Novar's Raison d’être - The What, Why and How of our Existence

When I began my postgraduate studies at the University of Birmingham in 2024, I was as eager to engage in extracurricular activities as I was to achieve high grades. The route to academic success was clear: study hard, spend long hours in the library, research until your head spins, and power through with caffeine.

But the route to applying that knowledge, to translating theory into practice, research into reality, was far less clear, and far less common. I was searching for a space where I could develop not only as a thinker, but as a doer; a place to cultivate a social and political character, to act on what I was learning.

This absence of a clear path for applying knowledge resonated with many of my peers. We all shared the same thirst: to see movement beyond modules, dialogue beyond classrooms. Learning without doing felt like flying with one wing missing.

That missing half, the practice to balance our theory, became the spark that gave birth to Novar.

It began humbly, as a student society at the University of Birmingham. Each week, we gathered to discuss various topics including diplomacy and how to influence policy, and explore how to act on the theories we studied. That small circle became the brain where Novar was conceived, a laboratory of dialogue and ambition.

After graduating, I began to hear from students across the UK, Europe, and beyond. They shared the same frustration: the same thirst to engage, but facing different barriers.

For us, it wasn’t the lack of resources, Birmingham is one of the best universities in the world for access and opportunity, but rather the lack of organization, shared platforms, and sometimes even cultural or linguistic barriers. For others, as I discovered during international conferences, those barriers were different and sometimes deeper: economic, educational, political, or even personal.

That realization shaped what became the core purpose of Novar’s existence, to lift the barriers that prevent young people from engaging in diplomacy and influencing the policies that shape their lives.

But to pursue that mission seriously, we needed to ask, as any thinker or reformer should:What exactly do we want? Why do we want it? And how do we achieve it?

The answers to these questions became what I now call Novar’s Raison d’Être, our existential philosophy.
It is the foundation from which our mission, vision, and values are derived; the compass that guides every initiative and dialogue we pursue. Now, this is the answer of Novar to these core questions, build upon a year of discussion, debate, deliberation and deep thinking, and this is Novar raison d’etre.

What We Want - We Want a Seat and a Say (Diplomacy)

We believe that young people deserve not just representation, but genuine agency — to occupy a seat at the table of diplomacy, and to speak with authority. By diplomacy we mean more than negotiations between states; we mean the peaceful, structured, and intentional practice through which individuals or groups influence decisions that shape societies. Diplomacy is the art of persuasion, negotiation, dialogue, and deliberation, carried out by states, international bodies, communities, and non-state actors alike. It is the means by which we resolve conflicts, build cooperation, and collectively chart the course of our shared future. Scholars define diplomacy broadly as the conduct of relations by peaceful means and negotiation rather than coercion or force (Diplomacy.edu).

Who are “Youth” in this context?

There is no single universal age line for youth; definitions vary by culture, legal framework, and institutional context. For example, the United Nations generally uses ages 15 to 24 for statistical purposes (United Nations). But Novar believes that beyond age, youth signifies voices still forming, potential under-utilised, and stakes in the future that are unique. Youth are not merely passive receivers of policy, they are agents of change.

What stands in the way: Barriers to Youth Access in Diplomacy

Young people frequently encounter multiple interlocking obstacles when trying to engage meaningfully in diplomacy. These include:

• Educational Barriers: Lack of access to curricula that teach negotiation, policy analysis, civic education, or international relations; inequities in education quality.

• Political Barriers: Closures of civic space; legal or institutional restrictions on youth participation; lack of recognized platforms to influence decision-making.

• Socio-economic Barriers: Poverty, marginalization, limited funding, or logistical constraints (travel, technology, language) that prevent youth from engaging or being heard.

• Cultural and Social Norms: Ageism, gender norms, attitudes that youth lack wisdom or legitimacy; social expectations that silence youth voices.

• Informational and Network Barriers: Insufficient awareness of policy-making processes, lack of access to mentors, exclusion from influential networks.

These obstacles are documented in research. A UK study on youth participation found that socio-economic background, ethnicity, gender, age and regional inequalities all strongly affect young people’s ability to participate in civic activities (GOV.UK). UN frameworks on meaningful youth participation emphasize that without inclusive partnerships, sustained engagement, and feedback mechanisms, participation is often tokenistic. (United Nations)

Why We Want it - to Shape the Code that Governs Us (Policy)

Policy is not neutral paper; it is the architecture of everyday life.
If diplomacy is the means through which societies deliberate, policy is the product — the codified rules and decisions that structure behavior, allocate resources, and define collective identity. Novar seeks influence over policy because policy decides who flourishes and who is left behind.

