From 24 to 29 April 2023, Austrian State Secretary for Youth and Civil Service, Claudia Plakolm visited New York and California. In New York, she met with NYC Commissioner of Youth and Community Development Keith Howard and discussed youth policy topics. She also visited the Brooklyn Grange Rooftop Farm, where she received insights into sustainable city farming and then later met with Rabbi and Holocaust survivor Arthur Schneier. At the Austrian Consulate General she presented citizenship decrees to descendants of persons that were persecuted during the Holocaust.

She then attended the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Youth Forum, where she gave a speech and listened to youth participants from all over the world share their views on the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals. The Austrian Youth Delegate, Miriam Egger, also attended the meeting. State Secretary Plakolm specifically spoke about SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation & Infrastructure).The goal is to build a resilient infrastructure, promote sustainable industrialization and support innovation. According to Plakolm:

“When we talk about a sustainable future, we have to think about the economic, the social and the environmental aspects. This is the only way to ensure a sustainable future with and for the next generation. Austria can play a pioneering role in the technological field. Through the ‘Austrian Climate and Transformation Offensive’, for example, we have made substantial financial resources available to support the transformation of our industry towards climate neutrality. When it comes to globally effective climate protection, we have to focus on innovation and progress.”

The State Secretary then travelled to California on April 26, 2023. There, she met with Arnold Schwarzenegger and attended his lecture on “Breaking the Cycle of Extremism” at the University of Southern California. Afterwards, she attended the South East European Film Fesitval (SeeFest) in Los Angeles. Finally, Claudia Plakolm concluded her trip by visiting the tech hub of San Francisco and Silicon Valley. The focus of this trip was on the latest technological developments such as the Metaverse and AI, and their (potential) impact on today's youth, jobs of the future, education and sustainability. While in the Bay Area she visited Meta, NVidia, Plug and Play and Stanford University. The State Secretary also met with representatives from the San Francisco Youth Commission and the Department for Children, Youth and Families of the city at the San Francisco City Hall to talk about the city's various programs for its young residents. 

Gallery images: © BKA / Arno Melicharek