2019 Commonwealth Young Person of the Year
The Commonwealth is offering exceptional young people who are making a difference in their communities a chance to win a Commonwealth Youth Award. Nominations are opening for the 2019 edition of the awards, which includes a cash grant and a trip to attend the awards ceremony in London next March, during Commonwealth Week.
This year, the Youth Awards take place during the same week as International Youth Day – the UN’s annual celebration of the role of young people in creating positive change across the world. The theme of the Day is ‘Safe Spaces for Youth’. It focuses on protecting young people’s dignity and safety and helping them to make valuable contributions to development work, particularly in relation to the internationally agreed Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Sixteen finalists will be shortlisted from four Commonwealth regional categories: Africa and Europe; Asia; the Caribbean and Canada; and the Pacific. A winner will be selected from each region, and one exceptional entrant will be awarded the Commonwealth Young Person of the Year.
Location: United Kingdom
Benefits
• Finalists will receive a trophy, a certificate and cash grants to help them continue their development work.
• All finalists will be awarded £1,000.
• Each selected regional winner will receive an additional £2,000, bringing their total win to £3000, and the Commonwealth Young Person of the Year will also receive an additional cash grant of £2,000, bringing her/his total award to £5000.
• The award gives the nominees a global platform to promote their innovations, and some funding to help them scale up their development projects.
Eligibilities
• Nominees must be aged 15 to 29 years;
• Nominees must be a citizen of a Commonwealth member country;
• Applicants must have been engaged in development work for more than 12 months – either in a professional or voluntary capacity
• Nominees must have a strong track record of implementing innovative ideas and linking their development work and its impact to one of the 17 SDGs;
• Nominees must have demonstrated an understanding of the importance of youth engagement in key areas of development.
• Entrants can nominate themselves or be nominated by someone who is not a relative and who can testify to their work.
Eligible Regions: Commonwealth Member Countries
APPLICATION PROCESS
Entrants are required to apply online through the given link.
Application Deadline: October 31, 2018
