Ukraine National Identity through Youth (UNITY) is a five-year, USAID-funded program that supports youth leadership towards a values-based Ukrainian identity.

By joining the UNITY network, young Ukrainians will  access improved economic and skills-building opportunities, take leadership roles in civil society structures, and contribute to community-based problem solving.

By 2025, UNITY will engage over one million diverse Ukrainian youth to lead normative, behavioral, and institutional change in support of common values of human rights, democratic principles, and equity.

• Expand economic opportunities  for youth through innovation, entrepreneurship, and career preparedness
• Broaden youth engagement in civic and community problem-solving
• Support youth as they drive Ukraine’s pluralism and respect for diversity
• Conduct research and learning on youth-related data, trends, and approaches to inform youth policy and programming

• Youth Centers: UNITY-supported youth centers are inclusive, safe learning spaces for youth of all backgrounds and abilities. Among other initiatives, the centers will offer skill-building activities such as service learning and volunteering, as well as community-building events among diverse youth and their families, connections with mentors, and other educational and cultural resources.
• Big Ideas Challenges: UNITY is organizing Big Ideas Challenges—national-level innovation contests for ages 20-35—as a primary mechanism for harnessing youth-led entrepreneurship, creativity, and community solutions to local economic and civic priorities. In parallel, UNITY is building the capacity of youth centers to organize local challenges at the community level for ages 15-19.
• Engaging the Public & Private Sectors: UNITY is targeting institutional change by working closely with relevant government ministries to embed a youth-driven civic engagement curriculum within educational institutions, and with the private sector to align local economic needs with youth skills and aspirations.
• Norm-Changing & Engaging Communications: UNITY is leveraging social media and other communication tools to engage youth in positive discussions around diversity and inclusion, amplify youth voices to  encourage civic and economic participation of their peers, share networking opportunities, and celebrate local successes.
• Research: Grounded in inclusive, youth-led approaches, UNITY is contributing to the growing global evidence base of effective youth engagement, school-to-work transitions, and other learning priorities. IREX is also building the capacity of local institutions to collect and use youth-focused data.

Email: contact.mriemotadiemo@irex.org