A new era for youth funding: Global coalition poised to overhaul financing for young leaders
26 September 2024Together with the United Nations Foundation, the Unlock the Future Coalition today announced the Funders Collective – a new initiative designed to transform how we support children and young people in tackling the world's biggest challenges.
The Funders Collective is more than a typical funding initiative. It’s designed to reshape the financing landscape by breaking down systemic barriers through financing, research, data, and influence. With a bold focus on flexible, multi-year funding, it’s tailored to the real needs of young people and youth-led organisations, especially those in the Global South, ensuring they don’t just survive but thrive with the resources to create lasting impact.
What sets the Funders Collective apart is its commitment to shifting power. Young people aren’t just recipients – they’re decision-makers and co-creators, shaping how funds are allocated. Intergenerational collaboration puts young voices at the heart of decision-making, driving movements forward. The Funders Collective is also data-driven, making funding decisions backed by evidence and real-time insights for maximum impact.
For Ene Omoha and Ayesha Khan, two young changemakers at the forefront of shaping the Funders Collective, the initiative represents a critical step towards addressing global challenges discussed during the Summit of the Future.
“Young people have spent years advocating for change, fighting for our futures, and pushing for a voice in decision-making spaces. But we’ve reached a point where young people have gone beyond just asking for a seat at the table,” says Ene, Mercy Corps Young Leader. “We must ensure that the ideas of young people are heard and implemented. The Funders Collective is our way of creating something that reflects the needs and realities of young people who have often been sidelined, especially those leading grassroots movements on the ground.”
Historically, funders have failed to match our bravery
Ayesha, Global Partnership for Education (GPE) Young Leader
Ayesha, GPE Young Leader, echoes this sentiment, pointing to the principles that make the Funders Collective especially exciting for young people. “Historically, funders have failed to match our bravery. Despite youth taking risks and securing wins for human rights and justice, many young activists have had to scale back their efforts because funders lack trust in us. Can you imagine how much more we could achieve if our work was valued through tangible funding commitments?”
Closing the gap: Why the Funders Collective matters
Today, only 6% of global development aid goes to support programs for young people, despite nearly half the world’s population being under 30. This underinvestment is felt most acutely in young countries like Asia and Africa, where most people are young.
Elizabeth Cousens, President and Chief Executive Officer of the United Nations Foundation, explains:
“We’re trying to change a system that wasn’t designed to serve young people. The Funders Collective flips the narrative. We’re shifting from a transactional model of funding to a more flexible, long-term commitment that recognises the unique needs of young people from around the world.”
A collaborative effort to drive change
The Funders Collective brings together the world’s largest child- and youth-focused organisations under the Unlock the Future coalition — AIESEC, The Big Six Youth Organisations, CIVICUS, Girl Up, Kofi Annan Foundation, Mercy Corps, Plan International, and Search for Common Ground – who share a common goal: to create a more supportive and effective funding ecosystem for young people. By pooling resources, networks, and knowledge, these organisations will support young leaders in breaking down the barriers that have long limited their access to funding.
By pooling resources, networks, and knowledge, these organisations will support young leaders in breaking down the barriers that have long limited their access to funding.
Carlos Sanvee, Secretary General of World YMCA and current Chair of the Global Youth Mobilisation, an initiative of the Big Six, highlights the significance of this collaboration:
“The Funders Collective will harness the youth-led solutions funding model of the Global Youth Mobilisation (GYM) by the Big Six Youth Organizations to offer youth-friendly funding, advocacy and capacity development for projects that advance sustainable development. GYM’s capabilities will be strengthened by integrating tools from other Unlock coalition partners. By leveraging the GYM as the operating model, and incorporating other Unlock established mechanisms, the Funders Collective aims to amplify its impact, reach and influence without duplicating efforts.”
Why the Funders Collective stands out
The Funders Collective is more than a typical funding initiative—it’s here to transform the financing landscape by breaking down systemic barriers through financing, research, data, and influence. With a bold focus on flexible, multi-year funding, it’s tailored to the real needs of youth-led organisations, especially in the Global South, ensuring they don’t just survive but thrive with the resources to create lasting impact.
What sets the Funders Collective apart is its commitment to shifting power. Young people aren’t just recipients—they’re decision-makers and co-creators, shaping how funds are allocated. Intergenerational collaboration puts young voices at the heart of decision-making, driving movements forward. The Collective is also data-driven, making funding decisions backed by evidence and real-time insights for maximum impact.
Ayesha further underscores the importance of solidarity: “True solidarity means having the courage to resist external influences and protect the well-being of vulnerable youth, particularly those in the Global South. It also means allowing youth to lead, not in silos, but in direct collaboration with senior partners.”
Unique moment of global cooperation
In an era when multilateralism is under strain, the Funders Collective demonstrates what is possible when the world’s most influential child and youth-focused organisations unite for a common goal.
We are really delighted to be a part of the Funders Collective, offering the Equality Accelerator as an existing platform for transformative, feminist funding to turbocharge the impact of this initiative”.
Kathleen Sherwin, Chief Strategy and Engagement Officer, Plan International
Kathleen Sherwin, Chief Strategy and Engagement Officer for Plan International, emphasises the urgency:
“With only 12% of the SDGs on track and 131 years to achieve gender equality, children and young people can’t wait. We need meaningful participation of girls and young people in decision-making, and the Funders Collective will help remove the funding barriers that often hold them back. We are really delighted to be a part of the Funders Collective, offering the Equality Accelerator as an existing platform for transformative, feminist funding to turbocharge the impact of this initiative.”
Ayesha further underscores the importance of solidarity:
“True solidarity means having the courage to resist external influences and protect the well-being of vulnerable youth, particularly those in the Global South. It also means allowing youth to lead, not in silos, but in direct collaboration with senior partners.”
The road ahead: Building a better future
Looking ahead, the Funders Collective’s core mission is clear: ensure that young people – particularly those from underserved communities – have the resources, influence, and opportunities to drive the change they envision. “The future belongs to us, but we can’t get there alone,” Ene reflects. “This is about more than investment. It’s about trust – trust in the next generation to lead the way forward.”
Following this announcement, the Funders Collective will enter an incubation period to solidify collaboration mechanisms, pilot initiatives, and integrate learnings, preparing for full operationalisation before the final SDG Summit in 2027.
As the next phase begins, the Funders Collective invites courageous young leaders, funders, and organisational allies to learn more:
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