Canadian youth have demonstrated an extraordinary ability to act as leaders in the information society, by building infrastructure; expanding access; creating user networks and community groups; and facilitating cooperation between key parties domestically and abroad. Whether acting on their own or through programs such as the Community Access Program or NetCorps Canada, young people are transforming the world by drawing upon their knowledge of information technology and their commitment to social, environmental and economic justice. The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) believes that it is time for their stories and accomplishments to be shared.

The preservation of Canada's position as a global leader in the information society depends on inspiring young Canadian students, professionals and other specialists to build upon the successes of the past and to drive innovation for the future. The preparatory process for the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) provided an excellent opportunity to engage even more young Canadians in these issues—to inspire youth to realize their potential as community leaders and entrepreneurs, using information and communication technologies to achieve more sustainable development in Canada and around the world.

For these reasons, IISD served as one of the organizations leading the involvement of young Canadians in the WSIS process. In October 2002, a Canadian government/civil-society working group was formed to develop and implement a national strategy to channel the energy and showcase the efforts of young Canadians active in building the information society within the WSIS process. This youth working group includes representatives from the Canadian Commission for UNESCO, the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the Canadian Information Processing Society (CIPS), NetCorps Canada, TakingITGlobal (TIG) and IISD.

These organizations collaborated on the elaboration of a national youth engagement strategy including the following activities:

• Cross-Canada consultations, organized by the Canadian Commission for UNESCO;

• Electronic consultation for young Canadians working domestically on building Canada as an information society;

• Electronic consultation for young Canadians working abroad on building information societies around the world;

• National delegation participation;

• Public education and outreach activities; and

• Replication of these activities in other countries.

These activities culminated in December 2002 at the WSIS Geneva Summit with a panel presentation (108 kb) at the Canadian Pavilion on the "Role of Young Canadians in the Information Society." It is our hope that during Phase II of WSIS, Canadian youth organizations such as Canada25 will build upon these efforts to mobilize Canadian youth to engage in information society policy analysis and advocacy.