SERAC-Bangladesh Joins the Global Call for Urban Justice

SERAC-Bangladesh Joins the Global Call for Urban Justice

At the 2025 UN-Habitat Assembly, a powerful joint youth statement was delivered by Jonathan Some on behalf of global youth delegates—including SERAC-Bangladesh—calling for real inclusion, equity, and accountability in shaping sustainable urban futures.

As the Assembly adopted its Strategic Governance Plan 2026–2029, youth from around the world stood united—not just to celebrate a policy milestone, but to demand that this plan become a true promise to the next generation.

“This plan must be more than a document. It must be a commitment to those of us whose voices are rarely heard in the corridors of decision-making.”

🔑 Youth Priorities for Transforming Cities

The joint statement outlined five urgent priorities for the future of inclusive, climate-resilient urban development:

  1. Tackle the Global Housing Crisis
    Recognize housing as a key driver of inequality, and address age-based discrimination in rental systems.
  2. Expand Basic Services Beyond the Basics
    Include digital infrastructure, mental health, and safe public spaces—guided by youth-led tools like geospatial mapping in informal settlements.
  3. Ensure Youth Access to Land and Legal Rights
    Land is about identity, heritage, and justice—especially for Indigenous youth. They must be part of governance and legal frameworks.
  4. Put Youth at the Center of Climate Action
    Youth are already acting locally, yet excluded from climate finance and national policymaking. That must change.
  5. Build Youth Capacity for Urban Leadership
    Invest in youth education, planning skills, and meaningful participation at all levels of governance.

“The gap is not in youth engagement. It is in institutional uptake and investment.”

Young people are already redesigning systems, reclaiming land, and reimagining mobility. What they need is for institutions to stop seeing them as outsiders—and start seeing them as equal partners.

📄 Read the full Joint Youth Statement here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/13xbMOfzfsxTY7jPYAgAwhWg-GNCq_CJE/view?usp=drive_link