Short Abstract:

This panel explores the pivotal role of youth engagement in social movements, centering on the challenges and opportunities for new solidarities and intergenerational collaboration. It is structured as a horizontal learning exchange and welcomes submissions in varied mediums.

Long Abstract:

In times of uncertainty and compounding crises, when hegemonic development paradigms do not suffice to address the roots of inequality and marginalisation, social movements are vital sites of radical imagination and praxis on how to cultivate positive change. Among them, youth-led mobilisations - from the #FeesMustFall protests in South Africa to the Gen-z-led protest against the Finance Bill in Kenya, have not only challenged entrenched political and economic systems, but have also grappled with the intersections of race, class, and gender that shape experiences of marginalisation.

This panel explores the pivotal role of youth engagement in social movements, centering on the challenges as well as the opportunities for new solidarities and intergenerational collaboration. We welcome submissions centered in experiences that explore the ways in which engaged youth are forging alliances across differences, developing innovative organizational forms, and articulating alternative visions of the future. In doing so, the panel seeks to illuminate the transformative potential of intergenerational alliances within and across social movements, particularly within the urban, and their capacity to reshape development theory and practice in the face of compounding crises.

The panel will be structured as a horizontal learning exchange, following one of Slum Dwellers International’s (SDI) main ritualised practices for emancipatory change. We seek submissions in varied mediums: papers, write-ups, presentations, video, visual art, etc., that speak broadly to the panel theme. We propose an emphasis on urban Africa but are open to submissions about experiences around the globe.

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