Recent figures have shown youth unemployment in China now stands at over 20 percent – double its pre-pandemic level. When young people in China look around, we see a world filled with turmoil, suffering, and injustice. In our daily lives, we often feel immense tension, pressure, anxiety and pain. Young people might well ask ourselves: what has happened to our world? How did this happen? And most important of all: what must we do about it?

On 16 August, the Syrian regime issued a new resolution to deepen the suffering of the Syrian people, 80 percent of whom live below the poverty line, by increasing fuel prices by up to 200 percent. This decision has led to a reduction in purchasing power such that many Syrians are unable to even buy bread. It was the straw that broke the camel’s back, and pushed the poor in Syria to start to take to the streets after a long period of inactivity.