YVJ Special Issue | Critical youth voices on the Covid 19 pandemic: International perspectives

Critical youth voices on the Covid 19 pandemic: International perspectives

ISBN 978-1-911634-37-9 | Publication date: December 2021

Editor-in-chief: Dr Theo Gavrielides: contact@rj4allpublications.com

Guest Editor: Dr Daniel Briggs: daniel.briggs@universidadeuropea.es

Daniel Briggs, PhD is a Consultant to the British Foreign Office who works part-time at the Universidad Europea in Madrid, Spain. As a researcher, writer and inter-disciplinary academic who studies social problems, he has undertaken ethnographic research into social issues from street drug users to terminally ill patients; from refugees to prostitutes; and from gypsies to gangs and deviant youth behaviours. He also lectures across the social sciences and has published widely. His most recent book, ‘Dead-end lives: Drugs and violence in the city shadows’ (Policy Press, 2017), won the Division of International Criminology’s Outstanding Book Award 2018 (selected by the American Society of Criminology). His latest ethnographic works is published as ‘Climate changed: Refugee border stories and the business of misery’ (Routledge, 2020) and he is writing up ‘Researching the Covid 19 pandemic: A critical blueprint for the social sciences’ (Bristol University Press, 2021). 

The Special issue

Surely the most pressing issue now present in the everyday lives of billions of young people around the world is related to the Covid 19 pandemic. The sudden halt to life as we knew it at the beginning of 2020 with the advent of a new ‘coronavirus’ has already dramatically altered the terrain of political, economic and social life. Indeed, at one point early on in the evolution of the pandemic, nine in ten people across the world we’re living in countries with border closures and reduced travel restrictions because of the pandemic and one in two people of the global population were living under lockdown. Borders were shut, flights were cancelled, educational institutions were closed and many countries around the world went into lockdown. Places of public gathering and closed environments were considered ‘infection hotspots’ so theatres, cinemas, hotels, restaurants and bars and other similar venues were left empty as if they were already part of history. Within this, millions of young people experienced sudden and significant changes to their social vista and personal lives. For example, on one hand, they were singled out for having ‘irresponsible’ attitudes towards the virus, yet were clearly the group least at risk. Despite this, the subsequent lockdowns and restrictions on their movements and relationships meant that millions lost valuable time in education and were foisted further into their own subjective digital bubbles as means of escape.

Table of Content

Editorial

Eboka, T. (2021). “International Students’ Experiences of E-learning in UK HEIs during the Covid-19 lockdowns”. Youth Voice Journal ISBN (online): 978-1-911634-37-9.

Marwah, A., & Verma, A. (2021). “Transitioning from Real to Virtual Education: A Right of All or A Privilege of Few’’. Youth Voice Journal ISBN (online): 978-1-911634-37-9.

Ullah, Q. (2021). “Impact of “Digitalization of Everything” on The Daily Life of Unschooled Youth in Pakistan During COVID-19: Challenges and Opportunities”. Youth Voice Journal ISBN (online): 978-1-911634-37-9.

Cacclialupi, B. (2021). “The ‘Bel Paese’ during Covid-19 times Resilience and the desire to move forward among Italian young people”. Youth Voice Journal ISBN (online): 978-1-911634-37-9.

Essomba, M.A. (2021). “Young leaders’ voices in leisure time educational institutions: narratives of participation, resilience and on COVID-19 policies during the pandemic lockdown”. Youth Voice Journal ISBN (online): 978-1-911634-37-9.

Nugin, R., & Unt, M. (2021). “Lockdown’s invisible young people: The case of Estonian youth at risk of social exclusion”. Youth Voice Journal ISBN (online): 978-1-911634-37 9.

Diaper, A. (2021). “Chasing Shadows: Young People, Homelessness and Covid-19”. Youth Voice Journal, ISBN (online): 978-1-911634-37-9.

Panchev, D. (2021). “There are no smiles here, just human waste: The pandemic recycling of the urban precariat”, Youth Voice Journal, ISBN (online): 978-1-911634-37-9

Briggs, D., Telford, L., Ellis, A., & Lloyd, A. (2021). “Closing the door on protection? Exploring the impact of lockdown upon children and young people’s services in the UK”. Youth Voice Journal ISBN (online): 978-1-911634-37-9.

Full Issue

Editorial Policy

If you wish and are interested in contributing to the YVJ, please consult our Author Guidelines and Editorial Policy outlining all the key information. We aim to have all manuscripts to be peer-reviewed within a 4-6 weeks’ time frame before being accepted for publication. The Youth Voice Journal is published by RJ4All Publications, a branch of Restorative Justice for All (RJ4All) International Institute, which is an international NGO with a mission to advance community and social cohesion, and redistribute power within society at the local, national and international levels.