The new top youth official at the UN talks about what’s in it for young people

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Dr. Felipe Paullier is quick to say he doesn’t speak for the world’s roughly 2 billion tweens, teens and young adults. But as the United Nations’ first assistant secretary-general for youth affairs, he’s tasked with advocating for young people and their concerns to be incorporated into the organization’s work — a goal shared by young activists who don’t always feel heard by the international community. Paullier, a pediatrician and former director general of Uruguay’s National Youth Institute, started in in the job in December. He sat down with The Associated Press on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly this week to talk about his role, the U.N.’s new “ Pact for the Future,” what it means for young people — and whether their elders really mean it about including them.

Here are excerpts from the interview, edited for length and clarity.

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AP: Given the subject, let’s start with…