WFF Youth Initiative welcomes the fourth cohort of the Youth Policy Board

In May 2025, the World Food Forum (WFF)'s Global Youth Action Initiative (Youth Initiative) officially welcomed the fourth cohort of its Youth Policy Board (YPB). This year's cohort brings together 34 young leaders, selected from a pool of more than 2 000 applicants from over 176 countries. Each member brings unique expertise and a shared commitment to transforming agrifood systems through policy and action.

The YPB plays a strategic role in guiding the WFF Youth Assembly, a youth-led platform that empowers young people to engage meaningfully in policy and governance discussions on agrifood systems.  It provides a structured, inclusive space for youth to systematically contribute to decision-making at local, regional and global levels.

The Youth Assembly is youth-led by design and in practice. While the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) hosts the Youth Assembly Secretariat, the platform is governed and managed by the YPB, an annually rotating body of young leaders from diverse backgrounds and regions. The YPB sets the strategic direction of the Youth Assembly, leading consultations, shaping the agenda and preparing key outcome documents.

The YPB plays a pivotal role in planning and coordinating the Youth Assembly’s sessions and activities. Its core responsibilities include:

• Implementing the Global Youth Action Plan (GYAP) at the regional level, including drafting progress reports and organizing regional youth consultations;
• Facilitating meaningful and inclusive youth engagement by organizing regional and thematic consultations on agrifood systems governance, and drafting policy recommendations and outcome documents that feed into key intergovernmental processes;
• Representing youth voices by participation in meetings, events and media engagements on behalf of the WFF Youth Assembly; and
• Advising on policy integration across WFF Youth Initiative programmes to ensure alignment with youth priorities.

The new YPB cohort demonstrates strong global interest in youth engagement in agrifood systems governance. Africa accounted for the highest number of applications, followed by Asia and the Pacific, the Near East and North Africa, Europe and Central Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and North America. Notably, most applicants were young women.

The cohort includes 24 regional representatives and introduces 10 new thematic seats, covering critical areas such as Water management, Nutrition, Fisheries and aquaculture, Forestry, Livestock, Bioeconomy, Biodiversity, Climate change, Desertification, Land Degradation and Drought and young women’s empowerment. It also includes dedicated representation from Small Island Developing States (SIDS), Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs), ensuring inclusive, diverse and equitable participation in global policy discussions.

Introducing the 2025-2026 cohort of 34 changemakers from around the world:

• Abby Hill, Australia
• Alina Mubashir, Pakistan
• Alexandros Tataridas, Greece
• Ali Kareem Kaka, Iraq
• Andrés Guleed Davoud, Switzerland
• Bochola Sara Arero, Ethiopia
• Carlos Daniel Valdovinos Pérez, Mexico
• Chanel Perreault, Canada
• Chevaughn Brown, Jamaica
• Elif Menderes, Türkiye
• Esther Kimani, Kenya
• Gabriel Adami, Brazil
• Gabriel Nagel, United States of America
• Isaiah Emmanuel Suguitan, Philippines
• Jieru Shi, United States of America
• Jomoke Omodeni, Nigeria
• Juan Pierre, Mauritius
• Lynonah Tausa, Samoa
• Maria Jose Cervantes Calderon, Costa Rica
• Marilena Bachmeier, Germany
• Mikayla Hyland-Wood, Australia
• Mohammed Alyatari, Yemen
• Nada Zamel, Tunisia
• Rand Alkhushman, Jordan
• Raanita Krishnamoorthy, Malaysia
• Richard Tusiime, Uganda
• Riham Helmy, Egypt
• Sarah Kohane, Germany
• Sara Kate Smith, Canada
• Shalala Hasanova, Azerbaijan
• Tiffany Marcelle, Dominica
• Tokelo Shai, South Africa
• Valeria Clara Morales Ancajima, Peru
• William McManiman, Canada

The fourth cohort of the YPB is uniquely positioned to co-lead youth policy engagement at the global level and translate youth-led solutions into actionable outcomes. The WFF Youth Initiative remains committed to enabling meaningful youth participation, capacity development and intergenerational collaboration in line 1awith the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The key attributes and experiences sought in YPB members include:

• Present experience and understanding of the challenges facing agrifood systems;
• Strong motivation to transform agrifood systems and to engage and empower youth in policy processes and advocacy:
• Commitment to serving society at large and engagement towards achieving the SDGs;
• Ability to work cooperatively in a team, develop creative and practical solutions, take initiative, and communicate effectively with different audiences; and
• Excellent command any one FAO official language (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian or Spanish), and at least conversational English.

The YPB selection process follows a rigorous four-stage evaluation designed to ensure transparency, inclusivity and excellence. Across all stages, candidates were assessed using clear scoring guidelines that considered agrifood systems experience, leadership and policy development skills, teamwork and communication abilities, personal engagement, language proficiency, creativity and proactivity. Measures were implemented at every stage to minimize bias and promote fairness.

For more details on the selection process, please access the guidelines here.