Young people and the future of humanitarian action

We are living in complex uncertain times, characterised by rapid technological change and rising inequality. Formal and structured institutions won’t meet the shifting needs of communities alone, and millions are taking action in more decentralised and networked ways. Young people play a critical role in this new era of social change — influencing systems and sparking movements to respond to the challenges we face globally.

Change can and must be led at the community level. Led by those with lived experience, led by the connectors and influencers, led by those who will transform our future — led by young people.

In 2018, Australian Red Cross, in partnership with Oaktree, implemented a exploration of youth action and participation. We invited a diverse group of young people from across Australia to share their experiences about what the future of doing good looks like. We listened, and will keep listening, as we connect and mobilise our networks, experience and resources to amplify the voices and action of young people to do good in more immediate, personally meaningful and impactful ways.

Over the last 2 years we’ve been collaborating with our existing youth network and other youth-led organisations, to better understand how young people are taking action in Australia today.

This research was designed and delivered by our youth network, in partnership with Oaktree. More than 1,500 young people participated in a national survey, focus groups or workshops across every state and territory of Australia.

We had some simple questions, like what are the ways that young people currently take humanitarian action?

And, what do young people see as benefits to taking action or volunteering?

We also asked what gets in the way of taking action:

Through discussions across the country we explored what the future of doing good might look like, as well as, what young people need most to be able to create positive social change:

These insights have helped us to design how we work with a growing network of young people to mobilise the power of humanity. Follow us on Instagram, FaceBook and Medium #REDxFutures #REDxYouth.