From Uncertainty to Opportunity: Unlocking the Workforce Potential from Gen Alpha to Gen Z

A luncheon hosted by the Global Business Coalition for Education during the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.

Date: Tuesday, September 23, 2025

Time: 12:30 – 2:00 PM

Note: Guests should plan to arrive 20-30 minutes early for security and registration.

Location: Reed Smith LLP – 599 Lexington Avenue (Corner of 53rd Street), 22nd Floor, New York, NY

Event Overview

The rise of AI, economic policy shifts, trade wars, and a burgeoning youth population have created a new global employment landscape. While some consider these developments a crisis, they also present an opportunity to redefine corporate leadership in education, skills, and the workforce.

While Gen-Z represents nearly a third of the global population, a vast majority of employers report difficulty finding skilled talent – more than 75% in most countries. All the while, youth face an unemployment rate four times higher than the average worker.

The shortage of job-ready talent threatens productivity, limits innovation, and inhibits long-term growth. These trends pose greater challenges for Generation Alpha who will be looking for employment in the coming years.

Community-based, place-driven solutions, many of which incorporate AI literacy and digital training, offer a powerful opportunity to strengthen the workforce and support youth with skills needed for the AI-driven economy. Businesses offering place-based leadership can play a critical role by investing resources, technical expertise into proven solutions, enhancing workforce preparedness and youth skills—while also strengthening talent pipelines, fostering innovation and ensuring long-term business success.

Join the Global Business Coalition for Education for a timely conversation on education and skills partnerships between business, government, and community-based organizations. The conversation will focus on actions that can be taken to prepare youth for the future of work.

Participants will hear from business leaders championing youth development and fostering business success through innovative approaches to social impact and the workforce.

The event will explore:

• The evolving role of business in supporting local workforce solutions and scalable impact.
• How communities and entrepreneurs drive local innovation with global economic mobility.
• The future of work, including learning hubs, AI, and digital tools for scalable workforce development.
• Skills, credentials, and certification to expand youth opportunity.
• Employment without borders in a rapidly changing world.

Together, we can bridge the skills gap, unlock opportunity, and build a resilient, future-ready workforce. 

High-Level Security & Registration Requirements 

During UNGA25 Week (21-26 September 2025) Theirworld and the Global Business Coalition for Education will host several high-level security events. Attendees of all events must review and follow these instructions to prevent issues or delays on the day of the event.  

Only pre-registered and accredited guests will be allowed to enter the venue without any exceptions.  

All team and delegation members, including support staff, security personnel, translators, photographers, assistants, etc., must be pre-registered at least five days before the event date. For certain events with limited capacity, pre-registered support staff will be directed to a secondary staff room to wait for their principals.  
 
Guests attending multiple meetings on the same day must RSVP for each event separately, but will only need to check in once. They can remain on the event floors but may be asked to undergo a secondary security screening between meetings. All accreditations are timed, and guests may be asked to leave once all their events are complete.

Advance Security Visits 

Security teams that would like to conduct advance visits can contact Anna Shakarova at anna@gbc-education.org to schedule a time.

Venue Access & Waiting Area

Guests should enter 599 Lexington Ave. from the corner of E 53rd Street and Lexington Ave. and proceed to the check-in desk with a valid picture ID to receive their badges. Team members may collect badges on behalf of colleagues from the same organization only if an email has been sent in advance by the registered guest to rsvp@gbc-education.org authorizing the pick-up.

Only accredited guests can proceed through the turnstiles and will be directed to the elevators and appropriate event rooms.

Due to strict security protocols, those without pre-registration will be asked to leave the building lobby. Delegation members without registration can wait for their principals and teams at the restaurants and public seating areas at “The Hugh” across the street on E 53rd Street.

Accreditation Pick-up & Check-in Times 

All attendees are encouraged to check in and pick up their event accreditation at least 30 minutes before their event’s start time. The check-in desk will be located in the lobby of 599 Lexington Avenue and open 60 minutes before each event.

Media & Photography

Media access, including staff photographers, is granted by prior accreditation only. Some events are closed to the media entirely. Professional photography will be taken by the Theirworld team and distributed to all attendees and interested media outlets post-event. For all media inquiries, please get in touch with media@theirworld.org  

Agenda