This policy brief provides both reflections and recommendations on the United Nations Youth Delegate Programme, from the perspective of a former UN Youth Delegate for Ireland. While regarded as one of the strongest pathways for youth representation to the UN, the Youth Delegate programme is not without flaws. As with many other avenues, key issues include disparities in regional and cultural representation, a lack of funding and widespread tokenism, and limited institutional acknowledgement. UN Member States, along with UN agencies and bodies, must urgently begin to implement their own commitments in relation to young people, recognising them as compulsory partners and key stakeholders in our collective future, in line with intergenerational equity and solidarity.