JA at UNGA 2026
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 21
12:30–2pm (doors open at 12:45pm)
The AI Workforce Blueprint
Drawing on new research from the APAC AI Council, this session explores a three-horizons framework for understanding how AI, robotics, automation, quantum computing, and other emerging technologies will reshape jobs, organizations, and the capabilities people need to succeed. Rather than focusing on the skills required for today's technologies alone, the discussion examines how educators, employers, and policymakers can prepare people to thrive through continuous technological change, building resilient workforces equipped for whatever comes next.
“The AI Workforce Blueprint” is an affiliate session of the ITU-UNDP Digital@UNGA program, celebrating the power of Digital for Good.
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22
9:15–11am (doors open at 9am)
Young People Have to See It to Be It: Opening the World of Work
Young people make some of their biggest decisions about education and careers with little firsthand knowledge of the world of work. Their understanding is often shaped by the careers they encounter in their families, schools, and communities, leaving thousands of roles, as well as entire industries, largely invisible to them. This session, hosted by MetLife and JA Worldwide, explores what happens when employers open their doors and give young people the chance to see work up close: observing professionals, asking candid questions, experiencing workplace culture, and discovering careers they may never have known existed. Through job shadows, internships, workplace visits, and other immersive experiences, companies can expand the universe of possibilities young people see for themselves, helping them make better-informed choices about what comes next.
Location: MetLife, 200 Park Avenue, New York
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24
9:30–11am (doors open at 9:15am)
Beyond Mentorship: Learning Across Generations
Young people entering today's workforce bring new expectations about technology, leadership, learning, purpose, and flexibility. Business leaders bring experience navigating complexity, scaling innovation, and leading organizations through change. This conversation, hosted by JA Worldwide, JA of New York, and HP, Inc., brings both perspectives together as equals, exploring how each generation can challenge assumptions, exchange ideas, and help shape workplaces where people and organizations thrive. Rather than asking what young people should learn from executives, this discussion seeks what both groups can learn from one another.
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24
1–2:30pm (doors open at 12:45pm)
Youth Priorities for a Changing World
What does it take for communities—and the young people within them—to thrive? This session brings young people together with leaders from youth-serving organizations, research, education, business, and civil society to explore how greater collaboration can expand safety, dignity, opportunity, and belonging, while giving young people a meaningful role in shaping the future of their communities. The conversation will also offer the first public look at emerging findings from four months of World Youth for Action Listening Labs, where young people around the world have shared their hopes, concerns, and ideas for the future. Those insights will help shape recommendations brought to the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in January.
Who Builds the First Rung? Learning to Work in an AI Economy
For generations, early-career experiences—entry-level jobs, internships, senior projects, and other first opportunities—have helped young people develop professional judgment, workplace habits, technical skills, confidence, and career-shaping relationships. In many parts of the world, these roles also provide vital income for individuals and families. At the same time, a growing number of young people are launching businesses immediately after school, bypassing the traditional career pathways that once provided this foundation. As artificial intelligence and automation reshape work, how will the next generation acquire the experience, skills, and perspectives needed to succeed as employees, entrepreneurs, and future job creators?
JA Worldwide, Goodwall, and McKinsey are hosting this invitation-only roundtable to bring together leaders from business, education, workforce development, entrepreneurship, and youth-serving organizations to explore new pathways from education to meaningful work. Participants will identify emerging models, challenge long-held assumptions, and help shape recommendations for preparing young people to thrive in a changing economy. A white paper summarizing the conversation will follow the event.
Location: McKinsey New York Experience Studio, 195 Broadway (19th Floor), New York