The Future of Youth Autonomy

Future scenarios concerning youth suggest that, against the backdrop of the growing proportion of the elderly and the decreasing proportion of youth in the electorate, young people may begin to perceive more and more that their vote does not carry much weight. This may further intensify young people’s alienation from politics. Young people’s attitudes are markedly influenced by social media, which cultivates the attention economy, i.e. stimulating emotional reactions at the expense of rationality. Studies have also found that current civic education may not sufficiently support young people becoming socially active: Estonian youth have good knowledge about how society works, but they don’t necessarily apply it in social life.

The deepening of environmental problems increases young people’s responsibility in shaping our green future. This highlights the balance between information education and values ​​education – young people must not only know why and how the climate is changing, but also act accordingly so that their activities are environmentally sustainable.

On the other hand, although today’s youth are more and more interested in environmental issues and ready for change, they may not have a full understanding of where the money comes from and how different decisions affect society at large. For example, the fast closure of oil shale power stations may reduce carbon emissions, but it could also cause serious economic problems, such as job losses and rising energy prices. To avoid this, it is important to integrate environmental education with good-quality economic education so that young people understand both the need for a green transition and the accompanying economic realities and so that they are able to make responsible decisions.

The new labour market (flexibility, remote work, digital tools, the sharing economy, etc.) is appealing to young people. It also gives them an advantage on the labour market, as they tend to have good digital skills and are able to adapt to changes faster. There are also many young people who are economically active even before they reach adulthood. However, there are various imposed age limits related to participation in the economy that may not sufficiently take these trends into consideration.

The research stream “The Future of Youth Autonomy” focuses on the following questions: which factors influence youth autonomy (agency, decision-making power) and how well the developments in youth autonomy correspond to the various age limits regulating young people’s rights.

The primary questions of the research stream are:

• What factors influence young people’s ability to be responsible? Are today’s young people more responsible than their peers a couple of decades ago?
• In which areas has the participation of young people in social life and the economy changed the most and/or may change in the future? What are the consequences of statutory age limits?
• What possible scenarios could develop regarding youth autonomy in Estonian society by 2050?

The project has a strong connection with the Foresight Centre’s research streams “Values as Human Resource and Their Connection to Social Development” (2019) and “The Future for the Next Generation of Teachers” (2023).