Youth: Shaping the present, leading the future

Youth are driving sustainability momentum across all levels of business. 

As students, they are reimagining business education and advocating for purpose-driven learning. 

As young professionals, they are embedding the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into corporate innovation and strategy. 

As emerging leaders, they are stepping into decision-making roles to shape a more inclusive and resilient future.

Across education, early careers and leadership, youth are transforming systems from the inside out.

While many may think of United Nations Global Compact stakeholders as established executive directors at policy initiative organizations or senior managers across the public sector, another group of individuals represents a vital stake in our work: students. 

In classrooms worldwide, students are redefining what it means to lead responsibly. Through Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME), an initiative of the UN Global Compact, students are learning about sustainable business and building the skills to actively shape it. PRME Students is a student-run global sustainability initiative connecting students at over 800 business schools in the PRME network.

PRME Students is built on three pillars: awareness, advocacy and collective action. Students organize campus initiatives, launch social impact projects and represent youth perspectives at high-level UN forums. Through initiatives like the Mentorship Programme, students gain real-world skills, experience and global connections. Their energy, commitment and collaboration drive sustainability solutions toward a more just future in alignment with the SDGs. 

Through hands-on learning, cross-functional collaboration and mentorship, young professionals work on real-world sustainability challenges within their companies. At the UN Global Compact, we offer many resources and opportunities for individuals seeking to deepen their understanding of sustainability. One example is the SDG Innovation Accelerator for Young Professionals, which empowers early-career talent to embed the SDGs directly into business operations and innovation. 

This initiative recognizes that early-career employees are often closest to emerging technologies, social trends and new ways of thinking, positioning them as catalysts for change from within. By equipping young talent with the tools and agency to drive impact, the Accelerator helps companies future-proof their strategies while advancing a new generation of sustainability leaders. Starting this education early allows current and future leaders to strengthen their long-term contribution to sustainable development.

Young leaders are thinking about tomorrow while actively shaping the world we live in today. Luísa Franco Machado, a Young Leader for the Sustainable Development Goals, demonstrates how youth are changing the present.  

Throughout diverse sectors, young leaders are rethinking education and redefining impact, blending purpose with performance in ways that inspire lasting institutional change and social good. Their energy, innovation and purpose-driven mindset are essential to solving global challenges and ensuring a sustainable future. Impactful change knows no borders and can happen at any level, anywhere in the world. 

Whether you are a student studying for your upcoming sustainability methods course, a young professional at a local start-up or a globally recognized leader sharing your knowledge worldwide, your voice matters. Use it!