A new creative programme to engage top youth leaders to promote peace through digital action in Sri Lanka and the Maldives has been launched.

‘United Creatives’ is led by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the European Union’s Service for Foreign Policy Instruments (FPI) with support from Facebook. It will bring proactive and creative youth from across the two countries to build digital campaigns that offer alternatives to hate speech, both online and on the ground.

Youth leaders, influencers, and creators aged 18-30 in Sri Lanka and the Maldives are now eligible to apply for this program. They are invited to become members of a network of influential youth leaders creating impactful positive digital content and celebrating diversity.

With support from social change agency Love Frankie, selected youth will gain access to cutting edge training, mentorship, and tools to build creative online campaigns over ten weeks through masterclasses from Facebook, UN experts, social leaders, and a range of thematic and creative experts.

They will gain vital digital and strategic skills to successfully promote social cohesion, build positive social messages, and promote tolerance in their respective communities. They will take part in sessions on building emotional intelligence, creating empathic and engaging narratives, using ‘art-ivism’ and new creative mediums for engagement, and understanding and calling for positive policy action.

Following this training programme, participants will receive small grants to design, create, and run their own digital campaigns which will be launched at a regional finale event in May. They may create campaigns on:

●        Positive online spaces by promoting critical thinking and countering hate speech, online harassment, and fake news.

●        Narratives that promote diversity and unity by strengthening citizen journalism and sharing stories from communities, and

●        Community building by finding humane and local identities that unite through trust.

The call for applications will remain open until January 18th, 2021. A panel of experts from project partners will then select a total of 40 top applicants to participate in the programme. The invited participants will start their journey at a kick-off boot camp on February 12th, 2021.

Apply to become part of the United Creatives here from January 4th 2021.

For more information, please contact: isabella.caravaggio@undp.org