Youth Ambassadors - Youth Advisory Council

As elected representatives of the many young people who participate in Duke each year, we provide strategic recommendations to our association’s executive board for the further development of the association’s work in Germany and internationally. We want to inspire young people to tackle societal challenges. We want to ensure that young people’s voices are heard in societal discourse, whether within the family, at school, in the community, or at the (inter)national level. We seek to collaborate with like-minded individuals from all over Germany, Europe, and around the world to work together toward shaping a sustainable society.

“At the same time, I want to say just how much my time as a Youth Ambassador has meant to me. It was an unforgettable experience for me, one that opened up whole new worlds. I saw just how many dedicated and interested young people there are, and that really encouraged me.”

Mila Friske, YA 2025

As one of the world’s Big 6 youth organizations, we are committed to advancing the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the UN Sustainable Development Goals, both in our immediate community and throughout society as a whole. We view the Duke Programme as a framework that inspires young people to surpass their own limits, make a difference, and participate in society, and that provides adults with the opportunity to place trust in young people’s abilities, guide and support them in their personal development, and shape their environment with a growth-oriented mindset. As the Youth Advisory Board, we are committed to ensuring that as many young people as possible have the opportunity to participate in the Duke Programme. We also want to inspire all alumni to continue advocating for a sustainable society throughout their lives!

Does that sound like you? Follow the work of our Youth Ambassadors this year and find out how you can be elected for the 2027-28 programme. The application period for the Youth Ambassadors opens each year in January and ends in February. Stay tuned! You can find information about our current and former cohorts on these pages:

The term of a Youth Ambassador lasts 12 months. On average, you should plan 2-4 hours per month. If you are completing your Silver or Gold Award, you can use this time for the Service section of your Award. The monthly online meetings always take place in the evening (usually between 6 and 8pm). There are additional time commitments for all sustainability projects and events, but you are not expected to attend all of them.

We decide ourselves which events we would like to attend. These include Award ceremonies, networking meetings and conferences about various themes which we find interesting or important to us. The managing director of the association assists us in organising travel, covering the costs, and other things.

For sustainability reasons, we travel exclusively by public transportation.

The Youth Advisory Council is what we make of it! We’d like to encourage you to participate in as many online meetings as possible so that we can work well together.

Successful applicants should be enthusiastic about the Duke Award and willing to share their experiences and collaborate with others to bring about positive change. Each March, the current Youth Advisory Board selects the members of the new Youth Advisory Board based on the submitted applications. It is important that the Youth Ambassadors represent all young people participating in the Duke Award in Germany. We strive to ensure that, ideally, the various federal states are represented and that the Youth Ambassadors reflect as diverse a range of backgrounds as possible. All selected applicants will be contacted by email by the association’s executive board by the end of March at the latest. Those who were not selected will also be notified by email.