A water-cleaning system to fight illegal mining pollution in Ghana; peer-led mental health support groups for young people in Malawi; teaching rural students in Vietnam to turn agricultural waste into sustainable products… These are just three of the hundreds of youth-led projects to emerge from this year’s Learning Planet Youth Design Challenge – now in its third edition, and bigger than ever. We spoke to the programme’s Senior Project Manager, Edward Stevenette, about how a call for ideas became a platform for social impact.
The Learning Planet Youth Design Challenge (LPYDC) is a launchpad for young people aged 15–26 developing practical social impact projects aligned with one of three core themes: environment & climate; peace & democracy; mental health & wellbeing. “It’s a learning and support journey to help these young people – who already take action locally – develop their projects with an international community.” Edward Stevenette explains.
The Origins
Born within the ecosystem of the Learning Planet Institute – a UNESCO Category 2 Institute and the first UN University Hub in France, the Learning Planet Youth Design Challenge (LPYDC) was designed to seek young people’s ideas and dreams for the future of learning. The programme started as a call for ideas with an educational approach and has evolved into a call for social impact ventures, led by youth in their local communities. “We quickly discovered the power of this community, of amazing people and teams working together”, says Edward Stevenette.
In 2023-2024, 95 youth from 31 countries took part in the first edition. Pearl Perumal from South Africa won the Challenge with her project KinspirED, aiming to weave indigenous wisdom into future well-being. At the time, Pearl already expressed the power of the programme: “I took part in the Youth Design Challenge because I totally believe in the vision of inviting young people to sit at the table to co-create and co-design materials and learning programmes for a sustainable society and work.“
A Learning Planet Academy Programme
Three years after its inception, LPYDC has grown a long way, with a growing interest among youth and new partners involved in the programme. The annual call for projects has become an initiative to spotlight youth-led social impact around the world and within local communities.
The programme is also part of the Learning Planet Academy (LPA) launched in January 2026. Supported by Stellantis Philanthropy, this Academy equips learners worldwide to act on the challenges shaping their futures. “The LPYDC is – alongside other programmes such as In the Mood for Climate Action – one strand of a set of complementary international youth engagement and education programmes run by the Learning Planet Institute,” Edward explains.
A Programme Growing Fast
Last year (2025-2026), the official launch of the programme took place at the United Nations General Assembly in September, with submissions opening a week later and running through mid-January. During this edition (2025-2026), LPYDC gathered 3,200 sign-ups with 702 final projects submitted from 109 countries.
In February 2026, 60 projects were selected by an international jury made up of a dozen different people, from UN representatives to heads of educational NGOs and social impact programmes around the world. Many different countries were represented among the jury, but also different generations: Ayaan Seshadri, one of last year’s finalists and prizewinner, was part of it as well as Jade Bowler, author, education advocate and content creator.
A Collaborative, Global Training
The 60 shortlisted projects this year all received a certification supported by UNESCO and the United Nations University Hub for Future of Learning with Youth (UNU FLY) – the Institute is the first UN University Hub in France. All of them were also part of an online training and mentorship programme, a bigger cohort than the year before, with only 12 finalists trained.
“The selected 60 youth integrate into a global community of practice, with monthly peer-to-peer sessions. Participants come with their challenges and share them; they give each other mutual feedback. This is the key ingredient of the programme,” Edward Stevenette affirms. All of them have access to a “showcase” platform to introduce their project to the community and beyond.
Selected youth benefit from online training with live masterclasses and practical tools on social entrepreneurship with experts such as INCO, programme-building, impact measurement, pitch-deck development, AI and impact, fundraising or social media with Jade Bowler.
This comprehensive learning experience and structured mentoring journey were made possible thanks to key funding and programme partners. Notably, the Worldline Corporate Foundation stepped forward to support the programme’s growth and enable participants to gain invaluable feedback on their projects. “As part of the partnership, Worldliners from seven countries contributed to workshops and mentoring sessions. They shared practical experiences, with backgrounds across business, human resources, communication, and innovation. A recurring feedback from mentors has been the mutual learning between mentors and young leaders; it was a real exchange,” emphasises Charlotte Fabre, Managing Director of the Worldline Corporate Foundation.
“We see mentorship as very collaborative. Young people learn from their mentors, but mentors receive so much advice and guidance from them, too!” Edward Stevenette says. Henriette Korup, a Worldline mentor who worked with this year’s Vietnamese finalist, puts it simply: “I was completely blown away with their bright ideas…” For Ha Phuong Thao Nguyen, the Vietnamese participant behind The Story of Straw, the experience went beyond mentorship alone: “I discovered how young people can play a powerful role in addressing [educational] challenges.” Christopher Chisi, whose Malawi-based project EmpowerBros tackles youth mental health, agrees: “My experience with the Youth Design Challenge was impactful, more like life-changing to my growth as a young social entrepreneur…”
At the end of the training period (March-June 2026), the 60 participants submitted their final pitch decks to be evaluated by the international jury. 12 were selected as “ambassadors“, each receiving a microgrant of $1,000, plus opportunities to represent the LPYDC and their projects over the coming year.
The Best Learners for the World
“What makes the Learning Planet Youth Design Challenge unique is that it combines social impact support, training, peer-to-peer support as well as intergenerational mentorship”, Edward Stevenette beams. “It is made possible through collaborating with the ecosystem around us of partners empowering and supporting youth initiatives and youth development.* We’re really looking for organisations and people who’d like to give a voice and visibility to this kind of initiative,” he insists.
“This experience has connected us with so many different stories and people from all over the world, and it has truly encouraged us to think bigger”, says Valerie Guerra, whose Colombia-based project Casa Loho was among last year’s selected projects.
In September, at UNGA, the next Learning Planet Youth Design Challenge will be launched with the presence of some of the past participants and the youth-supporting partner organisations, including Global Student Forum, World Scouting, UN Youth Office and World YMCA. If you’re interested in being – or helping create – not the best learners in the world, but the best learners for the world through social action and social impact, stay tuned. As one mentor put it after working alongside this year’s cohort: “It gives me hope for the world, really.”
Registration
Interested in taking part or supporting the LPYDC? Sign up here!
*With the generous support of
EcoInno, Forvia Foundation, Fondation du Grand Orient de France, Stellantis Philanthropy, Worldline Corporate Foundation
