In our global society there are currently two major issues that are (or should be) a concern to all countries, whatever their level of development:
Why is ADVANCE
needed & why you
should care?
Unemployment is rising and this is especially true for young people.
Indeed, youth are approximately 3x more likely to be unemployed than adults.
20.9 million
From April to July 2018, the number of employed youth 16 to 24 years old increased by 2.0 million to 20.9 million as per the statistics of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
24.7%
In the European Union and the euro area, unemployment in general has been on the rise since 2008.
Physical inactivity is a time-bomb.
37% of the population is sitting more than 5.5 hours a day.
Only two in five Europeans (40%) exercise or play sport at least once a week and almost half of respondents (46%) to the Eurobarometer survey from Dec 2017 on the level of sport and PA in Europe said they never exercise or play sport!
What’s the cost?
These two phenomena come at a very high cost for society.
If overlooked, youth unemployment has a potential to have significant and serious social repercussions. Youth unemployment can lead to social exclusion and unrest.
Right now, physical inactivity is the 4th leading risk factor for global mortality!
For Europe only, surveys have shown that the lack of exercises contributes to diseases that cost Europe over 80 billion euros every year.
Who is paying?
Once again, women and girls are the one who are suffering the most from the situation.
Girls and young women make up the majority of the world’s 621 million young people who are not in education, employment or training.
Unemployment is affecting them more than young men in almost all regions of the world.
In Northern Africa and the Arab States, the female youth unemployment rate is almost double that of young men, reaching as high as 44.3 and 44.1%, respectively!
Girls and young women are less active than their male counterpart.
Therefore being more at risks to suffer from chronic diseases and at the same time not giving themselves the chance to develop valuable skills and mindset.
In addition, adolescent girls and young women are less likely to engage in heart-rate raising recreational activities than their male peers, and when they do keep at it for shorter periods of time, research has revealed.
So the question is…
What if a new perspective could help tackle these two major challenges of our times that are letting too many people out of society?
What if we could target the hard to reach and the most in need with a simple tool and equip them with the knowledge and tips they need to tell more about their story and articulate their soft transversal skills acquired through the practice of sport and physical activity?