• 2019 Y7 Summit

  • The 2019 Context: Looking at the G7 Biarritz Summit

    For the second time, the Open Diplomacy Institute organized the Y7, ahead of the G7 Summit in Biarritz. The Y7 was held from June 9th to 13th in Paris under the high patronage of Mr Emmanuel Macron, President of the French Republic. Delegations of young leaders representing all G7 countries as well as the African Union negotiated and drafted a final text to make concrete recommendations to G7 Heads of State and Government.

    The 2019 Goal: Building a Fair Future

    The 2019 Y7 Summit focused on building a Fair Future in a world where young people are too often excluded from decisions that shape their lives. Delegates highlighted the urgent need to tackle rising inequalities, stagnant social mobility, and persistent gender gaps that prevent entire segments of society from contributing to—and benefiting from—economic progress. They also emphasized the responsibility of governments, businesses, and civil society to ensure fair taxation, inclusive growth, and equal opportunities for all. With the digital transformation reshaping jobs and amplifying both opportunities and risks, young leaders called for human-centric technology, stronger skills systems, safer online spaces, and ambitious climate and biodiversity action. Their message was clear: only bold, coordinated policies rooted in fairness can ensure that the future remains sustainable, inclusive, and empowering for generations to come.

    The 2019 Y7 Call to action on the G7 Leaders

    "We, the Y7, convened in Paris to call on the G7 and the African Union Leaders to urgently work for a fair future. The accelerating climate crisis and the ongoing technological disruptions amplify existing inequalities and have a devastating impact on social cohesion.

    The youth have lost faith in our systems. This dramatically lowers our capacity to pave the way for the future we want, leaving more and more people behind. Current policies do not reflect the interests of the youth. There should be nothing about us, without us.

    We must define success by current and future societal wellbeing to sustainably and intersectionally tackle inequalities. Our youth envision a brighter future with intact ecosystems, equitable access to opportunities, and inclusive policies for all.

    The Y7 demands that the G7 Leaders, partnering with the African Union, take bold and multilateral action to achieve and finance the Sustainable Development Goals for a just and fair transition by:

    • Declaring climate emergency, restating the States’ commitment to the Paris Agreement, and enhancing their Nationally Determined Contributions to guarantee sustainable future. Youth urge for a full decarbonisation of the world economy and sustainable agricultural practices to uphold climate justice.
    • Declaring that the right to access a neutral and affordable Internet is a Human Right. This enables the exercise of other Human Rights such as: the rights to freedom of opinion and expression, to work, to education, to healthcare, and to non-discrimination.
    • Commiting to women’s participation by designing all public policies with a feminist approach, especially health and education, since they will suffer from disproportionate impacts of the climate crisis and technological disruptions on top of existing economic inequalities.
    • Launching an alliance for fair globalization with the wellbeing of present and future generations at the center of policy making and evaluation with clear-cut indicators.
    • We appreciated the opportunity to gather in Paris under the Honorable Patronage of Mr. Emmanuel Macron, President of the French Republic, and to discuss these recommendations to Mr. Gabriel Attal, Mr. Bruno Le Maire, and Ms. Brune Poirson, members of the French government, as well as with senior members of the National Assembly and the Senate. The Y7 looks forward to personally presenting these recommendations to G7 leaders at the 2019 G7 Summit in Biarritz."

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