World Youth Skills Day 2023

Rapidly transforming technology, changes in the world of work, along with growing social, environmental and economic challenges mean that young generations will increasingly need a more varied set of skills, hard and soft, and learn to adapt fast. It has become essential for institutions and organizations globally to help them up-skill and be “future-ready” to successfully navigate these challenges and realize their full potential.

In 2023, World Youth Skills Day highlights the importance of "skilling teachers, trainers and youth for a transformative future". Teachers and educators play a major role in providing young people with the right skills to enter the workforce and actively contribute to the future life of their communities and societies. Vocational and technical education are critical in this context, for they break down access barriers to work and provide a framework to ensure that the skills developed are relevant, recognized and certified.

Today is an opportunity to recognize the potential of young generations to be our catalysts for change, and for institutions and organizations to commit to providing them with the skills and opportunities they need to build a more prosperous and sustainable world for all, and a brighter future where no one is left behind. La Fondation Dassault Systèmes is proud to support educational projects that address this ambition and participate in fostering employment, decent work and entrepreneurship for today and tomorrow.

Read here about two of them that participate in making youth future-ready. 

Based on the premise that hands-on application is what really connects in-classroom learning with the real world and can ultimately lead to inspire young people’s interest and careers, the Chicago Industrial Arts and Design Center (CIADC) is bringing industrial arts, design and technology to students via its Youth Pathways program.

Launched in 2021, the program is open to any youth aged 11 to 19. The ambition however is to offer equitable access to non-traditional learning opportunities specifically to the financially disadvantaged Chicago Public Schools students in order to nurture their interest for STEM and industrial arts, connect these interests to career pathways and weave in-school learning with hands-on applications. With the support of La Fondation Dassault Systèmes in the US, CIADC brings students to the shop floor, providing them with a proper workspace, shop tools, along with the industrial expertise and community for them to learn about techniques such as casting, molding, metalworking or woodworking. CIADC also works in close collaboration with teachers to bring principles of object design and fabrication to the classroom with dedicated 3D applications and learning aids.

The organization is proud to serve 250 students annually and offer free class tuition through its Free for Chicago Public Schools scholarships. A great push to increase the appeal of STEM, trade, art and design careers to all!

Learn more about the Youth Pathways project.

How to expand the skills of engineers in the field of solar energy and make them “industry-ready”? Earlier this year, La Fondation Dassault Systèmes initiated a collaboration between two of our partners, the N. K. Orchid College of Engineering and Technology in India and Polytech Nancy, in France. The partnership started last spring with teachers from the two schools meeting in Solapur to share their respective knowledge and experience in the field of renewable energy, laying the grounds for a long-term relationship and the co-creation of new curricula, which will contribute to increase the skills of engineering students in this particular field.

In parallel, a group of French students also traveled to Solapur for a 12-week internship. It has been a great opportunity for them to exchange with their Indian peers and work on the design and manufacturing of a solar tree and charging station together, hence expanding their knowledge relative to solar power development in order to contribute to ever more virtuous and much-needed sustainable urban development, but also to discover a different culture and new teaching methods.