4 Qualities of 21st Century Youth Needs to Save the Future
Amidst the VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous) world, challenges and problems that arose are getting even more complex than ever. One problem roots in another problem that is caused by an entirely different problem. It is difficult to determine what causes which. With this situation at hand, World Economic Forum mentioned complex problem-solving and critical thinking & analysis as two of the most important skills of 2025.
Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) also noted flexibility and adaptability as prominent for both our life and career skills. After 2 years of going on a COVID-19 pandemic that has forced us to mostly stay at home, we are also challenged to have self-leadership capacities such as initiative, self-discipline, and self-responsibility.
In addition to that, the world is getting smarter. The internet is changing the way we think, work, and live. Digitalization has made our lives easier. Things are more efficient and effective. As controversial as it may get, Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology is arguably getting more powerful. Humans are inevitably threatened by these man-made machines. Nonetheless, there are still numerous aspects of human characteristics that are not able to be accommodated by AI (yet).
With the rapidly growing AI technologies, innovation and technology adaptation are more relevant than ever. We are pushed to go beyond our limits, to think creatively, to keep innovating, making things smarter; smart TV, smartphone, smart home, basically all the smarts we can create to make life easier yet highly dependent on technology. Technology advancement is like two sides of the same coin; it is a blessing that eases our life but on the other side, it is also a curse in so many ways (for example, a threat to our data privacy). Therefore, we need to equip ourselves with information literacy, media literacy, and ICT literacy skills.
There are already lots of organizations and companies out there, writing about the skills we need to have to survive the 21st century. However, before thinking about the skills you need to hone to forge your future careers, we would like you to reflect on this question: will the place we live in, our beloved mother earth survive this century?
Although research suggests that Earth will last for another billion years, our excessive consumption and oblivious actions will exacerbate the doom of the earth and leave the future generation devastated by our wrongdoings. Earth was not equipped to sustain life perpetually. This has made us question how we can make this earth still liveable as long as possible? What qualities do we need to build to save our world?
Upon researching and reading numerous sources, we found the 11th World Bank Technical Paper Series arranged by Barbara Freeman and Robert Hawkins for the Systems Approach for Better Education Results (SABER) initiative. Freeman and Hawkins designed an online educational platform called Evoke that prepares youth to become social innovators in responding to complex global challenges by understanding the root causes of the challenges and obtaining relevant skills of the 21st century.
With the project-based learning approach that focuses on real-world problems, youth is encouraged to think critically and creatively about viable solutions in a limited time. Aside from that, we are also caught by the trailblazing framework they use as the bedrock of the Evoke project - the Social Innovator Framework (SIF) - which will be our point of discussion today.
Pratisara Bumi Foundation shares the same belief with SIF on youth. They have the potential to be a successful social innovator who takes action based on their knowledge, skills, and mindset.
We believe that youth is integral to the solution of world-class challenges - they are the agent of change.
Through the SIF framework, Freeman and Hawkins categorized 4 key qualities that need to be acquired by youth as social innovators. These 4 key qualities constituted 4 strengths and 12 specific skills for each quality.
Creative Visionary
Social innovators carry a strong imagination, idea, vision - and a large spoon of courage to embrace their creativity.
Imagination — Imagination allows them to foresee a better world. They have the heart of a lion to aim for unorthodox and unique solutions to address grand challenges. Different perspectives give them more light to see the challenge at hand;
Idea — They are the command of ideas. Supported by thorough research and an ample amount of field experience, they can spark fresh and authentic ideas or revamp existing arrangements. Brainstorming and experimenting process can sharpen the ideas they brought to the table;
Vision — Potential and possibilities are seen, wherever they go. A firm believer in opportunities and would inspire others to believe so. They bring an abstract concept to reality;
Courage — What good are imagination, idea, and vision if none is brought to life? Social innovators realize the uncertain and complex reality, yet they are pumped with sufficient courage to play and experiment with their unorthodox ideas.
INKURI participants during the activity of Module 7 (22/1) (doc/PBF)
Deep Collaborator
Social innovators are great collaborators. They possess the spirit of a hummingbird. They connect well with others and are adaptive to their environment.
Communication — Embracing diverse perspectives is their utmost priority. They listen to understand. When talking with people, they focus their energy on whom they converse with;
Teamwork — They admit that they do not have all the answers. Social innovators reckon that they can not do things alone. They recognize that effective work comes from collaboration and a trust-building process with other people;
Networking — Community is vital to their growth. Social innovators engage with the local community to make connections and seek feedback;
Generosity of Spirit — Remember to give back. Social innovators are keen to share their knowledge, expertise, and even their resources to support the development of the community.
INKURI participants during the activity of Module 7 (22/1) (doc/PBF)
Systems Thinker
Social innovators are champions of problem-solving. Critical thinking and analysis are their main weapons to solve world-class challenges.
Problem Solving — Unfamiliar problems are their forte. Social innovators analyze situations and seek solutions for one problem through numerous perspectives. Mistakes are their constant companion and from whom they learn a lot;
Analysis — Social innovators use design thinking to visualize the problems and connect the dots between the problems and solutions. They reckon that the variables within the system are inherently interconnected and therefore there are connections between the cause and effect;
Aggregation — Through numerous sources of information, deep understanding and awareness of the problem are what they thrive for. They connect all of the information to forge an understanding of the problem;
Critical Reflection — Critical reflection helps social innovators question, reanalyze, and reconsider their ideas in light of the feedback they receive to assess what they have learned and experienced.
INKURI participants during the activity of Module 5 (12/12) (doc/PBF)
Empathetic Activist
Social innovators are empathetic leaders. They inspire their team to be mindful and treat each other as human beings.
Leadership — Commitment, consistency, and flexibility are vital to them. Social innovators motivate their team to fulfill their responsibility by applying the previous three values;
Empathy — Many aspects of our life are gray areas. Social innovators acknowledge this. Hence, they are respectful and sensitive to other people’s experiences and show genuine understanding to others;
Transformation — Enable a growth mindset. They believe in bringing a positive and sustainable change to the community. Social innovators build an inclusive, diverse, and collaborative ecosystem to realize this;
Curiosity — Social innovators ask the right questions and perceive answers without judgment. They are thirsty for knowledge and they see the world as an open book with millions of perspectives and answers.
Within the key strengths of each quality, SIF also put into detail the mission and activity that need to be implemented to obtain the aforementioned qualities. Equipping youth with the necessary mindset and skills are important to accelerate their impact as an agent of change.
We believe that these 4 qualities are imperative to shape Indonesian youth to be social innovators that can tackle the existing environmental and social problems. To be creative in crafting solutions that consider all elements–the people and the planet. To be collaborative in taking actions, involving stakeholders and other organizations that share aligning values. To be critical in analyzing the problem, not leaving any variables behind—taking everything into account. And finally, to be mindful of the community and the environment.