video1.0<iframe src="https://www.loom.com/embed/afd0ec3ebfe141a68dbf37c7f7425277" frameborder="0" width="1920" height="1440" webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen allowfullscreen></iframe>14401920Loomhttps://www.loom.com14401920https://cdn.loom.com/sessions/thumbnails/afd0ec3ebfe141a68dbf37c7f7425277-8b860e2942c04c63.gif5208.561The Czech Permanent Mission side event framed the shift from financial literacy to financial agency, emphasizing youth leadership, inclusion, and system-level change. Panelists and youth delegates outlined barriers (psychological stress, unequal access, regional differences) and proposed solutions including experiential education, cross-sector partnerships, catalytic funding, regulatory sandboxes, and technology-enabled personalized tools. Planned follow-ups include an open-call Financial Education Handout to collect good practices and continued collaboration among governments, private sector, civil society, and youth delegates. ### Opening and framing 5:53 - Jakub Rychlý welcomed attendees to the Czech Permanent Mission and introduced the side event titled "From Financial Literacy to Financial Agency" as a forum to empower sustainable island economies and broader youth economic participation. - Jakub Rychlý identified himself as a Czech youth delegate who has worked five years in financial education and explained the intent to move beyond teaching finance toward enabling action. - Jakub Rychlý and the mission thanked the ambassador for hosting and acknowledged partners and speakers supporting the event. - The Czech Republic highlighted local initiatives such as the Skola program of the Czechoslovak Foundation and a youth co-founded non-profit as examples of private–civil society partnerships that inspired the event. ### Keynote reflections 12:51 - Dr. Philippe Paulier, Assistant Secretary General for Youth Affairs, framed the discussion by describing youth engagement as both a message of hope and dissatisfaction with existing systems and by stressing the value of platforms for youth to influence global cooperation. - Dr. Philippe Paulier emphasized three reflections: that the discussion is about empowerment and tools to make better decisions, that financial literacy should be considered a life skill connected to mental health, and that inclusion requires attention to access to financial systems in developing contexts. - Dr. Philippe Paulier identified geopolitical uncertainty and regional variation as context for differing financial education needs and called for placing financial education at the center of how the UN system evolves. ### Panelist introductions 19:01 - Elliot Harris introduced himself as head of International Community Relations at the Sydney Foundation and described the foundation's philanthropic work across low-income communities in over 90 countries. - Andrea introduced the UNSGSA office, describing work with governments, the UN, the G20, financial institutions, and the private sector to promote financial health and defined financial health as the ability to meet basic needs, recover from shocks, and plan for the future. - Vanhelmo Ndianeza identified as the Youth Delegate for Burundi and offered to discuss issues and solutions for the Great Lakes region. - Viara Trifonova described being a Bulgarian youth delegate, a refugee and law graduate, and shared interests in SDG 16, courts and tax-related financial literacy issues. - Dr. Ruben Rivera introduced his role as Senior Director of Academic Programs at the Council for Economic Education and described national programs including the National Personal Finance Challenge and an Investing Girls Program focused on closing gender gaps in finance. ### From literacy to agency 25:17 - Andrea argued that financial literacy is a foundation but the goal should be financial health, which requires access to tailored products, protection from financial harm, and systems designed with young people in mind. - Dr. Ruben Rivera distinguished financial literacy as cognitive knowledge and financial agency as behavioral and structural, and advocated for experiential learning that lets students apply concepts through case studies and competitions. - Viara Trifonova identified psychological strain and regional disparities in financial systems and connectivity as key barriers and recommended nuanced, regionally informed solutions. - Vanhelmo Ndianeza described Burundi's example of government-supported youth investment funds and programs focused on agriculture that have benefited thousands of young people as practical inclusion measures. - Elliot Harris and the Citi Foundation emphasized local-to-scale programming, cross-sector partnerships, catalytic funding (including pilot grants) and a focus on employment as core elements to move from literacy to agency. - Andrea and UNSGSA highlighted technology-driven innovations (AI, machine learning, behavioral science, open finance) and the role of enabling regulation such as sandboxes and inclusive policy design to help scale youth-focused financial tools. ### Audience questions and practical steps 40:08 - Attendees asked for examples of effective partnerships and panelists cited YouthCodeLab and corporate–community collaborations such as Voya delivering experts into classrooms as successful models. - Dr. Ruben Rivera recommended early incorporation of financial education and advocacy, citing that 39 out of 50 U.S. states now require high-school personal finance, and suggested coalitions such as FINF50 for legislative advocacy. - Panelists advised individuals to take initiative, view young people as creators not only consumers, and use volunteering, mentorship, and local partnerships to build credibility and capacity. - Practical advice for fragile contexts included treating failure as a learning step, redesigning programs based on lessons learned, and building resilience among program staff and participants. - For marginalized communities, panelists recommended municipal-level engagement, partnering with trusted local organizations, and connecting financial literacy to employment and income pathways. - For entrepreneurs and MSMEs, panelists recommended creating business plans, leveraging alternate or qualitative data to access formal credit, pursuing brand partnerships for credibility, and using free volunteer expertise or corporate mentoring where possible. - Panelists warned about misinformation from online influencers and recommended providing credible, resourceful, and trusted educational content to build community trust. - The organizers announced an open-call Financial Education Handout to collect good practices for dissemination after the event and invited participants to submit links or materials for inclusion. - The session closed with an invitation for refreshments and a group photograph to conclude the event.