Triple youth focus
Next Generation City Action (NGCA) 2023 will include three youth tracks that accelerate participants towards, during and after the UIA World Congress of Architects Copenhagen 2023. The tracks focus on academics, entrepreneurs, and influencers, and will provide participants with unique opportunities to address challenges, grow their ideas, build comptencies and network, and drive positive change.
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young academics
The Young Academics track is a unique opportunity for 25 teams of students from leading universities in Korea, India, Kenya, Denmark, and Mexico to come together and work on solving on of five 5 real-life challenges and bring their ideas to the UIA 2023 Congress. Through a combination of mentorship, collaboration, and hands-on experience, these young academics will have the chance to make a real impact in the sector and contribute to a more sustainable and inclusive future.
By bridging between the international innovative young minds and experts, solutions are not only showcased locally in their home countries, but also worldwide by giving the solutions a global stage during the congress.
young entrepreneurs
The Young Entrepreneurs track is an exciting opportunity for 15 early stage technology startups from Korea, India, Kenya, Denmark, and Mexico to accelerate their startup and build global partnerships. Through a combination of bootcamps, networking events, and access to experts in the field, these young entrepreneurs will have the chance to take their businesses to the next level. The focuses is on helping startups prepare for successful congress participation and give them insights, tools and network to work with inclusion as an entrepreneurial opportunity. This includes providing support in areas such as developing a congress strategy, networking with potential partners and investors, and building relationships with key industry players.
The six principles of
Next generation
The six core principles of the Next Generation initiative shape both the initiative’s design and execution and serve as guidelines for participant engagement with the program.
Youth-led change: Empowering the Next Generation
Our initiative is designed and delivered by young professionals, with the support of senior professionals, in order to create a learning environment where participants are inspired and empowered to become change-makers and future industry leaders. We believe that the next generation brings passion, the latest knowledge and perspectives, and our initiative focuses on bringing their voices to global decision events so that they can shape the future they will inherit.
Partnering for impact: Collaboration for a better future
Our initiative brings together university, industry, governmental, and organisational partners from around the world to co-design and co-run a comprehensive program that empowers students, entrepreneurs, and influencers to build strong partnerships and co-create solutions that can have a positive impact. The initiative is managed by DTU Skylab, with support from DTU Sustain and other partners, and focuses on providing participants with the competencies and opportunities they need to build partnerships across sectors and borders. By co-creating and co-running the initiative, we aim to maximize the value and impact of the participants’ stay and showcase the power of collaboration to create a better future.
Action: Creating Ideas that work for the real world
Our initiative is designed to take action on some of the leading challenges of today, partnering with global congresses and leading university and industry partners to make an impact on the status quo and the next generation of professionals and leaders. We encourage participants to challenge the status quo, experiment, take risks, and be creative while still focusing on practical and actionable solutions. By doing so, we aim to create ideas that are grounded in reality and have a strong chance of being successfully implemented, in order to make a positive impact on the world.
Sustainability: Innovating for a better tomorrow
Our initiative is focused on sustainability, in line with DTU’s commitment to developing technology, knowledge, and partnerships that help society use the world’s resources sustainably. We adopt a balanced approach to sustainability, taking into account its social, economic, and environmental dimensions, and prioritize long-term impacts and sustainability in our ideas and solutions. By prioritizing sustainability, we aim to generate innovative solutions that not only foster a culture of innovation, but also prioritize the well-being of the planet and its people.
Inclusion: Developing solutions that leave no one behind
Our initiative is designed to be inclusive and open to all, recruiting a diverse representation of young people from around the world through university alliances and congress partners. We prioritize the inclusion of youth from developing economies, who often have valuable and needed ideas for change that are often excluded from such platforms. Our hybrid program is adapted and facilitated to prioritize inclusivity and open collaboration across participants and external partners, building on the principles of open innovation and universal design. We expect our participants to develop solutions that benefit as many people as possible and do not exclude anyone, in order to create a more inclusive and equitable world.
Beyond congress: Empowering youth for lasting impact
Our initiative goes beyond the associated congress, involving youth in the months leading up to the event and providing them with the skills and opportunities they need to make a meaningful contribution. We design our program in collaboration with the congress to extend its scope and involve additional relevant stakeholders, creating a holistic engagement with the thematic and industry focus of the congress. By building a strong youth community around the event, we aim to enable lasting and meaningful experiences for the participants, enabling them to grow professionally and personally, and to become strong local and global ambassadors for change.
Increased Focus on inclusion
We are excited to announce that in addition to the Next Generation initiatives continued focus on sustainability, we are now also prioritizing inclusion. This shift is in part inspired by the focus on inclusion at the upcoming UIA Congress.
To support this effort, we are partnering with the DTU Skylab flagship initiative, Technology Leaving No One Behind, to guide the design and execution of our program. We believe that by working together, we can create the right environment, that will enable our participants to design truly inclusive and innovative solutions for more sustainable cities of the future.
The Journey
Next Generation City Action will take part in the first half of 2023 leading up to the UIA Congress in July. The five challenges for the Young Entrepreneurs track will be released in February, followed by a recruitment period for all tracks. Participants will be selected in May, leading up to the acceleration program in June. Involved participants will join and take part in activities in Denmark during the UIA World Congress of Architects in July. Post July activities focus on creating relevant platforms taolied for participants to continue their journey.
