Telenor welcomes 25 young change-makers to thought leadership forum

Telenor Youth Forum 2015 kicks off with delegates from 13 countries gathering to discuss access to knowledge through digital and mobile technology.

Published: 8 December 2015

Today, 25 passionate delegates, aged 18 to 28 years, from different nations, cultures and social backgrounds will meet in Norway, for the annual forum, #TYF. The Telenor campus at Fornebu will transform to focus on youth, their ideas and how they could shape our digital future. This year’s focus theme is #KnowledgeForAll and delegates’ passions range from teaching apps to MOOC and mobile edugaming.

Connecting the unconnected, bringing internet to the mass market and incubating bastions of innovation in high-energy, high-growth markets are the staple ingredients in enabling #KnowledgeForAll.

“Our delegates bring unique ideas and thoughts based on multiple perspectives and that are rooted in a range of societal challenges. Most importantly, they see opportunities where others see barriers to making an impact. We want to engage with them to discuss and explore how Telenor and mobile technology can be part of driving inclusive change and improving access to knowledge,” says Sigve Brekke, President & CEO of Telenor Group.

Telenor has partnered with the Nobel Peace Center for the popular event, which coincides with the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony week, when the world’s eyes will be on Oslo. This year for the first time, the Nobel Peace Prize Concert will be held at Telenor Arena, Fornebu and live-streamed on YouTube. Comedy heavyweight Jay Leno will host and acts such as A-Ha and Kygo will entertain the crowds, including the #TYF15 delegates.

No barriers to making an impact

The chosen delegates are born into a digital age that encourages and enables untraditional and innovative solutions to societal challenges.

“This year we have a more diverse group than ever before,” says Ola-Jo Tandre, the host of #TYF. “Women make up a 14 to 11 majority of the delegates and their age range and experiences are more diverse than ever. This will make for some fruitful and engaging discussions,” adds Tandre.

India’s Kaarika Das (21) wants to develop Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) for mobile, supported by gamification concepts to encourage accelerated learning for children of all backgrounds. Norwegian MD/PhD student in cancer research, Imon Barua (23) sees significant opportunity for medical students in cross-border knowledge exchanges through technology. Software engineer Fatima Rizwan (26) from Pakistan works to stimulate entrepreneurship in her home country. As founder and CEO of TechJuice, she helps young people realize their ideas and create their own businesses. From Bulgaria, political scientist Greta Tsekova (21) is part of the team behind Smartigraphs, a start-up developing easily comprehensible infographics to spread knowledge.

Read more about the 25 delegates here.

Telenor has invited some of the world’s best minds in education, in information access and technology as speakers at #TYF15. From Norway’s own Minister of Education and Research to a bright young upstart of one of Myanmar’s standout education and technology programs, this year’s speaker line-up is as varied, international and inspiring as they come.

A keynote address will be given by Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, responsible for creating a platform that arguably does more to spread #KnowledgeForAll than any other. “I’m excited to be participating in this year’s Telenor Youth Forum. The youth are the future, mobile is the future. The dream of universal access to education is in our grasp,” says Wales.