Today is International Youth* Day (and the last day of the 2012 Olympics where many talented youths have competed).  International Youth Day is celebrated on August 12 each year to recognize the efforts of the world’s youth in enhancing global society.  The United Nations** sponsors this day with activities aimed to promote youth engagement and to get young people excited about making positive contributions to their communities.  This year the United Nations is particularly interested in learning about the perspective of youths around the world about: employment, entrepreneurship, education, reproductive health, political inclusion, citizenship, and the protection of rights.

Let’s take a look at what these different topic areas mean:
citizenship – the rights, privileges, and duties related to being a citizen of a country
employment – the state of being employed, having paid work
entrepreneurship –  the act of organizing and starting a business, taking the risk for the business’ success or failure
education – the process of receiving systematic instruction
political inclusion – the action or state of being included in government affairs and/or political parties
protection of rights – ensuring that all people have their basic rights safe guarded
reproductive health – the state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being related specifically to the the having children or choosing not to have children

Are you a youth?  Are these topics of interest to you?  If you have something to share about these topics or if you just want to learn more about International Youth Day visit this website: http://social.un.org/index/Youth/InternationalYouthDay/IYD2012.aspx  There is an English language video on this site you can watch to practice your English comprehension.

Talking about these topics is also a great opportunity to practice using the simple future tense and simple past tense.  Answering the questions below for yourself will give you this practice.  If you want to share your answers to either of these questions please leave them in the comments section and I will correct any grammatical errors for you to help you improve your writing.

How do you think the youths of the past are different from the youths of today? (for practicing simple past tense)
In what ways do you think technological changes will change employment for the youths of the future? (for practicing simple future tense)

* youth = a person between the ages of childhood and adulthood
** United Nations = an international organization of countries set up in 1945 to promote international peace, security, and cooperation