Connect with youth activists passionate about inclusion and justice from across the US and Canada in March 2025!
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YCD is thrilled to announce the first-ever National Virtual Diversity Conference for Youth, taking place on Saturday and Sunday, March 1-2, 2025! This two-day event will bring together youth and supportive adults from across the United States and Canada working toward inclusion and justice in their communities, and provide a springboard for action!
Who Should Attend
The conference is open to all youth and supportive teachers/adults from across the United States and Canada. In particular, this event is a great opportunity for groups such as:
- Diversity or multicultural student clubs
- Student councils
- Peace/conflict resolution-focused organizations, including PeaceJam and Interact
- Religious student organizations interested in exploring interfaith dialogue and positive social change
- Clubs celebrating specific student ethnicities, including Black Student Alliance, Latinx or Hispanic student clubs, Native/Indigenous student clubs and others
- Gender/sexuality-focused student groups, including gay-straight alliances
- Female empowerment student clubs
- Peer counselors
- Deaf students and their allies, including ASL signing clubs
- Disabled students from all backgrounds
- Creative writing and performance student groups, including poetry, spoken word, hip-hop, dance and other clubs
- Students from a local youth organization, even if they attend different schools
- ANY group of teens interested in improving their school’s culture or making a positive change in their community
Note youth ages 13 and younger must have documented parental/guardian permission in order to participate.
Technology
This Conference will leverage the Zoom platform for all sessions. Any participant can download and install Zoom on their phone or computer free of charge. Prior to the conference weekend, each attendee will be sent personalized Zoom links for their sessions throughout the event. If you have questions or concerns about technology requirements to join this event, contact us.
Schedule
We’ve heard from our youth that the traditional one-day conference format does not work in a virtual setting, so this conference is split over two days, limiting each day to no more than three hours of screen time, with significant breaks each day. You can also download a printable version of the event schedule.
Saturday, March 1, 2025
Online Arrival 9:45 am PT / 12:45 pm ET
Everyone joins a Zoom webinar in preparation of Opening Ceremonies!
Day 1 Welcome and Keynote Speech 10:00 am PT / 1:00 pm ET
We hear from a notable keynote speaker with an inspiring message related to inclusion and justice!
Break 11:00 am PT / 2:00 pm ET
Time for everyone to take a mental break, whether to eat some lunch or just step away from the computer.
Student Discussion Groups 11:30 am PT / 2:30 pm ET
Students join a discussion group to talk about diversity and social issues with other youth from across the country.
End of Day 1 1:00 pm PT / 4:00 pm ET
Sunday, March 2, 2025
Day 2 Welcome and Opening Ceremonies 10:00 am PT / 1:00 pm ET
See additional cultural performances and a welcome from our youth co-chairs.
Workshop A 10:30 am PT / 1:30 pm ET
Both students and adult mentors attend a workshop of their choice. Workshops focus on a variety of themes, including gender, class and poverty, race and ethnicity, sexuality, disabilities, mental wellness, and conflict resolution.
Break 11:30 am PT / 2:30 pm ET
Time for everyone to take a mental break, whether to eat some lunch or just step away from the computer.
Workshop B 12:00 pm PT / 2:00 pm ET
Everyone attends a second workshop of their choice.
Closing Ceremonies 1:15 pm PT / 4:15 pm ET
We finish the conference by hearing from an exceptional musical performer.
End of Conference 1:30 pm PT / 4:30 pm ET
Keynote Speaker
YCD is thrilled to announce Olivia Julianna as the keynote speaker for this event, who will be sharing her thoughts on young people using digital and social media to make positive change in 2025! Make sure to register to hear her speech on Saturday, March 1.
Olivia Julianna is an abortion rights activist, democracy organizer, and political influencer from Houston, Texas. With over 1 million followers across TikTok, Twitter, and Instagram, her content has accumulated over 1 billion views, changing the political landscape and putting youth voices front and center in the fight for our future.
She rose to national prominence for initiating the takedown of a whistleblower website that targeted those in the state of Texas who aided in abortion access, and for raised $2.2 million for abortion funds after she was publicly attacked by Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz.
She has facilitated collaborations with elected officials like Governors Josh Shapiro (PA) and Gretchen Whitmer (MI), Congressmembers Jasmine Crockett (TX) and Jamaal Bowman (NY), and Vice President Kamala Harris. She had also actively partnered with organizations like Planned Parenthood and Act Blue to create digital content around activism and education.
She was named as one of Bloomberg’s “50 Most Influential People of the Year” in 2022, and was given both the Ms. Foundation’s “Marie C. Wilson Emerging Leader” award as well as the Planned Parenthood Southeast’s “Legends in the Making” award.
Workshops
We are announcing a starting line-up of six workshops to be featured at this Conference, though may add more depending on registration and interest! See below to review this year’s workshop options, or you can download a PDF of the workshop list here.
Beyond the Hype: Human Trafficking of Youth
Hidden in plain sight is the cliché for situations involving trafficking and yet, in 2024 minors who have been trafficked are filling up our youth detention centers, dropping out of school and using substances to cope with their trauma. How can we recognize trafficking when it’s happening right in front of us – from survival sex to forced criminality to the labor trafficking of unaccompanied minors? We need to see beyond the hype, understand the nuances of the crime and know the existing resources to support survivors. This workshop will bust through myths perpetuated by social media and Hollywood; illustrate the realities of trafficking in rural and urban communities; and encourage new ways of thinking about vulnerability, marginalization and exploitation of youth.
How to Have Hard Conversations
This workshop will teach youth how to talk about controversial issues with people who disagree with them; and if they should. We will review a basic overview of the psychology of changing opinions and explain how to harness that psychology to change the minds of people close to you while attendees prepare for a real conversation they would like to have. Youth will leave the workshop with an understanding of how to have hard conversations and feel equipped to have an upcoming conversation.
Know Your Rights
Regardless of your immigration status, you have guaranteed rights under the Constitution. Learn more here about your rights when encountering police or ICE, and how to express them.
Lest We Forget … Stories of Wisdom, Stories of Truth
We will use storytelling to take a journey through American history from the perspective of the African American woman. The journey begins with slavery and travels into present day America. Racism, hatred, and stereotyping are some of the many topics touched upon in this presentation. We will end with a group discussion on how society has changed–for better or worse–to the present day, and the power of one.
Navigating Diversity Backlash
This workshop is an interactive conversation about why there is resistance to equity, diversity, and inclusion efforts and how to work through the backlash. Learners will engage in dialogue and activities (role-play is one) to come away with strategies on how to address diversity backlash when they are faced with resistance to their work in social and racial justice.
What to Expect: The College Experience
This workshop will feature a panel of college students with different identities and backgrounds talking about their experiences applying to college, navigating financial aid, and what life has been like now on the college campus.
Ready to reserve your spot at this event?
If your group has not yet registered for YCD for the 2024-25 school year, contact us to learn how you can get involved!
Registration
Groups
Established youth clubs and groups are encouraged to register as a chapter of YCD, which includes attendance at this Conference as part of their annual membership, in addition to numerous other benefits!
Individuals
Looking to select your workshops at the Conference? Click the button below to reserve your spot if your group has already registered for the 2024-25 school year.
Are you interested in joining this event but don’t belong to a YCD chapter or existing group? Contact us for help in starting one or to discuss how you can still join this unique event.
Contact Info
Caleb Munro
Executive Director
Denver, Colorado
(720) 507-0746
[email protected]