The young find their voice

It is a truth universally acknowledged that when young people protest, they will invariably be told to put a sock in it by their elders.

When it comes to having a say, they generally cannot win.

If they stay quiet, they are apathetic and selfish. If they speak out, they are ignorant and naive.

But young people around the world are making their feelings known, and in a way that cannot be ignored any longer.

There are two main factors driving an increasingly activism-minded generation: anger at perceived decades of inaction on climate change and inequality; and the internet.

The rise of social media has made it easier than ever before to create a movement, from spreading a message to organising effective, co-ordinated protests all around the world.

Movements such as MeToo, Black Lives Matter, and Extinction Rebellion have all either started on social media, or used it as an incredibly effective tool to promote change.

In New Zealand, major protests have generally been focused on specific events or pieces of legislation. Think the GCSB Bill, Foreshore and Seabed hikoi, or, even closer to home, the University of Otago student fee protests of the 1990s.

But many protest movements are now focused on overarching social change, and it is often the younger brigade in the vanguard.

In Hong Kong and Spain, in Chile and Lebanon, in Tunisia and Algeria, there is real anger pushing young people to take to the streets, full of fear about the world they are set to inherit and the problems that have been left to their generation to fix.

There are new challenges facing this generation that we are only beginning to understand.

Climate change is the obvious one, but inequality, the rise of far-Right extremism, and the impact of artificial intelligence on jobs and industries can all be added to the list.

Factor in the constant flow of information via the worldwide web, and it is no wonder young people are increasingly showing their displeasure and calling for change.

There are also new figureheads for them to rally around.

The most notable is Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old climate change activist who sparked worldwide school strikes and spoke truth to power at the United Nations.

Her furious condemnation of world leaders who paid lip service to climate change protesters while taking little action was a prime example of the wave of discontent among the world's youth.

The criticism of her was also a prime example of the way young people are expected to sit quietly and wait until they hit middle age before having an opinion.

But the combination of global social issues and the ease of communication means the tide of youth activism is not going anywhere any time soon. And we should be grateful for that.

Having a generation of engaged and ambitious citizens, regardless of how you feel about their cause, is something to celebrate.

They were there in the civil rights movement, the marriage equality movement, the feminist movement, the anti-war movement.

Now they are leading the way on several new fronts, and while only time will tell what impact they will have, the fact they care so passionately at all is reason to encourage rather than disparage.