New report from The Bartlett Development Planning Unit on young people and urban governance

A new report from The Bartlett Development Planning Unit has found that despite their strong interest in urban issues, young people face significant barriers to engagement in formal governance processes. Many lack direct opportunities to participate in decision-making, particularly those from groups such as refugees (in Lebanon) or migrants (in Indonesia), and those from economically disadvantaged communities. 

The report which presents findings from the first phase of the Co-producing Digital Platforms for Youth Inclusive Urban Governance (YUP) Project, explored how young people’s areas of interest in urban development, and modes of participation, were strongly influenced by gender. Girls and young women were more concerned with issues of mental health, and with the need for safe spaces in cities. They were also more subject to family and community controls on their city-shaping activities. 

In Lebanon, a deep distrust of government institutions has led many young people to become disengaged from traditional governance structures, turning instead to social media and grassroots activism as alternative spaces for civic engagement, and instead work with non-governmental, community and religious initiatives. In Indonesia, while government-led youth participation initiatives exist, they often fail to align with young people’s priorities, leaving them to seek more informal and self-organised channels for activism and advocacy.

Prof. Julian Walker, School Director said: “This report presents findings from the YUP Project about how young people in four cities in Lebanon and Indonesia are taking action to shape their cities. The report highlights the creativity and active engagement of young people on urban issues. However, notably, a key finding in common across the four cities is a low level of interest in working with municipal government. This challenge will be a jumping off point for the next phase of the project, which aims to support young people to co-produce urban digital platforms with key city stakeholders. I would like to thank our partners Kota Kita, CatalyticAction and the SHM Foundation with special thanks to our funders Fondation Botnar."

Read the report here