The 21st Century...
In the forward to A User's Guide for the 21st Century Al Gore writes:
"Despite the wonderful technological advances of the twentieth century, we still generate power and fuel our vehicles with coal, oil, and gas -and the combustion of those fuels is what is heating up the planet. Meanwhile, more than a billion people find themselves still trapped in dire poverty... Millions of children still die from preventable diseases and malnutrition, and throughout much of the world, violence, corruption, terrorism, and oppression are still all too frequently the realities of daily life. Each one of these problems is serious. Together, they add up to signs that this is a turning point in human civilization, one that requires great moral leadership and general responsibity. We have a great challenge. However, because we understand the root causes of these problems, we can also join together to solve them. We need a new vision of the future."
During the United States' civil war, USA President Lincoln wrote:
"...our case is new, so we must think anew, and act anew."
It seems to me that the juxposition of these two quotes paints a very accurate picture of where we stand as a global community. We have at our finger tips a tremendous amount of resources. Resources in the form communication technology, new ideas, knowledge of how/why the challenges of our global society exist, etc.... We -all people, everywhere- also have a tremendous amount of power in the form of human capital... not just for economic advancement -but, more importantly, for social entrepreneurship, volunteerism, and community building.
It seems the challenge of the next generation will be to take advantage of these resources to meet the greatest needs of our era. All the youth in One World Youth Project are already taking a tremendous step in rising up to this challenge! Our volunteer staff members are continually impressed with your actions, communication with your sister-groups, and curriculum submissions! Although the world faces serious concerns- the 21st century is also in good hands!
Time magazine recently published an article regarding the need to revise school systems in order to better prepare youth for the 21st century. Building off of this conversation, One World Youth Project chose the following theme for our upcoming One World North America Youth Summit: Building Active 21st Century Citizenship: Meeting Unique Challenges with Innovative Solutions. The summit (held in Washington DC, March 28th through April 1st) will focus on the following 21st century skills: global awareness, creativity, information & media literacy, communication skills and emotional intelligence, information-communication-technology literacy, collaboration skills, problem solving skills, civic literacy, health awareness, and entrepreneurial skills.
What do YOU think are important 21st century skills?
OWYP youth participants: feel free to respond via the OWYP message-boards!
Cheers,
Jessica
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Jessica Rimington
President & Founder,
One World Youth Project
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