Each year, over 700 middle and high school students participate in an annual Youth Town Meeting to meet with representives from public and private organizations. YTMs are grounded in the belief that youth have much to offer and much to gain from discussion with experts and professionals regarding the complexities and challenges of international affairs.

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15th Annual Youth Town Meeting

Wednesday, January 25th, 2012

 

The student-selected 2011-2012 WorldLink theme is "The Right to be Human,"

which will focus on the recognition of human rights and its correlation to

Culture & Identity, Disabilities, Displacement, Responsible Business and International Justice

 

In preparation for the 15th Annual WorldLink Youth Town Meeting, our 2011 summer and fall interns produced the WorldLink Reader, a classroom tool that provides youth with the important background knowledge on this year's student-selected YTM topics. Access it today!

 

 

ATTENTION STUDENTS:

Students who would like to take a leadership role during the Youth Town Meeting are encouraged to sign up as a moderator, journalist or photographer!

Moderators are responsible for running the conference briefing sessions and ensuring these sessions are a success. All moderators are responsible for introducing their assigned speaker, keeping the speaker to his/her allotted time, running the Q&A section, maintaining the flow and mediating discussions.

Journalists/Photographers are given a Press Pass during the YTM. Journalists are responsible for writing an article about a specific briefing session. WorldLink students from all participating schools produce their own 16-page newspaper covering all of the conference events. This newspaper is distributed to 2,000 students, teachers, community leaders, donors and potential donors all over the world.

NOTE: Selected applicants must attend a mandatory training on Saturday, January 21, 2012, where the moderators will meet from 9:30am-12:30pm and journalists/photographers will meet from 1:00-3:00pm.

 

To apply, please submit an essay responding to the following:

1) Which position are you interested in and why? Why do you believe you are qualified?

2) Of all the topics we are delving into this year, which one are you most interested in and why?

3) Have you attended a WorldLink Youth Town Meeting before? If so, please state your past role (student delegate, moderator, journalist or photographer).

4) Journalism applicants: Would you like to be a part of the editorial team during the Spring 2012 semester, as editor-in-chief, copy editor or photo editor?

 

Essays must be e-mailed to Debbie Martinez by 4:00pm on Friday, December 16, 2011. Please be sure to include your name, school, grade and email address at the top of the page. Candidates will be notified of the final selection the first week of January.

 

 

14th Annual Youth Town Meeting

The 14th Annual YTM was held on Friday, January 21, 2011 for over 750 students. The student-chosen 2010-2011 WorldLink theme was "Crimes Without Borders: Threats to Human Security" which focused on the local, national and international implications of human trafficking, transnational gangs, terrorism, drugs and small arms/weapons.   Online Reader: The 2010 WorldLink Interns created the Online Reader, a classroom tool that provides youth with important background knowledge regarding the year's theme. Access it now!   Guest speakers included: Antonio L. Mazzitelli, Regional Representative for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime William Canny, director of emergency operations, Catholic Relief Services Carmen Kcomt, program officer, Bilateral Safety Corridor Coalition Edward Laurance, co-founder, IANSA, and currently professor at the Monterey Institute of International Studies

Watch: The opening and closing plenary video-recordings are available via stream.

Pictures: Pictures of the 2011 YTM are available on Flickr.

Media: This year's event was covered by multiple outlets, including KUSI, San Diego Union-Tribune, San Diego Red, Univision and Inside USD.

Registration: Unlike other WorldLink events, the Youth Town Meeting is by invitation only. Over 750 students attended this year's keystone event.

 

Sponsor a School The economic crisis has deeply affected school budgets. Fiscal reform measures are cutting billions of dollars from K-12 schools, eliminating several school programs and participation in extracurricular activities. As WorldLink students and their families from both sides of the border continue to feel the brunt of the global economic crisis, students from underprivileged areas are at greatest risk of being unable to cover the costs associated with transportation to USD. Several schools are concerned for their 2011-2012 participation.    To respond to this need, WorldLink is seeking school sponsorships. A $2,000 donation covers a school delegation’s (35 students, 2 chaperones) transportation, breakfast, lunch, YTM souvenir and a contribution towards a guest speaker’s travels.   If you are interested in sponsoring a school or contributing towards a school’s partial costs, please contact Debbie Martinez.