By Erika Martínez Macedo 

Independent consultant and activist

Caregiving is an essential part of life. From preparing meals and accompanying sick people to providing emotional support, we have all cared for or received care since early childhood. Without care work, life in our human societies simply would not be possible. Yet this work remains unrecognized and unfairly distributed,[1] and in this context, the role of young people has rarely been considered.[2]

For this reason, the Youth Advisory Group (GAJ) of the Youth Platform and the Global Opportunity Youth Network of Mexico City, in collaboration with Jóvenes Constructores de la Comunidad AC and Servicios a la Juventud AC, held two workshops, one in Iztapalapa and the other in Ecatepec. The choice of venues responds to the need to decentralize and include the perspectives of those who face the greatest challenges in their daily lives in terms of mobility, quality education, decent employment, and access to green spaces that provide well-being.

The main objective of these meetings was to conduct a survey on the current situation of caregiving from the perspective of young people, addressing key questions: How do young people experience care work? How does it impact their personal and professional development? How much do they know about this topic? Based on this assessment, the goal is to generate proposals with a youth-opportunity approach to strengthen the Comprehensive Care System, ensuring that it responds to their needs and contributes to building a more equitable society through the design and implementation of public policies on this matter that incorporate the voices of young people.

The workshops brought together 81 young people from different backgrounds[3], who shared their experiences and reflected on the impact of caregiving on their lives. From these spaces for dialogue, three key findings were identified to be considered in building a more equitable and inclusive caregiving system:

1. Safety and care have an essential linkOne of the most relevant findings was the strong connection young people establish between caregiving and safety. For them, feeling safe is an essential condition for practicing self-care and ensuring the well-being of those who depend on their care. They noted that insecurity in public spaces, harassment, and violence in their communities hinder their right to caregiving and affect their quality of life. Furthermore, they identified that the lack of safe spaces increases the burden of caregiving within the home, as families must take on additional protection and surveillance tasks, especially in areas with high rates of violence.
2. Mental health, gender and the need to eliminate stigmaAnother central theme that emerged in the workshops was the relationship between mental health and gender roles. It was highlighted that stereotypes of traditional masculinity have limited young men's ability to express their emotions and seek psychological support. Participants noted that depression and anxiety are increasingly common problems among young people, but the stigma that associates mental health with weakness persists, making it difficult to seek help. This is particularly acute among men[4], who often experience isolation, stress, and pressure to assume "provider" roles without having the emotional tools to manage these demands. Given this situation, the importance of guaranteeing access to free, quality mental health services was highlighted, as well as creating supportive community spaces where young men and women can speak openly about their emotional well-being without fear of judgment.
3. New masculinities and co-responsibility in careIn the workshop held in Ecatepec, reflection on masculinities took center stage. Many young men expressed the pressure they feel to comply with rigid gender roles, such as the obligation to provide financially, which limits their participation in caregiving tasks and reinforces the unequal workload within families. Participants recognized that it is essential to foster new ways of being men, in which they can actively participate in parenting, emotional support, and domestic and caregiving work without this being seen as something foreign to their identity. This change is key to building a more equitable caregiving system, in which all people can share responsibilities without being a factor that determines who provides care and who does not.

Based on the findings and reflections shared in the workshops, the young participants developed concrete proposals to strengthen and implement the Comprehensive Care System in the Metropolitan Area of the Valley of Mexico.

The proposals cover various dimensions, from infrastructure and access to education to mobility, security, and the right to a healthy environment. Key issues include:

1. Accessible infrastructure: Construction and maintenance of care spaces for the elderly, children, and people with disabilities, as well as the strengthening of safe public spaces and green areas.
2. Monetary supports: Scholarships for young people who care for children, regardless of whether they are in school or formally employed; and subsidies for female entrepreneurs.
3. Inclusive education: Incorporating emotional management topics and promoting the right to care, since it is often unknown (not consciously acknowledged and not perceived as work), even though it is performed in everyday life. Another concern is greater flexibility in school schedules for caregivers.
4. Mental health: Creating accessible spaces for psychological care, with an emphasis on suicide prevention and promoting community well-being.
5. Security: Adequate street lighting, creating safe environments, and strengthening violence prevention strategies.
6. Decent work and links with private enterprise: Promoting flexible work arrangements for young caregivers, recognizing care work within the private sector, and fostering decent, well-paid employment.
   Environment and animal welfare: Ensure equitable access to water and the protection of natural resources as a fundamental part of the right to care; as well as identify the importance of companion animal welfare.

The young people raised and reaffirmed that caregiving is a right, not a privilege. Their proposals reflect the urgency of transforming the way society understands and distributes caregiving, ensuring that all people have access to support networks, educational opportunities, and decent jobs without care work becoming a burden that perpetuates inequalities. They also emphasized the importance of considering care work as a choice, with options for dignified professionalization, and not as a burden or a factor that contributes to inequality gaps.

Finally, building a Comprehensive Care System with an intergenerational and social justice perspective is an urgent task. Incorporating the perspective of young people into this process is essential to ensuring a more equitable, sustainable future with better living conditions for all.

References

[1] According to the National Survey on Time Use (ENUT, 2019), women in Mexico spend an average of 39.7 hours per week on unpaid care work, while men only spend 15.2 hours. INEGI (2020), National Survey on Time Use (ENUT, 2019). National Institute of Statistics and Geography. Available at: https://www.inegi.org.mx/contenidos/programas/enut/2019/doc/enut_2019_presentacion_resultados.pdf Accessed January 2025.

[2] It is estimated that 2 million 351 thousand young people living in the Metropolitan Area of the Valley of Mexico live in exclusion. These are young people between 15 and 29 years old who have lived in gaps of structural inequality. Therefore, it is necessary to make visible the factors that place them at a disadvantage compared to their peers. One of these factors is the care work they perform without being made visible.

[3] In the case of Iztapalapa, participation was mostly women, some mothers and caregivers (49 women and 6 men, between 15 and 29 years old). While in the case of Ecatepec, participation was mostly men (15 men and 11 women, in an age range of 15 to 20 years).

[4] In Mexico, the suicide rate is significantly higher in men than in women, with an average of 11.4 suicides per hundred thousand men, compared to 2.5 per hundred thousand women. INEGI (2024), Statistics on the occasion of World Suicide Prevention Day. Available at: https://www.inegi.org.mx/contenidos/saladeprensa/aproposito/2024/EAP_Suicidio24.pdf Accessed in January 2025.