August the 12th is International Youth Day. It came about because the United Nations General Assembly wanted a day to celebrate the young people of the world. On December the 17th, 1999 the General Assembly declared International Youth Day at the World Conference of Ministers Responsible for Youth in Lisbon, Portugal. The aim of the day is to focus on youth issues around the world. The idea is simple. The world’s youth make up over a sixth of the world population, therefore they need a special day. The UN defines a youth as anyone in the age group between 15 and 24 years old. Experts predict the number of youth in the world will greatly increase over the coming years, especially with a decrease in child mortality.

每年的8月12日为国际青年日。联合国大会设立该节日，以此来庆祝全球青年人。1999年12月17日，在葡萄牙里斯本举行的青年事务部长世界会议上，大会宣布成立国际青年日。旨在提高人们对全球青年问题的重视程度。理由很简单。青年人占据了世界总人口的六分之一，需要为他们设立节日。联合国将年龄在15-24岁人群定义为青年。据专家预计，青年人口将在未来几年猛增，特别是随着儿童死亡率的减少。


Many different things happen on International Youth Day. There are activities and events all around the world. These are run by youth and for youth. The day promotes the benefits that young people bring to our world. There are youth conferences on issues like education and finding a job and many charity events. Other things include concerts, parades and educational workshops in schools. There is a different theme each year. The first was “Addressing Health and Unemployment”. Other themes have been on youth and sustainable development, youth and tackling poverty, and youth and climate change. The more this day is celebrated, the more responsible our young people will be.

这天会发生许多事情。全球会举办各种庆祝活动。这些活动由青年举办，并服务于青年。这天要宣扬青年为世界带来的好处。还会举办青年会议，并将围绕教育就业等问题展开讨论，还将举办各种慈善活动。其它包括音乐会、游行以及学校开展的教学研究班。每年的主题各有不同。第一年是“解决就业与健康”。其它主题包括“青年与可持续发展”、“青年与解决贫困”以及“青年与气候变化”。随着庆祝年份的增加，年轻人将变得更有责任感。