SEVENTEEN Gives a Speech at UNESCO Youth Forum to Urge a Better Future for the Youth

South Korea boy group SEVENTEEN marks another historic record as the first musical artist invited to UNCESCO Youth Forum!

SEVENTEEN attended the 13th edition of the UNESCO Youth Forum on November 14, 2023 at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France.

The group presented a speech and a performance through a special 60-minute session as a representative of youth to emphasize the importance of education and solidarity among youth at the forum.

The first member to take the podium was Seungkwan who talked about Jeju Island. The singer unveiled that Jeju Island bestowed three honors from UNESCO as a Biosphere Reserve in 2002, a Natural World Heritage site in 2007, and a Global Geopark in 2010.

Born and raised in Jeju Island, Seungkwan take a challenge to leave the beautiful island and move to Seoul to pursue his dream of becoming a K-pop star.

“I, along with the other members of the group, would like to take this time to share with all the young people of the world the importance of nature, the value of striving for a better future, the importance of education, and our personal stories of how we have grown closer to our dreams, one step at a time,” said Seungkwan.

Jun is another SEVENTEEN member who took up the challenge to make his dream come true as he moved from China to South Korea. The former child actor unveiled his worries on language barrier and he wouldn’t be able to overcome the challenges that may affect the team. However, he overcame his worries as the members encouraged, supported him along the way, and kept the communication so he put all his effort into learning the language. “We were teachers to one another. We practiced together, created together, and became better versions of ourselves. We may not be perfect as individuals, but together, we are the best team, SEVENTEEN.”

The member and producer of SEVENTEEN, Woozi highlighted how the members overcome the challenges together and focus on the positivity side.

“Success didn’t come quickly, but the 13 of us spending time together and sharing our passions made every minute of the ride enjoyable. We were always cheerful and all smiles, no matter what. Whenever we were in the practice studio, we always spoke with positivity, propping up and pushing each other to go just a little bit further. We tried to focus on the cheerful voices of our members, rather than the negativity from those outside, and we became certain in our belief that, as long as we were together, we would make it.”

In the next speech, Mingyu shared the group’s contributions to the youth through donations. The singer unveiled that SEVENTEEN started to make good use of their money during their debut days by donating 13 goats to Tanzania children. Ever since, the group has continued making different donations in the hope that the youth will not give up on their dreams.

“We started by donating goats to Tanzania, and we have continued making different donations ever since. Since 2017, every year on the anniversary of our debut, we make a donation to children’s organizations and foundations. And we do it because we want to make sure that no young people, no matter who they are or where they’re coming from, ever give up on their dreams or get discouraged. We believe that by supporting people’s dreams, we are also spreading positivity and hope.”

Joshua emphasized the importance of solidarity could bring a better future for the youth. To support the educational campaign named #GoingTogether that the group launched with KNCU, they raised funds. All the donations and some of the profit from the world tour are used to build a school in Malawi.
“We hope that our actions through UNESCO will reach young people everywhere, from the kids on islands even smaller than Jeju, to those in every corner of the world who are fostering, reaffirming, and acting on their dreams, even as we speak.”

Wrapping up the speech session, Vernon introduced a few parts from the five songs that highlight the messages they want to deliver to everyone. “Even a small action today can give people courage for many days to come. We will shine together. (Lyrics from “Headliner”).”

Following the speech session, SEVENTEEN rocked the UNESCO Youth Forum stage with their outstanding performances of “_WORLD”, “Darl+ing (ENG ver.), “Headliner”, “God of Music”, “Together (ENG ver.)”

Photo credit: PLEDIS Entertainment