On the 17th of April 2026, the Global Health Hub officially launched its Youth Advisory Body (YAB), welcoming nine students and young professionals under the age of 30 who will contribute their perspectives to the GHH's work. The launch event took place at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in The Hague.
Beeld: © IFMSA-NL / Erdinç Yildiz
The day kicked off with an opening by Anna le Clercq and Lieke Schipper from International Federation of Medical Students Associations the Netherlands (IFMSA-NL), who played a key role in establishing the YAB. They provided an overview of the landscape of youth actors active in global health, such as the Youth Delegate, and explained how the YAB is structured within the Global Health Hub.
Following the opening, all nine YAB members introduced themselves to the group. Each Community of Practice (CoP) within the GHH is represented by three YAB members, one of whom serves as a Youth Advisor to act as the link between the YAB and the CoP co-leads.
Carlijn van Hoek (Youth Advisor CoP 1) 
Lora van Oene (Youth Member CoP 3) 
Julia Alonso (Youth Advisor CoP 2) 
Wouter Rotteveel (Youth Member CoP 2) 
Jasmin Ronach (Youth Member CoP 1) 
Anish Arun (Youth Member CoP 1) 
Sanam Ayub Khan (Youth Member CoP 3) 
Alexandra Milli (Youth Advisor CoP 3) 
Kiama de Wagt (Youth Member CoP 2)
Mark van Passel, Policy Coordinator of the Dutch Global Health Strategy at the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport, then introduced the Strategy, the Global Health Partnerships Programme and the Global Health Hub, setting the scene for the YAB's role and the priorities that will guide its work. The presentation also touched on the current geopolitical landscape and its implications for global health, a timely reminder of why an inclusive and multisectoral approach matters more than ever.
After a short break, participants split into the three CoPs to learn about previous meetings and what is coming up on the agenda. This gave the new YAB members a more concrete sense of what they are joining, and how they can contribute from the start.
The group then came back together for a workshop on meaningful youth engagement, facilitated by IFMSA. The session addressed something central to the YAB's design: the importance of ensuring that young members are genuine contributors and not token representatives. Drawing on key pillars for youth engagement, both the YAB members and the organisers agreed to use these principles as a shared compass going forward.
Beeld: © IFMSA-NL / Erdinç Yildiz
As this is a pilot phase, the YAB currently consists of nine members which will run until the GHH Annual Event on the 1st of October 2026. Keeping the process open and adaptive is a shared priority, and participants were encouraged to share ideas on how to develop and scale the YAB over time.
The day closed with an informal drinks reception, giving everyone the chance to get to know each other better. The Global Health Hub looks forward to working with the YAB and to integrate the voice of young people more meaningfully into global health policy discussions.