At the entrance to educate.’s Youth Center in Trinidad, Santa Bárbara, there is a vibrant 21-metre-long mural. This piece of collective, youth-led public artwork was created by the young people in our EducArte art programme as part of our Tejiendo Futuros project in 2025 with the United Network of Young Peacebuilders (UNOY). The mural highlights Honduras’ rich history of social justice movements, and the vibrant youth-led action taking place at educate. and beyond.
On International Youth Day – August 12th – we were honoured to receive the Gold Award in the 2026 Youth Social Art Awards from the Alliance for Youth-Led Futures (AYLF), an international award recognising the power of the arts for social change.
In Latin America, street art has long been an effective tool for fostering engagement in activism. For young people, muralism can give expression to experiences of struggle and messages of resistance in the face of prevailing narratives that seek to marginalise their voices. For the young people in EducArte, the process of creating this ‘artivist’ mural created spaces for young people to think about what peace means to them, how it interrelates with issues of education, gender and climate, and how young people can engage as leaders and changemakers in their communities – even in small ways.
“To me, this artwork transmits the values, identity and hope that we find in our community,” says Marely Cristel, the young artist from Trinidad who currently leads the EducArte programme and who helped to lead the creation of this mural.
“Through art, I try to portray messages about unity and respect. For me, peace is all about living in harmony, having empathy and respect for others, and promoting dialogue.”
What is the Youth Social Art Award?
The Youth Social Art Award is an initiative of the Alliance for Youth-Led Futures (AYLF), an international alliance bringing together more than 40 organisations and initiatives across youth empowerment, global health, climate action, education, social innovation, arts and culture.
The award grew from a shared conviction: young people should not only be invited to participate in conversations about futures that affect them. They need spaces, agency and opportunities to shape those futures themselves.
Under the theme “Peace and Health for All,” the 2026 Open Call received 49 submissions from Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas. The jury evaluated the works according to five criteria: relevance, social impact, artistic quality, narrative and innovation, as well as conducting deliberation sessions to discuss the artistic approaches, contexts, and the potential impact of the works.
The award ceremony
Eleven works were ultimately selected for the shortlist, with three being awarded Gold, Silver and Bronze awards in the ceremony conducted on International Youth Day. We were honoured and excited to be recognised in first place!
Reflecting on the importance of the award for the group, Cristel says: “I believe art is fundamental for young people to express their emotions, develop their creativity, and become agents of positive change in society. At EducArte, young people can inspire, transform their environments, and create awareness for important issues through their artworks.”
To see a gallery of all of the shortlisted artworks from across the world, click here.
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