YCI believes that Youth innovation drives positive change and together with their partners, they develop creative, market-ready solutions that catapult youth around the world to succeed and prosper.

Together they transform conversations about youth and innovation into real solutions that inspire young people to realize meaningful employment and overcome the challenges they face.

When youth have access to a steady income there is a ripple effect of positive change. For 25 years they have been witness to the forward-thinking ways young people find to build an income and enhance their lives.

Their approach explores the intersection between youth and innovation by addressing health, the environment and inequality within the employment solutions they co-create.

Their talented team connects with partners to set these game-changing ideas into action at scale. From ideation to operations, their solutions address all facets of youth employment.

They are driven by youth and their potential to affect positive change in the world.

Their solutions are focused – always keeping the young people they are designing for and with – at the centre of the conversation. Together with their partners their approach is rooted in creativity and is constantly evolving, responding to changing needs and market realities. It’s not always clean cut, but draws upon collective action for stronger outcomes.

Spark: Setting Ideas into Motion

Through co-creation, new possibilities for youth employment and development emerge. To better understand these opportunities their Creative Team brings together diverse players (young people, partners, donors and creative professionals) who want to share, learn and participate in the exploration process. Challenges and opportunities are uncovered and new ideas emerge.

Explore: The Power of Conversation

Dynamic conversations fuel further exploration of ideas and opportunities, and the Creative Team spends time listening. Complemented by relevant research, observations and experience these conversations form the basis for game changing solutions.

Collaborate: Drawing on Collective Strengths

One outcome of the youth innovation conversation is the ‘Solutions Team,’ which is composed of action partners, young people and the YCI Creative Team. The Solutions Team moulds proposed solutions drawing on collective insights and skills to inform design. Promising solutions move on to development. The team then collaborates, using the YCI talent network to assemble the resources required to bring the solution to life.

Iterate: Solutions in Action

Their solutions are dynamic, and in a state of continual evolution. It starts with the pilot, where the solution is live-tested in context. They watch, they listen, and they continue the conversation to understand how the solution actually works, and whether young people are profiting. From here they iterate, refining solutions to continually serve the needs of young people.

Share: Open Source to Amplify Impact

Successful solutions were meant to be shared. They monitor and reflect on their solutions all of the time to keep the world in the loop with how youth innovation drives positive impact. Their solutions are open source, allowing them to spread and impact at scale.

YCI is an organization where diversity and talent come together to shape a better future for youth around the world.