United Network of Young Peacebuilders (UNOY), core support, 2018-2022

Between 2019-2021, the youth-led networks membership ranged from 106-125 organisations across 63-68 countries. With the vision of a world free from all forms of violence, where young people have the power to transform conflicts, youth participation is real and meaningful for all, and young people actively partner for peace without fear or threat, UNOY provides a platform for exchange on youth-led peacebuilding, unites youth in advocacy at local, national, regional and global levels, and supports young peacebuilders in developing capacities to manage and implement initiatives in support of the Youth, Peace and Security (YPS) agenda. One of the initial steps UNOYs partnership with Sida achieved, was to further the networks decentralisation and strengthen regional ownership. Six Regional Coordinators (originally two) are now able to more directly engage member organisations from the different regions in activities, and ensure that young peacebuilders are represented more meaningfully at local, regional, as well as global levels. Through this decentralisation and active engagement by the Regional Coordinators, regional priorities and needs are captured, knowledge exchange between members facilitated, and capacity building provided based on locally identified needs. Each year, the six Regional Coordinators are brought together along with the International Steering Group and the International Secretariat for a week long reflection and planning session in the Hague around regional priorities. The Young Peacebuilders Forum held in 2019 in Colombia, also strengthened regional networking where 60 young peacebuilders from 25 countries came together. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the intended yearly event has since then been postponed until July 2023. However, two years after the Forum in Colombia, 70% of participants indicated that they still feel that they are part of a larger network of youth activists in their region and beyond. UNOY supports members by providing policies, manuals, guidelines and training materials in English, French, Spanish, and Arabic, based on network members raised needs. Workshops are organised both in person and digitally, and capacities are strengthened further through exchange between network members. When Sida decided to partner with UNOY in 2018, UNOY presented three strategic outcomes based on the Strategic Plan for 2016-2020: - Empowered youth leaders and organisations - Youth as partners for peace - Challenging the barriers against youth inclusion Through its capacity development programme, UNOY empowered youth leaders and organisations with skills and knowledge to transform conflicts, promote peace, and support civic engagement. Youth Advocacy Teams train young activists to use the on-line resources available to advance the YPS agenda. During 2020, specific training was also provided on financial sustainability. Through small grants from different funders, member organisations have been able to improve their financial sustainability. This has become particularly successful as most members of youth organisations work on a voluntary basis. In 2020, parts of Sidas support was also used as small grants for three youth-led projects on peaceful responses and community resilience to the consequences of Covid-19. By sustaining a Pool of Trainers throughout the years, and facilitating access to various toolkits, such as the Youth4Peace Training Toolkit, capacities have continued to strengthen among the networks members. UNOY works to mobilise youth to promote peace by engaging members of the network to represent UNOY in different multilateral platforms (UN General Assembly, UN High-level Political Forum, ECOSOC Youth Forum, among others) and participate in advocacy activities following trainings provided through UNOY. Through the six Regional Coordinators, young peacebuilders have gained more visibility both globally and regionally. In addressing the structural barriers that prevent youth inclusion, UNOY Peacebuilders among others fed in to the third UN Security Council Resolution on YPS (2535) in 2020, including important recommendations from members on access to funding and the need to protect civic space for young peacebuilders. Other global events included participation in the Open Debate on YPS and two Arria-Formula meetings held by the UN Security Council. At regional and national levels, UNOY contributed to YPS frameworks for the AU, the MENA Coalition, Finlands National Action Plan, the Canadian YPS Coalition, the YEMEN YPS pact, the Nigerian coalition on YPS, the US YPS Coalition and the Dutch at Heart strategy. In 2021, the network came together to develop its new Strategic Plan through a participatory process that led to five change goals for the period 2021-2025: - We are protected - We are resourced - We are meaningful participants - We are equal partners - We are creative changemakers The 2021 narrative report Young, loud and mobilising 4 peace reported significant advancements under Change Goals 1-3 that were in focus during the first year of implementation of UNOYs new strategy. Progress was also noted under Change Goal 4 (Equal partners) and Groundworks for Peace. Activities were analysed to show actual outcomes and provide an insight on the impact of UNOYs work in supporting young peacebuilders across the world. Highlights from 2021 include the publication of 12 new resources with 5,185 downloads from the UNOY website; 149 young people taking part in training opportunities on gender, protection, research, advocacy and conflict transformation; the launch of the YPS Fund with Search for Common Ground; the Peace Corner podcast reaching 7,931 listeners in 50 countries; UNOY social media reaching 1,109,337 people in 50 countries; and creation of three new YPS communities - the Asia Youth Advocacy Team, the EU YPS Coalition and the UNOY alumni community. We are protected Focus was on safeguarding young peoples rights to civic engagement and promoting a rights-based approach to peacebuilding in an attempt to bridge the youth peacebuilding and human rights fields. This was among others done through the Protection Working Group of the Global Coalition on YPS (GCYPS) and