World Children’s Day, marked on November 20, is approaching. This year, UNICEF is promoting a positive message of equality and inclusion.
Regardless of gender, race, religion, disability, sexual orientation or other status, every child and young person deserves to feel celebrated, and has the right to be included and protected against all forms of discrimination.
We are inviting our Voices of Youth community to join this conversation with a special call for entries.
How can you be a part of this #WorldChildrensDay call for entries?
✍🏽 If you are between 13 and 24 years old, submit a blog, poem or a spark that reflects on an experience of being included. Maybe there was a time when you joined a new school or sports team, or where you moved to a new city or neighborhood, and someone was kind to you and made you feel part of the group.
Your submission should be no longer than 200 words. Include your first name, age, and country if you would like your submission to be amplified on our social media channels. If you are new to our site, here you can create an account and here’s all the information on how to submit. Please include #WorldChildrensDay in the title.
📱 You can also participate in our youth video activation. Use the hashtag #IFeltIncluded to share a video on Instagram or TikTok, and share a story about a time when you felt included using #IFeltIncluded
📢 If you are above 24, we invite you to take some time to listen to young people and amplify their voices.
Follow Voices of Youth on Instagram and Twitter, explore the #WorldChildrensDay hashtag, and share with your followers to keep the conversation going!
These are some of the moments when our Voices of Youth members felt included
- "When I immigrated from Iran to Canada, I joined our community’s youth council. The community was so nice and kind to me." Read Erfan's story.
- "One of my teachers noticed there was something wrong that needed to be addressed. She talked with me and my parents about my situation and motivated me to get professional help." Read Adyasha's story.
- "Two friends of mine came to me. They told me that they would support me. I was afraid that they wouldn’t be able to handle me. But they kept insisting until they finally convinced me to go with them. This was just a small gesture, but it meant the world to me." Read Taieba's story.
- "During my vacations, I applied for an internship which said that women and queer people are encouraged to apply. As a woman and a queer person, it made me feel included." Read Samraddhi's spark.
- "About 2 years ago I moved to Italy. I knew nobody in the country and I was really stressed about making new friends... I made friends with one boy that helped me feel a lot more included." Read Sasha's story.
- For Cordelia, being a part of the Voices of Youth community makes her feel included. Read her story.
- "For me, it wasn't one incident that made me feel included. It was the collective experiences throughout school that gradually integrated me." Read Edriaa's story.
- "When we understand that “It’s okay to not be okay,” we can include other people who are not okay," says Yanma. Read her story.
Celebrating #WorldChildrensDay
Some Voices of Youth members chose to celebrate children and childhood on this day.
- "Let me be a child forever!" said Priyanka. Read her poem here.
- "Children need support and wings to fly and then they will touch angel heights and make this world proud of their existence!," said Gunchaa. Read her blog post here.