UNESCO-UNEVOC follows the United Nations’ stride in celebrating the World Youth Skills Day every year on 15th July, and reaffirms its commitment to enhance the prospects of the youth to access quality skills development through TVET, globally. UNESCO-UNEVOC’s theme for this year’s celebration was ‘Improving the image of TVET’.
World Youth Skills Day
WorldSkills was proud to recognise World Youth Skills Day (WYSD) on 15 July 2018! Use #SkillsChangeLives and #WYSD to join WorldSkills and the United Nations, to raise awareness on the importance of youth developing skills. We believe #SkillsChangeLives. Through the power of skills individuals, communities, and countries are propelled towards a more prosperous future.
WorldSkills International is very proud to be part of a global recognition and promotion of World Youth Skills Day. The United Nations, at its General Assembly in November 2014, declared 15 July as World Youth Skills Day.
The UN designated day seeks to generate greater awareness of and discussion on the importance of technical, vocational education, and training and the development of other skills relevant to both local and global economies. It is hoped that it will contribute to reducing unemployment and underemployment among the youth across the globe. It will highlight youth skills development to draw attention to the critical need for marketable skills. WorldSkills will support this globally important topic via the broad spread of activities and initiatives in our 6 focus areas all aimed at raising the profile and recognition of skilled people and showing how important skills are in achieving economic growth and personal success. Inspiring, educating, and developing youth is an integral part of this.
SkillsinAction Photo Competition
Are you a skilled photographer? Professionals or not, join our SkillsinAction Photo Contest! This competition is organised as part of UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre’s activities in celebrating World Youth Skills Day this July 2018. The competition is open for everyone who is 18 years old and above. We especially encourage students and young people to partake on this event using your skills.
Capture a winning photo showing skills in action and let everyone know how technical and vocational education and training (TVET) are contributing to:
- Encouraging youth employment and entrepreneurship
- Promoting equity and gender equality
- Facilitating transition to sustainable economies and societies
The photographs should focus on highlighting examples and role models, such as students, junior workers, and young teachers/trainers, who are enabling the achievement of any of the above thematic priorities and illustrate a better image of TVET.
The winners of the Skills in Action Photo Competition will win cash prizes along with certificates and their will also be featured on UNESCO-UNEVOC website and its social media platforms.
- US$300 First prize winner
- US$200 Second prize winner
- US$100 Third prize winner
Deadline for submissions is 31 July 2018, so grab your camera and find out how to send your pictures!
Who can participate?
You are welcome to participate as long as:
- You are at least 18 years old. You can either be a professional or amateur photographer.
- you are the owner or copyright holder of the photo entry/entries.
What should my photo show?
It is time to highlight the opportunities and positive impact of TVET for people, their families and their local communities.
We want you to capture amazing moments when skills are in action, showing how vocational (TVET) and skills development are contributing to one of the following:
- Encouraging youth employment and entrepreneurship – showing how youth are able to put skills acquired into practice, leading to securing jobs or starting their own businesses.
- Promoting equity and gender equality – showing how access to skills development should be for all young people and how skills development can overcome gender stereotypes and inequality issues.
- Facilitating transition to sustainable economies and societies – showing how young people with greening and digital (ICT) skills can help build sustainable societies and help address climate change and sustainable development related issues
The photographs should focus on highlighting examples and role models, such as students, junior workers, and young teachers/trainers, who are enabling the achievement of any of the above thematic priorities and illustrate a better image of TVET.
Until when can I submit?
All photos must be submitted using the submission form on or before 31 July 2018 to [email protected].
Winning photographs and finalists will receive a certificate and their entries will be featured on UNESCO-UNEVOC website and its social media platforms in line with the celebration of the #WYSD (World Youth Skills Day). Make sure you read through the submission process before sending in your pictures!
Photo Entries:
- All submitted photos should be with a title, a brief paragraph (not more than 100 words) explaining the photo, indicating also where and when it was taken, and a short biography introducing who you are.
