 In today's hyper-connected world, information and communication technologies are constantly redefining the way we live, work, and play. Technology is transforming education, healthcare, the way we do our work, and how we care for our environment. No one knows this better than our youth. Today's young people are the most connected generation in history. These digital natives intuitively understand how to interact with and leverage technology to solve their problems in ways their parents never will. The young are broadly changing their world using ICTs every day in their own communities through innovative applications and services. Put simply, the young are the most enthusiastic users of the networks and systems that are at the heart of ITU's work. That's why with the support of Costa Rica's president, Laura Chinchilla, and her team, ITU will be holding its first ever Global Youth Summit in San Jose, Costa Rica, from 9 to 11 September. This exciting event will welcome hundreds of young people from all around the world, as well as hundreds of thousands more online. Youth will share their inspiring experiences and learn from one another. In addition to interactive sessions on e-health, e-learning, and much more, the summit will also look at the riskier side of the net and how we can help keep young people safe online. But that's not all. Technology is not just the theme of this event. It's an integral part of the event itself through social media, crowdsourced content, dynamic coding competitions, and live global chat sessions. I'm looking forward to engaging online with young people everywhere on the key issues, both in the lead-up to the event and during the summit itself. With the global community now actively engaged in defining the post-2015 agenda, we want to give youth the chance to have its voice heard and to have crowdsourced ideas included in policy recommendations that will shape tomorrow's world. And we want to stimulate dialogue between the young and the not-so-young to make our shared future an even brighter one. I hope very much that you will be part of that conversation.