50 PM - 5:50 PM
USAID Plenary: What the Heck is UDL? Using UDL to Design Inclusive YWFD Programs
Room: Main Stage (Great Hall)
Organization(s): United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
At the 2022 Global Disability Summit, USAID pledged to integrate Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles into all new education programs by 2026. While many applauded this pledge as a demonstration of USAID’s commitment to equity and inclusion, many people were also left wondering, what the heck is UDL? In this plenary, we will explore what UDL is, and how it can be applied in youth workforce development programming via practical examples from USAID activities. We will also discuss how UDL benefits all learners, not just those with disabilities, and how many YWFD programs are already applying the three UDL principles of multiple means of engagement, representation, and action and expression.
Speakers:
Meghan Hussey, Inclusive Education Advisor, USAID
Shukhrat Amanov, Deputy Chief of Party, USAID Uzbekistan, Youth Employment Skills Activity
Karla Yoder, Senior Youth Workforce Specialist, World Learning
Collen Marawanyika, OVC Specialist, USAID Zimbabwe
Moderator:
Ann Hershkowitz, Youth and Workforce Development Advisor, USAID
5:50 PM - 7:30 PM
Networking Reception
Room: Main Atrium
Visit the Main Corridor to check out the following Poster Sessions:
From Idea to Impact: How to Leverage Climate Finance for Your Green Enterprises and Initiatives
(Siifsiin Youth Initiative)
Leveraging the Seed Funding Initiative for Eco-preneurs to maximize economic opportunities
(Youth Climate Council Ghana)
Seeding Change: Empowering Entrepreneurs for Sustainable Agriculture in Marginalized Communities
(Calls Over Ridges)
Renewable hydroelectric power plant for better climate conservation
(REHYPLA)
Harnessing Geographic Data for a Sustainable Future: Empowering Youth Through OpenStreetMap (OSM) in the Era of Green Economy
(Youth Mappers)
Leveraging The Makusudi Game for Youth Entrepreneurship and Economic Growth
(Q2 Impact)
Transformative Life Skills for Climate and Environmental Action, Leadership and Employability
(JSI Research and Training Institute)
Youth Livelihoods, Resilience, and Sustainability of WFD Outcomes: Exploring Cross-sectoral Impacts from Youth Programming in Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Rwanda
(YP2LE, NORC and Mathematica)
Seeds of Change: Empowering Rural Youth through Agricultural Market Resilience in Conflict Contexts
(FHI 360 AND Vermi Compost Enterprise)
Working Together on Systems Change: Lessons from Deploying an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Framework for Youth-led Social Enterprises in Nigeria
(IYF and Leadership, Effectiveness, Accountability and Professionalism (LEAP) Africa)
Minecraft Mod Demo
(Weeyacom LLC)