- All photos submitted should be in jpeg format. The longer side should be at least 3,000 pixels. The entrants are allowed to digitally manipulate entries slightly and state the nature of manipulation. Please do not include any marks, logos, watermarks or borders in your photos.
- Your photos should be related to the theme as mentioned above.
How to submit:
After taking your photo/s
- Add a title and write a short description for every photo.
- Rename the photo/s in this format: Lastname-Firstname_title.jpeg (example: Oyelowo-Eyitayo_Female-aircraft-engineers.jpeg)
- Make sure you comply with the Terms and Conditions. (Also can be found in the submission form. Download by visiting www.unevoc.unesco.org/up/Lastname-Firstname_SAPC_SF.docx)
- Download and complete the Skills-in-Action Photo Competition submission form and rename the form in this format: Lastname-Firstname_SAPC_SF.docx (Note that the insert picture/thumbnail function may not work for MSWord97-2003 versions)
- Send the completed form (with thumbnails of the pictures) along with the original photos files to [email protected] with the following email subject heading Last-name_SAPhotoCompetition2018. Note that the attachment size may have a limit. In case of multiple entries that cannot be sent via email, you can use any cloud storage servers you prefer and provide us the direct link (no signing up required) to download.
Selection process:
- Upon submission, UNESCO-UNEVOC will preliminary filter entries upon compliance of the basic terms and conditions. You may or may not receive acknowledgement receipt from us but rest assured that your entry will be processed.
- An external expert will be engaged to select and shortlist entries based on the following criteria:
- Adherence/Appropriateness to the theme
- Uniqueness of the concept/shot
- Creativity
- Innovative means of delivering the message
- A notification will be given by email or by call to the entrants to inform them that their entries have been shortlisted.
- All shortlisted photos will be uploaded on UNESCO-UNEVOC Page on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/UNEVOC/.
- A date to announce the winner will be published soon.
Objectives of the SkillsinAction Photo Competition:
Often viewed as a second-class education, technical and vocational education and training has been subject to image debates for decades. Across the globe, TVET development has suffered from poor investment, quality and relevance. However, in a world where countries are facing high levels of youth unemployment, rapidly changing labour markets, technological advancements, and persistent social inequalities, the important role of TVET is increasingly being recognised. The orientation of TVET towards the world of work and the acquisition of employability skills means it is well placed to address global issues and it also has an important role in promoting sustainable development.
Whether acquired at school or in the workplace, every day people across the globe use their skills to make the world a better place. Unfortunately, there is a lack of practical and insightful evidence on how people worldwide are benefitting from technical and vocational education and training. The stories remain largely untold, which hinders awareness raising and further investments in TVET.
The goals of the award are to:
- Raise awareness on the benefits of TVET
- Promote TVET as a means to tackle global challenges such as poverty, youth unemployment and inequality
- Reward young people’s efforts to promote sustainable development in their communities by acquiring skills and putting them in practice
- To allow UNESCO-UNEVOC to develop a Photo Library that can cater to the need of TVET stakeholders to promote technical and vocational education and training through various communication and publication projects.
ABOUT WYSD
World Youth Skills Day has become an official (UN Day) starting from 2015 and raises awareness about the importance of youth skills development. The need to campaign and promote World Youth Skills Day is more important than ever before. Despite the youth employment rate increasing compared to the previous year, the number of young people without a job remains over 10 per cent in many countries (OECD, 2016). Perhaps more alarming, the number of young people out-of-school and not in education, employment and training (NEETs) is increasing.
At the same time, young people are also faced with the question how they will address their country’s current and future challenges. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development calls for a shift towards more sustainable and equitable economies and societies, which will no doubt result in changes in the world of work and education.
The UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre specialises in technical and vocational education and training (TVET). It assists UNESCO’s member states to strengthen and upgrade their TVET systems with programmes and policies that are relevant, lifelong and accessible to all. Our aim is to promote learning for the world of work. We focus on three priority areas youth employment and entrepreneurship, equity and gender equality, and the transition to green economies and sustainable societies.
Grenada National Training Agency