Citizen You

The CitizenYou Commonwealth Youth Summit took place at the University of Sunderland between 2-7 July 2002. Over 200 young men and women aged 18-25 attended as representatives of some 50 Commonwealth countries. They came together to debate citizenship issues, exchange knowledge, and brainstorm ideas for stimulating young citizen action in their home communities. The themes were Democracy & Participation, Globalisation and Rights & Responsibilities. The slogan of the summit expressed the importance of activism by young people themselves. The notion that citizens acting on their own and in groups can make change, received whole-hearted support.

Organised by the Commonwealth Youth Exchange Council (CYEC), CitizenYou followed home stay visits for the international delegates in locations across the UK. Both hosts and guests, who were youth development professionals, activists and volunteers, had the opportunity to explore and share perspectives on active citizenship.

Appropriately for a summit discussing democracy and participation, CitizenYou employed a youth planning team including representatives from the British Youth Council, Sunderland Students’ Union and local youth organisations in the North East such as Young Asian Voices. The facilitators were also young, some of them drawn from the Commonwealth Youth Caucus and others with experience of the latest Commonwealth Youth Forum (Australia 2001).

As well as the Vision Statement and Recommendations, participants worked on plans for citizenship resources, to be followed up on return to their home countries. Participants resolved to forge partnerships and continue to work together and debate ideas using the CitizenYou website. CitizenYou was just the beginning.