Young Pacific Leaders
The Young Pacific Leaders (YPL) Program is a youth leadership development program organized by the U.S. Department of State. The program started in 2013. The program focuses on four themes that Pacific youth identified as their top priorities:
Education
Environment and Resource Management
Civic Leadership
Economic and Social Development
The YPL community consists of young leaders, 25-35 years old, from Australia, the Cook Islands, Fiji, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Islands of French Polynesia, Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Nauru, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Wallis and Futuna, and the American-affiliated Pacific including American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Hawaiʻi.
YPL strengthens linkages between emerging leaders across the Pacific and the United States. These relationships between the younger generation of government, civic and business leaders help to harness the extraordinary potential of youth in the region to address critical challenges and expand opportunities.
In June of 2024, Gravitas Pasifika hosted the annual YPL Conference in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi. This convening occurred concurrently with the 13th Festival of Pacific Arts & Culture.
Read more: https://www.state.gov/young-pacific-leaders/
