Urdd Gobaith Cymru’s 2025 Peace and Goodwill Message responds to child poverty in Wales

Seventy years after the death of one of its founders, Wales’ annual Peace and Goodwill Message has been shared by Urdd Gobaith Cymru, today (Thursday 15 May 2025) making a plea for change to tackle poverty in the country.

A short film in which this year’s message is read by its authors will be released on the Urdd’s social media platforms at 7am. The message will be read live, simultaneously on BBC Radio Wales by Tia-Louise Griffiths, and on BBC Radio Cymru by Eve Thomas.

2025 marks 103 years since Welsh youth first shared an annual Peace and Goodwill Message, with this year’s being translated into over 50 languages including BSL.

Tradition

The Peace and Goodwill Message is created every year by the young people of Wales and shared with an ever-growing number of people around the world; in 2024 it was shared in 47 countries and its reach on social media alone exceeded 10 million.

With thanks to the United Kingdom National Commission for UNESCO, this year’s pioneering Peace and Goodwill Message will become the first ever project from Wales to receive Patronage from the UK National Commission for UNESCO; the organisation’s support for, and endorsement of, activities and events that align with its values.

This year’s message was written by some of the Urdd’s members and students from further education college Coleg y Cymoedd, with the help of Katie Hall from the band Chroma, graphic designer Steffan Dafydd and global charity Save the Children.

It makes an urgent call for change after recent UK Government statistics confirmed that almost one in three children (31%) in Wales now lives in poverty. “It takes a village to raise a child… Be our village,” the message concludes.

Tia-Louise Griffiths, one of the young people who created this year’s Peace and Goodwill Message, said: “We’re all in the same boat. Nobody’s to blame, but we can work towards gaining a better understanding of what small steps we can take to make a difference.’’

Influential

Gwilym Davies (1879-1955) – a key figure in the establishment of the UN and UNESCO, which itself celebrates its 80th birthday this year – was one of the founders of the Peace Message.

He was a Welsh Baptist minister who grew up in a mining community in the south Wales valleys and later became an influential figure in the creation of the Welsh League of Nations Union and its successor, the United Nations, as well as UNESCO.

In 1922 he helped arrange for a message of Peace and Goodwill to be shared with the world by the young people of Wales, and a message has been sent every year since. At first, the message was communicated through Morse code, then by the BBC World Service and more recently through digital as well as broadcast media.

Each year the message is on a different theme. It remains the only message of its kind in the world, sent by young people annually, its reach growing each year.

Sharing

The Urdd has urged people around the globe to amplify this year’s message by sharing it on social media and using the hashtag #Heddwch2025.

In response to this year’s message the Urdd has also committed to:

• Continuing its £1 membership offer to those from lower income households to the future.
• Continue to offer stays at its residential centres to young people who wouldn’t otherwise be able to have a summer holiday, through the Urdd’s ‘Fund for All’.
• Continue to offer free entry to Eisteddfod yr Urdd for lower income households.
• Continue being an accredited Real Living Wage employer.

Siân Lewis, the Urdd’s Chief Executive said: “As this year’s powerful message shows, young people in Wales can articulate perfectly the injustice of poverty, its effects on them and their communities. The recent statistics around child poverty in Wales shame us all, and we sincerely hope this year’s message will inspire meaningful change. The Urdd have made many such commitments, for example our Fund For All. But there is more to do – and today we invite the world to help us share that call to eradicate child poverty.”

Anna Nsubuga, UK’s Ambassador and Permanent Delegate Designate to UNESCO said: “The UK National Commission for UNESCO’s patronage of the Urdd’s Peace and Goodwill Message is a profound recognition of Wales’s peace heritage and the UK’s commitment to youth empowerment.

“This patronage not only honours the legacy of visionaries like Gwilym Davies, who played a key role in founding both UNESCO and the Peace Message, but also reinforces the National Commission’s dedication to fostering dialogue among young people and championing their power to drive positive change globally.”

Melanie Simmonds, Head of Save the Children Cymru said: “When we speak to children and young people about their experiences of living in poverty, they tell us that families need more money to be able to afford basic necessities and how growing up in areas of high deprivation can affect their mental health and wellbeing.

“They also mention hope – a hope that their future will be different. This is why we all need to work together to ensure that every child can thrive. We’re delighted to have played a part in sending this powerful message from the youth of Wales to the wider world; we must end child poverty.”

The Urdd’s 2025 Peace and Goodwill message is available here.