Matheus Falasco, Director of the Youth Action Hub Curitiba 

Matheus Falasco, aged 25, is the Director of the Youth Action Hub Curitiba, an initiative of UNCTAD, aimed at empowering young people. Since 2019, he has led efforts to advance the 2030 Agenda, focusing on youth engagement. 

The Youth Action Hub, under Matheus's leadership, primarily focuses on two main areas. Firstly, it endeavours to raise awareness about sustainable development topics and the 2030 Agenda through tailored online and offline learning courses aimed at young individuals. These courses, named Sustainable Intelligence, seek to educate participants about the fundamental principles, definitions and practical applications of the 2030 Agenda in their daily lives. Furthermore, the organization conducts seminars and collaborates with universities to disseminate information and facilitate classes on the 2030 Agenda and Sustainable Development. Secondly, the hub is dedicated to fostering sustainable solutions to address social, economic and environmental challenges through a specialized methodology called a Hackathon. During these events, youths convene to propose and present innovative ideas aimed at tackling current societal issues. 

Matheus’s accomplishments were directly influenced by a one-day workshop hosted by CIFAL Flanders, which he attended in 2019, just before founding the Youth Action Hub Curitiba. This workshop focused on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, during which insights into the 2030 Agenda were provided. 

“It was very useful, principally, because I took the course when I was about to start the [Youth Action] Hub… It was the first time I heard [of this topic] in a very systematic and organized way and this helped me understand better the subject and  start to also share information about the same topic.” 

In addition, the workshop Matheus participated in proved beneficial for his consultancy work. Specifically, he specializes in assisting organizations and businesses in adopting sustainable practices, with a particular focus on managing human resources and engaging with stakeholders. This experience illuminated the significance of the 2030 Agenda and sustainable development for the private sector, underlining the importance of an inclusive approach by integrating the private sector into these conversations.  

“The course [content] was a little bit abstract because we are talking about the international agenda, a subject that in itself is very abstract. However, the way it was presented, that is a multidisciplinary perspective, helped me to understand how it can be applied to several different areas. This was the most interesting thing about this course that helped me in my work in the NGO and as a business consultant.”  

Ultimately, the two roles Matheus undertakes complement each other, with Agenda 2030 and sustainable development at its core.