International Day for Tolerance 2018

For the occasion of the United Nations International Day for Tolerance, on Friday, 16 November 2018, we look at how digital technology can foster mutual understanding among young people, and more specifically at the #CreatorsforChange initiative. 

Date 2018-11-15 Author BIK Team Section awareness, youth

After naming 1995 the United Nations Year for Tolerance, the UN General Assembly adopted Resolution 51/95 in 1996 inviting Member States to organise the International Day for Tolerance on 16 November.

Among many interesting initiatives undertaken by the UN, such as the TOGETHER global campaign "to reduce negative perceptions and attitudes towards refugees and migrants, and to strengthen the social contract between host countries and communities, and refugees and migrants", or the UNESCO-Madanjeet Singh Prize for the Promotion of Tolerance and Non-Violence rewarding "significant activities in the scientific, artistic, cultural or communication field aimed at the promotion of a spirit of tolerance and non-violence".

One project particularly resonates with the Better Internet for Kids (BIK) activities and areas of interest: the UN will host a screening of videos from the YouTube's Creators for Change project. Creators for Change is a global programme, which "spotlights inspirational creators who use YouTube's global reach to change conversations around tough issues and make a truly positive impact on the world". YouTube has claimed that the aim of this project is "to counter hate and promote tolerance".

YouTube has recently invested $5 million in this project, shortly after the European Union approved a set of proposals to hold social media companies accountable for hate speech and incitements to terrorism published on their platforms.

In this context, YouTube is providing young people with funding, mentorship, and production assistance to empower them to make a real difference among their peers through positive and creative videos. These mainly address hate speech, bullying, extremism and xenophobia.

Among the 47 young people selected, 15 are Europeans:

This initiative provides a nice and inspiring example of how digital technology can have a strong impact in fostering tolerance, compassion and mutual understanding among people from different backgrounds in a creative way.

For more information, read the YouTube blog article about #CreatorsforChange, our previous BIK article on #CreatorsforChange, or watch a selection of inspiring videos:

 

HugoDécrypte on Data Protection (French only)

Datteltäter's "If RACISM was honest" (in German with English subtitles)

BENI's "Fight for the Future" (in English)

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