Director-General's remarks at the 9th 1M1B Activate Impact Summit

Inaugural session of the 9th 1M1B Activate Impact Summit on the theme: “Youth-Led Action for a Sustainable World: Powering the Future with Green Skills”

Friday, 7 November 2025, at 11.30 a.m.
Room VII, Palais des Nations

Distinguished Delegates, 
Dear young leaders,

It is a pleasure to join you for this year’s meeting of the One Million for One Billion Foundation. We are especially pleased to host this event for the first time at the Palais des Nations.

Around the world, the effects of climate change are no longer distant warnings; they are daily realities — just look at Jamaica. Our shared frameworks — from the 2030 Agenda to the Paris Agreement — depend on the capacity of local actors to turn global vision into practical, community-level action.

The theme of this meeting, “Youth-Led Action for a Sustainable World: Powering the Future with Green Skills,” captures the urgency of our time. We must equip young people not only to adapt to a changing planet, but to lead the transformation toward a sustainable one. That is precisely where organizations like 1M1B make the difference.

Non-governmental organizations are indispensable partners in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. While the United Nations provides the vision and framework, organizations like 1M1B translate global commitments into practical results — teaching skills, creating jobs, and enabling youth to lead sustainably.

Through classroom actions, community programs, and workplace projects, you ensure that global agreements reach villages and rural areas, preparing young people for future opportunities. In doing so, civil society makes multilateralism tangible — turning shared commitments into measurable progress for people and communities.

Youth-led innovation is a driving force of sustainable transformation, central to the UN’s mission of peace, prosperity, and dignity on a healthy planet. Across the world, young people are creating solutions to challenges of climate, equity, and the future of work.

Through partnerships that embed artificial intelligence and green literacy into education, 1M1B helps prepare students for the economies of tomorrow. Your programmes reach rural and underserved communities, making technology a tool for inclusion. This work supports the UN’s goal of ensuring that digital and green transitions are just, inclusive, and human centred. 

For the United Nations, engaging youth is not only about inclusion, but also about effectiveness. Youth leadership strengthens the legitimacy and reach of global cooperation, bringing creativity, urgency, and a deep sense of responsibility for the future.

Initiatives such as 1M1B’s 1.5 Matters campaign and the Youth Climate Fellowship show how young leaders are shaping global climate diplomacy, amplifying the voices of India’s youth as ambassadors of innovation and progress.

Let me thank the 1M1B community for reminding us that progress depends on people – on educators who inspire, on youth who act, and on partnerships that endure.

The skills we nurture today in AI, sustainability, and green innovation will determine the resilience of our societies tomorrow. UN Geneva’s role is to connect these efforts, ensuring that young people everywhere help shape a future that is sustainable, inclusive, and full of possibility. 

Let me end by paraphrasing the Secretary-General: Young people should never underestimate their power. They are not only calling for change, they are making change happen.

Thank you.