Beth Pellettieri is the Coordinator of the International Youth Leadership Council at Advocates for Youth and the co-chair of the Toronto YouthForce Advocacy Task Force.

Too often people talk the talk without walking the walk. This year, the Toronto YouthForce is aiming to change that by ensuring youth activists have tools to follow up with leaders after the International AIDS Conference. Through the Commitments Desk, key leaders, policy makers, and program managers are making concrete commitments for stronger youth participation and leadership in their governments, organizations, and programs. Toronto YouthForce members are then posting and distributing these commitments at the Youth Pavilion and via the internet so that young people can hold their leaders accountable to these promises after the International AIDS Conference.

The desk has become a huge success! Over 120 adults[img_assist|nid=469|title=Bill & Melinda Gates Talk to Toronto Youth Force Members|desc=|link=none|align=right|width=640|height=479] have made key commitments to young people. In addition, key leaders are utilizing the space to show their concrete commitments to young people in the press. Visitors (and I've met them all!) include Bill & Melinda Gates, David Miller, the Mayor of Toronto, and Mary Robinson, Former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

But all commitments are important – big and small. One of my favorites (as it includes time bound deliverables) is from the Yugoslav Youth Association against AIDS. Momcilo Tantic said, "By November 2006, I will train more than 45 young people to be peer educators on HIV/AIDS".

Read the commitments and help us keep leaders accountable! For more information and to read some of the commitments, please visit the Commitments Desk.