Empowering the Future: Euro-Mediterranean Youth and the Quest for Disarmament

2025 marks the 10th anniversary of the Youth, Peace, and Security (YPS) Agenda, yet the world is less peaceful and less secure. Today, tensions and conflict on the one hand, and cooperation on the other hand, shape the Euro-Mediterranean (Euromed) region. Rising militarization and global and regional dynamics push against disarmament attempts, slowly unraveling the decades-old disarmament architecture. While some youth voices are present at disarmament and peace process tables, many continue to be left behind: this is the missing piece to peace. In today’s complex context, how can Euromed youth actively and meaningfully engage in disarmament processes, and why does their inclusion matter more than ever? 

According to H.E. Nasser Kamel, Secretary-General of the Union for the Mediterranean, today, “one in every three people” in the Euromed is under 25 years old (UfM Youth Strategy 2030, 2022). Millions of these youth are affected by tensions or conflict; they are vulnerable, involuntarily caught amidst these conflicts, and their voices remain missing at peace tables. 

As such, when I came across the Anna Lindh Foundation’s Mediterranean Youth in Action Programme – Voicing Youth Knowledge for researchers, I knew I wanted to focus my research on Euro-Mediterranean Youth Perspectives, Challenges, and Opportunities for Involvement in Disarmament Processes. My research sought to understand Euromed youth perspectives toward disarmament and peace processes, their inclusion or lack thereof in these endeavors, the barriers they face, and opportunities for deeper involvement. I was/am fascinated by the rich tapestry of cultures, geopolitical considerations, and youth-led advocacy initiatives calling for peace, even in the face of instability and scarce resources. 

This topic is informed by my own journey in the disarmament field, conversations with hibakusha (survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki), and staunch belief in young people’s ability to change the world. It is also an under-researched topic, particularly in the Euromed, and where researched, it often does not adopt a youth-centric approach.  

So, what did my research validate and/or uncover? 

1. Euromed youth are yearning for multileveled peace: they are eager to contribute to disarmament and peace processes, but continuously feel excluded. They simultaneously reported having limited training on these topics and scarce resources to invest.  
2. Cross-collaboration across the Euromed, in their opinion, helps break through political divides. Nonetheless, the absence of formal youth platforms to coordinate and channel their ideas to policymakers hinders their efforts. 
3. Storytelling and digital literacy are powerful tools for change, allowing for continued advocacy even within restrictive local contexts. 

This matters more than ever because youth inclusion in disarmament and peace processes is socially grounded, community-sensitive, and forward-looking. Furthermore, youth sustain innovation and nurture resilience in the face of adversity and evolving security challenges. 

Strengthening youth inclusion in Euro-Mediterranean peace and disarmament initiatives requires: 

1. Creating formal youth advisory councils and embedding youth positions in pre-existing institutions. 
2. Investing in peace education and related training and providing micro-grants for localized youth peace initiatives. 
3. Connecting Euro-Mediterranean youth by easing mobility challenges and expanding their digital skills and collaboration. 

Indeed, by empowering the youth of today, we are empowering the future, for they are the missing piece to peace: the quest for disarmament cannot be fulfilled without their voices, efforts, and energy. Today, I invite you to reflect, in your life and career: how can I help support a young leader? How can I ensure that my community’s and country’s youth are meaningfully engaged in peace and disarmament processes and included in building a safer Euromed and world for all?  

This research was developed as part of the Mediterranean Youth in Action programme, implemented by ALF and co-funded by the EU.