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The Et Maintenant or What’s Next forum held today at UNI Global Union proved unequivocally that the youth of the Nyon region is passionate rather than resigned. There is also sense of indignation and a feeling that change is necessary but hard to manage. The event took as a starting point a survey carried out by HEG university in Geneva. The results of the this survey released in the run up to the What’s Next forum had sounded a warning about what appeared to be a youth resigned to its future overshadowed by the global financial crisis. However the young people gathered at the forum at UNI dispelled these concerns and showed the high level of passion and engagement they have for politics, economics and social justice as well as their attachment to the Nyon region.



The panels featured leading journalists and politicians including UNI’s partners at the forum, Stéphane Benoît-Godet, Chief Editor of Bilan and Daniel Rossellat, Mayor of Nyon, They were interspersed by performances from top local musicians Aliose and Rootwords who also took part in the debates. Olympic athlete Ellen Sprunger spoke about her passion for sports and her ten year dedication to athletics. Ellen encouraged the young people to fight for what they love, whether it be sport, culture or art. Passion was the key word that ran through the forum





The forum also explored why this passion was not always finding a voice or resulting in real action. Some of the students said there was a barrier or a gap between the young and adult world which prevented genuine political action. What then is the trigger that could push the youth of the Lake Geneva to react, to get more involved, especially in political debate? Jean Christophe Schwab (USS and National Councillor), Signe Bo (Director of the Danish Youth Council), Raphael Mahaim (Deputy Green Vaudois) and Jeronimo Calderon of Euforia, discussed this issue. The conclusion seemed to be that in the end it came down to individual responsibility coupled with collective action.



Finally, a number of speakers including Diablox9- a social media star, Pascal Meyer from Qoqa and Philippe Favre chief editor of 20 minutes, made the point that "money was not an end but a means”, and that genuine passion was the basis for success.





UNI Global Union thanks Stéphane Benoit-Godet, and Daniel Rossellat, as well as HEG for making What’s Next a success. Philip Jennings, General Secretary of UNI Global Union concluded, "I am very moved by what I’ve seen and heard here today. We realize that young people are willing to take responsibility and act to improve their region and by consequence the world. What we felt here today proves it. '