United Nations is paving the way for youth representation through its first-ever Youth Advisory Council (UNYAC) in Jordan. This new advisory board will provide the UN with insights into youth affairs in the Kingdom. 

It all started when Bara’a (the Youth Development Delegate at UNDP) asked us if we could give a design thinking tools workshop to the UNYAC The Accelerator Lab was excited about this initiative, viewing it as a fantastic opportunity to gain a fresh perspective from youth. Our team at the Accelerator Lab was thrilled to have a brief interaction with the council. Though we had a lot of exciting topics and tools we wanted to share with the council members, we had to prioritise our approach due to limited time. Nevertheless, we delivered our presentation in an engaging way, focusing on design thinking tools that help identify problems using various methods and mechanisms to support the council in representing their ideas, defining the problem, and providing solutions.

During the introduction session, the council members showed interest in the Accelerator Lab work. We presented how to identify problems through interactive design thinking tools. We used various approaches and mechanisms, such as the five whys and prioritisation exercises. They practised engaging in problem-solving processes that could help the council represent their ideas, define the problem, and provide solutions.