A generation in the streets: the global wave of youth protests continues in 2026

What many analysts called "the year of Gen Z protests" did not end with 2025. According to data from the Carnegie Endowment's Global Protest Tracker, cited by the European Democracy Hub, more than 70 countries experienced significant unrest between January 2025 and spring 2026, and the wave continues this year.

The grievances are strikingly similar across continents: corruption and lack of accountability, the rising cost of living and inequality, democratic backsliding, the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, and specific decisions such as cuts to fuel subsidies, privileges for political elites or restrictions on the media. Protests have spread across Europe (Serbia, Slovakia, Greece, Hungary, France), Africa (Kenya, Madagascar, Morocco), Asia (Nepal, Indonesia, the Philippines, South Korea) and Latin America (Peru, Paraguay, Bolivia, Ecuador).

Some movements have produced deep political changes: governments fell in Nepal and Madagascar, and in Serbia a student-led movement forced the resignation of a prime minister. Organised on TikTok, Instagram and Discord, and sharing symbols such as the One Piece pirate flag, these young people are building a transnational language of protest.

Beyond each national context, the phenomenon expresses a shared psychosocial climate: a generation that no longer believes in the promises of the system and is looking for new forms of participation. Whether this energy turns into lasting, nonviolent transformation is one of the great open questions of our time.

Source: European Democracy Hub – The 2025 surge in global protests is continuing in 2026