Youth Summit 2025: New Horizons: Youth-Led Innovation for a Sustainable and Equitable World

The 2025 World Bank Group Youth Summit invites young changemakers, innovators, and leaders to shape a sustainable and inclusive future through bold, youth-driven solutions. Under the theme "New Horizons: Youth-Led Innovation for a Sustainable World," this year’s summit focuses on three transformative areas:

1. Digital Transformation & Data: Discover how youth leverage technology, including AI and big data, to drive economic growth, bridge the digital divide, and create a future-ready labor market.
2. Climate Action & Resilience: Explore innovative solutions for green technologies, smart cities, and sustainable agriculture, showcasing how young leaders can combat climate change while creating job opportunities.
3. Creative Industries: Highlight the role of arts, media, and fashion in fostering employment, social and economic change, promoting sustainability, and preserving cultural heritage.

When discussing these subthemes, the Summit will focus on three fresh perspectives on innovation: Underserved populations, Fragility, Conflict, and Violence (FCV), and Partnerships. By spotlighting these areas, the event aims at amplifying diverse voices, fostering innovation for sustainable development, and building collaborative networks to scale impact globally.

Join us in celebrating the creativity, technology, and entrepreneurial spirit of young leaders as they redefine possibilities, impulse new job opportunities, and lead the charge for a more inclusive and resilient world.

Why is it relevant?

85% of the world’s youth live in low- and middle-income countries, with 600 million in fragile or conflict-affected settings. Nearly 800 million young people in developing nations risk being excluded from the job market over the next decade, particularly those from marginalized groups facing barriers due to gender, ethnicity, disability, and other social identities. Despite these challenges, young people are driving innovation, which is a key factor to create new job opportunities, promote inclusion, and tackle climate change.

Youth-led initiatives are already making an impact, such as using real-time data to improve agricultural resilience, launching digital platforms for financial inclusion, and navigating their way into creative industries. These innovations offer new business models and industries, helping to address the rising youth unemployment crisis and solve some development challenges. 

The 2025 Summit will focus on amplifying these efforts, particularly in key sectors like education, healthcare, and green technologies. It will highlight how innovation can provide job opportunities and empower marginalized populations, in line with the World Bank Group’s priorities. The Summit aims to foster global partnerships among youth, governments, businesses, and civil society to scale up youth-led solutions, contributing to a more inclusive and sustainable future for young people worldwide.

Apply to the World Bank Group Pitch Competition NOW!

Create your account on F6S and apply on this link: https://www.f6s.com/world-bank-group-youth-summit-2025/apply

Welcome to the World Bank Group Youth Summit 2024 Pitch Competition, an exciting opportunity for young change-makers to showcase their innovative solutions addressing global challenges. Open to individuals aged 18-35 worldwide, this competition provides a dynamic platform for presenting your ideas to an international audience and gaining momentum for your innovations.

The Pitch Competition, a flagship event of the WBG Youth Summit, showcases the transformative power of youth-driven solutions in shaping a sustainable and inclusive future for all. It provides a global stage for young entrepreneurs, change-makers, and innovators to present their unique ideas and solutions to today’s most pressing development challenges. 

We encourage submissions from diverse backgrounds and focus areas with a special interest in addressing the following themes:

Theme: New Horizons: Youth-Led Innovation for a Sustainable and Equitable World

Pillar 1: Data Driven Transformation

Pillar 2: Climate Action & Resilience

Pillar 3: Empowering Change through Creative Industries

More information about the themes can be found under the "THEME" Tab. 

We invite you to submit your groundbreaking ideas that have the power to make a real difference in the world. This global competition seeks to reward the most innovative projects, so get ready to shape the future with your solutions.

Calendar of Events

Registration opens on December 18th, 2024

Submit your proposal (Deadline: January 26th, 2025, 11:59 pm EST)

Applicants and pitch decks will be evaluated by an expert committee. Shortlisted individuals/teams will be announced by early April and will proceed to the next stage.

Applications can be submitted in Arabic, English, French or Spanish, and you can use the pitch deck template (insert link to template) for guidance. 

Pitch your idea at the Youth Summit (May 19th – 20th, 2025) 

Finalists will join the 2024 World Bank Group Youth Summit hosted at the World Bank Headquarters in Washington, D.C. Travel expenses, including lodging and a nominal stipend for up to three nights, will be covered for one representative per team. The representative is required to obtain a valid U.S. visa for their travel. Other team members can participate in the event through the virtual platform.

Eligibility

• All team members are between 18 - 35 years old, on the date of the application deadline.
• Each team member should be from one of the World Bank Group member countries.
• The solution should address at least one of the three thematic pillars (Data Driven Transformation, Climate Action & Resilience, Empowering Change through Creative Industries). Cross-thematic and scalable solutions across more than one pillar are also accepted for consideration. 
• Applications must be received before January 26th, 2025, 11:59 pm EST.

Still have questions? Explore our FAQ page: bit.ly/YS-FAQ or reach out to us at youthsummit@worldbank.org with the subject - PITCH COMPETITION.

This year's Youth Summit Steering Committee members are: