By Andrés Felipe Rodríguez Cárdenas

Youth Advisory Group (GAJ)-GOYN Bogotá

In Colombia, young people are demonstrating that leadership is not a matter of age, but of purpose. From their communities, youth from different regions are driving processes that are transforming their neighborhoods, generating sustainable employment opportunities and new forms of civic participation. This youthful leadership has become key to rethinking work and political influence in a country seeking to overcome structural inequalities and build a fairer and greener future.

The Colombian labor ecosystem faces profound challenges: youth unemployment, a lack of decent opportunities, and gaps in technical and professional training. However, young people are responding to these challenges with creativity, innovation, and solidarity. From circular economy initiatives and green jobs to community projects and social enterprises, young people are creating jobs where there were once only shortages.

From my experience as youth leader of the Local Youth Council, member of the European Union Youth Advisory Board in Colombia at the green employability table and participant of the GOYN Network BogotáI have seen how cross-sector collaboration can pave the way for youth employability. These spaces allow young voices to be heard in decision-making and for their ideas to be translated into concrete actions with social and environmental impact.

Projects like Lights of PeaceThe project, which brings clean energy to communities without access to electricity using recycled materials, demonstrates the potential of young people to link innovation with sustainability and local development. It's not just about creating jobs, but about building models that protect the planet and strengthen the social fabric.

Today, young people don't wait for change to happen: they design it, lead it, and sustain it. Investing in their education, leadership, and well-being is not an option, but a necessity for the country's present. Every youth initiative is proof that transformation begins when we are given the opportunity to act with freedom, confidence, and a sense of community.