How Youth are Changing the World

[Music]

in march of 2020

i was an anxious grade 12 student

anxious for the transition from

adolescence

to adulthood anxious for my coming of

age moment

anxious to walk across that wide stage

dawned in a navy blue graduation gown

smiling wildly and my friends and family

sitting in the crowd applause rumbling

through the auditorium

confetti blasting through the air

staring straight into the eyes of my

principle

handing me my diploma the sacred scroll

that wrapped around 12 years of my life

yeah well that didn’t exactly happen

we are known as the class of covet 19.

in march of 2020 the vision of our

future trembled

and instead of actively reshaping our

futures

we sat in our bedrooms staring at each

other

through computer screens winded by a

pandemic punch in the gut completely

confused

watching people hoard toilet paper

what instead of being eager

to get out there and start changing how

the world

thinks acts and lives

we stand in our bedrooms not knowing

what to think

how to act or what living was even going

to look like

the pandemic stool our spotlight

changing how we will all think act

and live forever a disruption to the

norm

like we have never seen before

it’s hard to compete with that

there we were in the aftershock of the

new normal

feeling like our futures just fell

through a fault line

but when valedictorians from all over

the world began to rewrite their

speeches

voices from some of the world’s greats

erupted

you are indeed the chosen class for such

a time as this

and our world needs you to be the

biggest versions of yourselves

it was hard to believe that we were the

chosen class

in those weak old pajama bottoms

not a toothbrush in sight

so here i am sitting at the dinner table

with my mom

and sister talking about the shortage of

personal protective equipment

or ppe in the hospitals where they work

listening to their conversation i was

truly taken aback

before this conversation i didn’t even

realize the vitalness of ppe

during the covid 19 pandemic for the

first time

since the pandemic began i realized that

this was not about me

i looked around the room trying to

absorb this information

in

from the corner of my eye i noticed

a bright light shimmering in the

background

that was my light bulb idea literally

that light was coming from my 3d printer

soon i started thinking why not use my

3d printer

to make ppe and the positive difference

in my community maybe i could be part of

a youthquake

a movement by young people that has the

effect to change

how many in the world think act

and live youthquakes or yqs as we like

to call them

are not new things it was a cultural

movement

that started back in the 1960s and has

continued

to change the landscape of the world as

we know it

a movement that is characterized by

looking to youth culture

as a source of inspiration and when

you’re young

while the epicenter of that yq where it

really starts to shake

is when you identify a pressing issue

affecting you and those around you the

magnitude

and intensity begin to increase as you

work towards fixing that issue

and witnessing the impact of your quake

this phenomenon has been witnessed by

countless youth

around the world such as greta thunder

a swedish youth who is raising climate

change awareness

and gitanjali rao a 12 year old

indo-american scientist

who recently innovated a novel coven 19

vaccine distribution method

soon i researched ppe designs and found

hundreds of them the power of 3d

printing

is truly amazing concepts can leap off

the page

and right into your hand it didn’t take

long to have a menu

of different ppe devices that could be

used by people in my community

such as an ear saver

and

a face shield

next thing you know my principal and

teachers at school

encouraged me to borrow two of the

school’s 3d printers

so i could increase my output just

a quick psa announcement for you folks

we have

3d printers in schools now instead of

typewriters

chalkboards floppy disks and or

macintoshes

you might remember from your days i just

want to make that

super clear anyways

back to the story soon i transformed my

basement

into a 3d printing factory and got a 250

grand from the government of canada and

taking it global

to purchase filament then i put out the

word through social media to see if

anyone

i knew needed any ppe devices

soon orders started coming in and next

thing you know

1545

devices went out the door to over

30 organizations in my community

3d printing is a technology that

scientists

and engineers are using to change the

way the world

thinks acts and lives

put that technology in the hands of

youth and

introduce them to some of the challenges

facing your community

and there will be disruption in the way

the world sees

us youth in times of crisis

we can contribute we have the technology

and the means to communicate with one

another at the speed of light

that’s right the speed of light

today’s youth have technology

and communication skills unlike any

other time

in history we may not have had the

commencement

we all dreamed of but we became

the biggest versions of ourselves

the great part about that story is that

i was only

one of the class of kovit 19 one part of

the youthquake

who used their home and school 3d

printers to produce

ppe for their communities yeah

it was sort of a movement by young

people that had the effect to change how

many people in the world

think act and live

think in times of crisis we can

contribute

we have the technology and the

communication skills

and we’re not afraid to use them

act look to youth as a source of

inspiration

we have innovative ideas and unmatched

creativity

and we’re ready to support our

communities

don’t overlook us when prompts need

solving

in your community live

the pandemic holds the power to tear us

apart

or bring us closer together we have the

drive

to create change that will result in a

better future

for our families communities and

countries

now that’s a youthquake worth missing

prompt for

thank you

you