EMPOWER 2022 Youth Conference

https://www.sportanddev.org/en/event/empower-2022-youth-conference

This theme aligns with Qatar hosting the FIFA World Cup 2022 and showcases the role of football in youth development, empowerment and bringing positive social change to communities.

Football is not just a universal sport, but it also possesses a special unifying and integrating power. Football is a tool for social and ethical integration which helps in conflict resolution and meeting people from diverse backgrounds, cultures and ethnicities. Football has the power to transmit joy, passion and friendship, and offers an invaluable alternative to the stress of daily life.

Importantly, football has the capacity to empower youth as positive social catalysts for change. Across the world, there are numerous examples of successful informal educational initiatives using football as an enabler for youth empowerment in different areas including health, physical and social development. Football has proven to be an effective tool to reintegrate children into the education system, establish peace, fight discrimination, improve social integration, promote health and give priority to education and environmental affairs to create a better world.

Objectives

ROTA’s EMPOWER Youth Conference is known internationally as a forum where young leaders benefit from experiential learning and cross-cultural exchange of ideas with like-minded youth. EMPOWER 2022 aims to build awareness, knowledge and skills related to Football for Sustainable Development and reaffirms EAA’s belief in unlocking human potential and encouraging collaboration through its efforts to achieve SDG 4 on Education.

EMPOWER 2022 will aim to inspire and inform youth participants through interactive exchange and provide practical tools that enable them to mobilise and take action in their respective communities.

EMPOWER 2022 will support youth in Qatar and around the world to:

• Develop an appreciation for the role football plays in promoting sustainable social and economic development for future generations
• Discover a sense of belonging to a common humanity, sharing values and responsibilities, empathy, solidarity and respect for the role of football and sports in cultural heritage and cultural diversity
• Develop greater awareness and understanding of Global Citizenship, youth leadership, and their potential in addressing key global issues
• Develop the attitudes, values and behaviours that they need to be agents of positive change in their lives and in their immediate and larger communities

Format

EMPOWER 2022 will be a hybrid event with a physical opening ceremony held in the Qatar Olympic & Sports 3-2-1 Museum Auditorium on the first day for 200+ local youth (with livestreaming) and a program of online virtual sessions over the following two days for 1,000+ youth participants (15-24 years) from Qatar and countries around the world. View the full event programme here.