by contributing to the global evidence base report commissioned by the UN Office of the Secretary Generals Envoy on Youth (OSGEY): If I Disappear Global Report on Protecting Young People in Civic Space. Through the various initiatives in bringing the lived experiences of young peacebuilders on the ground to global and high-level spaces, UNOY were invited to join the Vuka! Coalition in May 2021, a civil society movement for coordinated action to reclaim civic space. In collaboration with the Global Network of Women Peacebuilders (GNWP), a civil society protection protocol was developed and launched in April 2021. To accompany the protocol, UNOY published a resource library with toolkits, guidelines and manuals that was downloaded 900 times. In the Americas, ten young peacebuilders were trained in preventing, mitigating, and reacting to threats. With the developments in Afghanistan in August 2021, the protocol assisted in successfully supporting dozens of Afghan members seeking safety through the newly established alliance with GNWP, Search for Common Ground, OSGEY, and Vuka! Coalition. We are resourced UNOY members are provided with skills, knowledge and funds to carry out their peacebuilding initiatives. Among the on-line toolkits and guiding materials, the Youth4Peace Training Toolkit was the most used resource in 2021, along with the new Checklist for Meaningful Youth Engagement. The Pool of Trainers established in 2020 went through a Training of Trainers workshop in October 2021 and a networking event with the regional coordinators raised new ideas for programmes and workshops based on region-specific needs. In May 2021, the Youth Excel: Our Knowledge, Leading Change programme was launched in collaboration with a consortium led by the International Research and Exchange Board to empower young people to use implementation research to strengthen local, national and global development efforts. With funding being the most common need raised by UNOY members (76%), additional support was provided by raising members capacities in fundraising, and by assisting with funding opportunities. In partnership with Search for Common Ground, a YPS Fund was launched that over the coming 10 years will develop into a fully youth-owned fund. Subgranting was also provided directly by UNOY also in 2021 and previous grantees showed evidence of having secured funding beyond the projects funded through UNOY in 2020, among them Building Blocks for Peace (Nigeria) who received a grant from the African Union Youth4Peace programme. In addition, UNOY members have taken part in advocacy to promote youth-accessible funding, among others by contributing to the financing background paper to the UN Secretary-Generals second report on YPS, and through a roundtable session at the Stockholm Forum on Peace and Development in May 2021 together with Search for Common Ground and UNFPA. We are meaningful participants This goal was implemented by developing a youth-led evidence base for YPS; shaping the YPS agenda at the global, national, and local levels; and bringing youth perspectives to wider peace and security conversations. In 2020, UNOY facilitated the establishment of a YPS Research Network, leading knowledge production on YPS, that released a first YPS Journal in March 2021 written by young researchers. A Peace Corner Podcast was also developed with partners from GPPAC and The Civil Society Platform for Peacebuilding and Statebuilding, reaching a total of 13,000 listeners. At a regional level, evidence base research papers, workshops and policy briefs on youth-led peacebuilding were produced in Asia, through Amplifying Leadership of Local Youth in South Asia, Africa, through the Borderlands Youth Forum (Burundi, DRC, Uganda), and the Americas, through Towards a Latin American Agenda on YPS. At global level, UNOY continues to co-chair the Global Coalition on YPS, and GPPACs YPS working group, and launched the Civil Society Working Group on YPS with GNWP. Through 32 speaking engagements, 25% of UNOY members represented the network in external advocacy engagements. UNOY also contributed to the consultations for and development of the UN Secretary-Generals second report on YPS, published in March 2022 and continued to lead or be active members of 14 YPS coalitions and networks at regional and national levels, including the Asia Pacific Interagency Thematic Working Group on YPS, the United States YPS Coalition, and the EU YPS Coalition. We are equal partners While not prioritised in the 2021 Work Plan, UNOY wanted to overcome the tendency to request youth participation without adequate benefits by developing a Meaningful Youth Engagement Checklist in August 2021. The checklist assists youth and non-youth partners to ensure impact through meaningful youth engagement. The list is frequently used, with 800 downloads in 2021, and referred to both by the OSGEY as well as during the event held by the EU YPS Coalition on Beyond Tokenism: Meaningful Youth Engagement in EU Peace and Security Efforts. Groundworks for peace Inclusive and sustainable participation in the network was maintained, both through the decentralized organisation of the network, as well as within the International Secretariat. At regional level, cooperation and joint action are encouraged through regional action plans, and 78 % of members attended at least one regional online meeting. To advance decentralisation further, a Working Group on Network Development was formed with updated guidelines for members. In addition, former UNOY members are now able to continue to engage through the UNOYs Alumni Community, launched in September 2021. The solidarity and support within the network was specifically shown in August 2021 when UNOY members (and alumni) around the world mobilised in support of their peers. The Asia Youth Advocacy Team (Asia-YAT) wrote a solidarity statement that was signed by 40 member organisations and 29 other individuals and Afghan members were also supported to seek safety outside of Afghanistan. Youth for Peace International (India) contributed by providing mental health helpline to Afghans. Within the International Secretariat, new policy documents were released, including on Anti-Corruption, Procurement Rules, and Information Security. A