Empowering youth voices at Japan EXPO 2025

8 October 2025, Osaka, Japan - Youth are essential partners in shaping sustainable food systems. The UN Food Systems Coordination Hub (“The Hub”) was proud to be selected to be part of the EXPO 2025 in Osaka, Japan.

Presenting one of the Hub´s flagship initiatives, the UN Food Systems Youth Leadership Programme (YLP), Dr Nicole de Paula, Technical Officer (Science for Food Systems), took the stage at the Future Life Village Pavilion (FLV), a space dedicated to exploring sustainable and inclusive ways of living.

The pavilion invited visitors to reflect on the Expo’s theme, “Designing Future Society for Our Lives,” highlighting how communities, governments, and global networks can work together to create societies that balance human wellbeing, environmental sustainability, and social equity. By situating the Youth Leadership Programme within this context, the Hub built momentum for the essential role of young people in shaping food systems that are resilient and aligned with a shared vision for the future.

Stories that inspire: YLP alumni in action

Dr de Paula shared how YLP alumni have been turning ideas into action. She highlighted YLP stories such as that of Rita Bonwi Njabeh from Cameroon, who connects youth entrepreneurs with school feeding markets, creating new opportunities at the intersection of nutrition, education, and livelihoods. She also spoke about Mathews Vichr Lopes from Brazil, who bridges academic research and policymaking to advance agricultural adaptation to climate change, and Dina Kebede from Ethiopia, who integrates traditional knowledge into modern sustainability projects. These stories, among many others, showcase how young leaders are applying systems thinking to drive tangible change in their communities.

At the EXPO 2025, the Hub also presented major milestones related to the follow-up processes of the UN Food Systems Summit (UNFSS), including the Preparatory Youth Conference for UNFSS+4 and the UNFSS+4 Youth Declaration for Food Systems Transformation showcasing how youth are contributing to the global demand for more sustainable and equitable food systems.

Giving youth a platform to transform food systems is especially urgent given the scale of this challenge. Currently, there are 1.3 billion young people aged 15–24 facing the combined pressures of climate change, biodiversity loss, malnutrition, and social inequalities are urgent challenges (FAO, The Status of Youth in Agrifood Systems, 2025). Yet, this also presents an opportunity. When equipped with innovative skills, actionable knowledge, and dynamic networks, young leaders become catalysts for innovation, policy influence, and systems change.

Today, the YLP alumni network comprises nearly 100 young leaders from over 60 countries – 55% of whom are women – who are actively contributing to shaping food systems that support cross-functional Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including Zero Hunger (SDG 2), Gender Equality (SDG 5), Climate Action (SDG 13), and Partnerships for the Goals (SDG 17). The YLP, launched by the Hub in 2023 and generously funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, harnesses this opportunity by empowering youth in systems thinking and collaborative leadership, translating their ideas into practical solutions for country-level food systems transformation.

By connecting the principles of the FLV pavilion with real youth-led initiatives, the Hub’s participation in the Expo 2025 brought to life what “Designing Future Society for Our Lives” truly means.  It underscored that transforming food systems is inseparable from shaping the inclusive and sustainable society we aspire to build.