11 September 2013: Over 700 young people gathered for the BYND 2015 Global Youth Summit, which focused on youth social media platforms, innovation and the role of technology in development. The Summit, which aimed to get young people involved in the discussions around the post-2015 development agenda, resulted in the BYND 2015 Global Youth Declaration, drafted with input from thousands of young people online.

The Summit took place in San Jose, Costa Rica, from 9-11 September 2013, and was convened by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and the Government of Costa Rica.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon delivered a statement to the conference through his Special Envoy for Youth, Ahmad Alhendawi. He encouraged young people to engage in the UN, and spoke of the importance of information and communications technologies (ICTs), highlighting that “ICTs will play a central role in our efforts to enhance our efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and define and pursue a post-2015 sustainable development agenda.” He called on youth to use ICTs to benefit their “communities and the world.”

The Summit engaged over 3,000 participants online through social media and webcast technologies. Ideas contributed by participants in person and online included: the need for governments to engage more people through open means; the importance of a practicable and innovative education programs; and the role of ICTs in solving environmental, health and natural disaster challenges.

The Youth Statement was drafted by participants and voted on over 15,000 times by online youth. The statement calls on Member States, civil society and the private sector to foster innovation in order to build the future they want. [BYND 2015 Global Youth Summit Website] [Statement of UN Secretary-General] [UN Press Release] [Global Youth Summit Methodologies] [BYND 2015 Global Youth Declaration]