Fundraising Process & Roadmap and a Communications Strategy for 2021-2025 were also developed. Efforts were made to ensure a good working environment for Secretariat staff, based on the guidelines developed during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 on working safely from home, through coaching sessions and a first weekend-long retreat. Network Report The most common thematic areas covered by UNOY members include peace education; civic action & community building; and gender equality. Almost half of the members also worked on participation in peace processes and/or reconciliation initiatives; countering and/or preventing violent extremism; and governance structures or policies (advocacy, democratic participation). The number of members reporting on climate and environmental action doubled in 2021 to 22 members. Out of all network members, 88% work on a voluntary basis. Apart from challenges in raising funds for youth-led peacebuilding, members also see representation and support from local decision-making and socio-economic constraints as limiting their engagement. New agreement with Sida Based on the positive results, the strength of the network in raising young voices through peacebuilding across 60 countries, and UNOYs continued efforts to advance work under the networks Strategic Plan, Sida on 22 June 2022 decided to continue to support UNOY with 18,5 MSEK over the period 1 July 2022 to 31 December 2025 (Dox:023098/22). While results for 2022 only will be sent to Sida on 1 August 2023 the Sida-UNOY Evaluation Meeting on 14 December 2022 provided Sida with more results from the first grant period for 1 January to 30 June 2022. Advancements include co-leading the Youth Excel protection work, inspired by the UNOY Protection protocol that was made available in Albanian, Arabic, English, French, and Spanish. A peer-support group was also piloted with a peace psychologist. Protection and Financial Sustainability Training was held in the MENA region while 50 fellows were trained on advocacy through the ALLY-project, and three regional workshops held with the Pool of Trainers. UNOY co-organised the High-level Global Conference on Youth-Inclusive Peace Processes together with UN partners. The event was held virtually on 20-21 January 2022 and was co-hosted by the State of Qatar, and the Governments of Finland and Colombia. UNOY also held a youth pre-event and online sessions in preparation for the conference, while twelve members participated as speakers. Engagement through other networks continued where UNOY co-chairs the GCYPS, engaged in its Protection and Financing working groups and launched the working group on Climate. In the UN Secretary Generals report on YPS for 2022, four UNOY activities are mentioned as positive examples of fostering partnerships, protection, meaningful youth engagement, and youth-accessible funding. UNOY members also engaged regionally through the advocacy teams, Youth Promoting Peaceful and Cohesive Societies in Europe, and the national implementation of YPS in countries such as Nigeria and Cameroon. Several policies and tools were published, such as the revised version of the Gender Toolkit, and the training on gender transformative approaches.

Sida supports the United Network of Young Peacebuilders (UNOY) through core funding that will enable the network to strengthen its mission to unite youth organisations working to build peace across the world. By furthering the regionalization of the network, enhancing collaboration, ownership and gender sensitivity and by strengthening the network's International Secretariat, UNOY will be able to go beyond short-term, project-based activities and scale up all four action areas in support of its Strategic Plan for 2016-2020: Strengthening organisations as mobilisers of young peacebuilders; Developing young people's capacities for conflict transformation; Building a global network with a shared feeling of ownership; Raising youth voices through advocacy. UNOY Peacebuilders key purpose is to support and empower its members by enabling them to truly boost the power of peace. Members of the network can benefit from trainings and on-line workshops, but also assist other members through cross-learning experiences and peer-to-peer support. Members of the network have access to common tools such as a hands-on guide on monitoring, evaluation and learning and a UNSCR 2250 Toolkit for Youth and practical guide. To strengthen individual capacities, UNOY Peacebuilders offer Training of Trainers to develop skills in leading conflict transformation through 8 week-long online training prior to an onsite training and multiplier activities at local level. As advocacy is central to peacebuilding in shaping policy and practice, young people are also trained to become stronger advocates. Out of the young people trained in 2015, 83% later indicated that they applied their acquired skills in their work. Milestones in UNOYs Advocacy work includes the members contributions to the adoption of the August 2015 Amman Declaration on Youth, Peace, and Security; the adoption of UNSCRs 2250 and 2419 and the UNSC Open Debate on YPS in April 2018. At a regional level, UNOY members among others contributed to the November 2017 adoption of the Abidjan Declaration and the Youth Agenda of AU-EU Youth Plug-In Initiative. In an effort to build a stronger global network, UNOY Peacebuilders has focused more and more on decentralization through a new regional structure within the network. Members also meet on a yearly basis at the annual Young Peacebuilders Forum, created to provide a dynamic environment for young peacebuilders to interact and undertake informal learning that has direct impact on their work on the ground. Sidas support to UNOY Peacebuilders aims at encouraging a broader sense of ownership among its members, strengthening the network to act as an interlocutor between grassroots organisations and the international peacebuilding community, and channeling local youth-led peacebuilding to the regional and global levels. Sida also foresees that support to UNOY Peacebuilders will further assist global efforts to carry the recommendations of the Progress Study on Youth, Peace and Security and Security Council Resolutions 2250 and 2419 forward.