What Is Policy?

Public policy can be understood as the set of laws, rules, and institutional decisions adopted to guide collective action and shape societal outcomes. According to the OECD Observatory of Public Sector Innovation, policy is the framework that translates collective priorities into real-world results — the tangible expression of what societies choose to value and enforce.

Why Influence Policy?

Policy governs the terms of life: access to education, mobility, property, work, rights, and dignity.
When it becomes the instrument of a few — through corruption, exclusion, or capture — it narrows opportunity for the many inclduing the youth. This is both a moral and practical crisis. Unjust policy erodes trust in institutions and weakens social cohesion.

Young people, inheritors of tomorrow’s systems, have both the right and the responsibility to shape them today. Their absence in policymaking is not a sign of indifference but of exclusion. To correct that imbalance, Novar exists to lift barriers and open pathways for youth participation in policy influence.

Policy in a Globalized World

Modern policymaking no longer stops at borders. Domestic choices have cross-border effects: on economies, migration, security, and the environment.
The World Bank notes that global spillovers now define governance and a policy enacted in one state can reverberate across entire regions. Therefore, Novar believes that youth engagement in policy must be simultaneously local and global — rooted in community realities yet responsive to international interdependence, and that is why Novar's pursues both gloabl and countries-focused initiatives to ensure that the young people living in crisis and conflict areas are given tailored platform and stage to ensure their fair participation in diplomacy and policy decisions.

Checks, Balances, and Democratic Responsibility

Healthy policy design depends on transparency and inclusion. Policies serving the public good require checks, oversight, and participatory mechanisms. According to the United Nations Youth Affairs Office, meaningful youth participation strengthens democracy by renewing civic trust, improving decision quality, and ensuring long-term resilience. Hence, Novar believes that youth inclusion is not a token gesture, but rather it is an essential component of legitimate governance.

Why This Matters for Novar

Novar believes that policy is not merely an endpoint but a mirror of our collective reasoning. Diplomatic access means little if it does not lead to policy impact. By helping young people engage directly with the systems that govern them, we aim to turn conversation into action and to make diplomacy not just a language of states, but a language of citizens. Our ambition is clear: that youth no longer watch policies being written for them, but participate in writing them with and by them.

How Will We Achieve This - Through Meaningful and Constructive Conversation (Dialogue)

Our method is deliberate and proven. We believe that real change does not happen through declarations, but through dialogue and conversation. However, not just any conversation will do. We facilitate meaningful and constructive dialogue.

Meaningful Dialogue means everyone is truly listening.

This is not a lecture where "you explain and we nod." It is not a protest where "we demand and you nod." It is a two-way exchange built on respect. We ensure this by:

• Providing all participants with balanced, evidence-based information.

• Bringing together a diverse mix of youth, experts, and policymakers.

• Using skilled facilitators to ensure every voice is heard.

Constructive Dialogue means the conversation leads to action.
The goal is not just talk, but a shared outcome. We work towards a consensus; a jointly acceptable solution that all sides can support. This consensus is then published as a clear set of insights and recommendations. The outcome is a true exchange: policymakers gain a clear direction and the authentic voice of the people they serve, while young people gain practical experience, knowledge, and the confidence that comes from shaping their future.

Our Tools for Dialogue:

We use various formats to match different goals:

• Policy Labs & Incubators: Intensive workshops where we co-create and prototype new policy solutions with stakeholders.

• Assemblies & Mini-publics: Representative groups that delve deep into complex issues to find common ground.

• Panel Talks & Forums: Open discussions that frame issues, share expertise, and build public awareness.

• Workshops & Masterclasses: Hands-on sessions to build skills in negotiation, policy drafting, and advocacy.
  
  

Our Global and Focused Initiatives

Our work begins in the UK, where our network is strongest, but our vision is global. We will expand our focus to regions where the barriers to youth participation are most acute, including parts of Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. We believe that the need for youth agency is universal, and the solutions must be informed by a diversity of contexts and experiences.

As such, we believe Novar is more than an organization; it is a promise. A promise that the future will not be written for young people, but with them and by them. Our raison d'être is to make diplomacy responsive and to make policy inclusive, and we can do that through meaningful dialogue and engagment. We believe that dialogue is our method, diplomacy is our language and policy is our outocme. We invite you to join us in this mission, to build a world where every young person has the seat, the say, and the power to shape the code of their tomorrow.

This is our raison d'être, this is Novar!