The Young and Restless

The biggest concern I have on my mind is one that I have had for a few years now and one that many young people across the world are currently expressing.

This constant dilemma that I find myself fighting is whether there is a “future” for young people to work towards?

For long as I have heard about climate change and its long term effects (since I was in high school), this question has been lurking in my mind. It has only gotten worse.

All I have ever heard of is how bad things are and how they won’t get better unless we fix it, yet nothing has changed yet. It seems like no climate strikes, and Greta Thunberg’s can change anything anymore, and maybe we are at the brink of extinction.

So if we are, what is the young person to do?

Apart from this central issue looming over our heads, we also have good ol’ capitalism making it tougher to get a well-paying job enough for you to enjoy the life you have always aimed for.

If that isn’t bad, this year has seen a continuation of a global pandemic affecting jobs and businesses globally. There seems to be no end to it.

And all of these issues combined have contributed to another significant problem, which is mental health. At least in a country like India, this is a pressing matter. As a firsthand witness of the effect this has on people, mental health issues are still not receiving the kind of importance they deserve.

Now back to the question; is there a “future” for young people to work towards?

At some point, we all realise that life goes on no matter what. And we all know that life will give you your fair share of problems, some of which we can control and some that we cannot.

There have been multiple instances in the past few years where I have witnessed people stand up to policymakers and such regarding numerous issues purging the youth. These instances have all given me some hope for changes to take place.

It’s not hard to notice that young people face specific problems simply because parts of the older generations do not understand us and our needs, and hence they act accordingly. This is a problem, mainly because most policymakers are from said generation, and their legislations affect us too.

One good way to address and tackle this issue would be to educate more young people about law and policymaking. If the youth are made aware of their rights and can get more involved in politics, they can change the system.

To tie this back to the issues I mentioned earlier; climate change, youth unemployment, a global pandemic. There will always be some issue or the other, but a conscious effort towards fixing it is what helps.

Even if many of these problems don’t get better moving forward, many other young people and I will feel safer knowing that something is genuinely being done about it by people who care. And hence, we have our hope for the future.