KIDS SEE MAGIC BECAUSE THEY LOOK FOR IT: Today, Friday, Aug. 12 is recognized around the globe as International Youth Day and its purpose is to bring to light the difficulties which some young people must endure throughout the world.

Most realize that childhood poverty and starvation is a prevalent problem around the world, however did you realize that HALF of the world’s children, ages six to 13, lack even the most basic math and reading skills. International Youth Day was created by the United Nations General Assembly in 2000 as a day of reflection but also a day for taking action, getting involved and doing what you can to change things for youth.

Although the UN began making an effort to impact the lives of suffering youth by endorsing the Declaration on the Promotion among Youth of the Ideals of Peace, Mutual Respect and Understanding between Peoples, it wasn’t until Dec. 17, 1999 that the UN endorsed a recommendation from the Conference of Ministers Responsible for Youth that a specific day be formed to recognize and fight back against the plight of young individuals around the globe.

Albeit youth around the globe do face a wide variety of barriers — from those in developed and developing countries who are most prove to facing mental and social challenges, all the way to other end of the spectrum, to the youth who live in undeveloped regions who face extreme problems based on a lack of more basic needs such as health, education and more.

One sixth of the globe’s population are youth, and 16 million of those children (just in the United States alone) struggle with hunger. For this year’s International Youth Day, we can start there by donating your time, non-perishable food items and/or everyday convenience items to your local shelter or food kitchen.