Afflican

Max Genin is a Ukro-Israeli-Canadian international lawyer and global development leader working at the intersection of human rights, youth policy, and inclusive governance. He is an appointed Youth Advisor to the United Nations Human Rights Office (OHCHR), where he has guided advocacy efforts internationally, developed a microsite, and co-supported the UN Youth Rights Academy, training 40+ advocates with a focus on Colombia, Palestine, and South Africa. Max also represents the OHCHR on the UN Interagency Working Group on Youth under the Assistant Secretary-General for Youth Affairs, helping shape Member State commitments on youth in the Pact of the Future. He is North American Chair for the UN SDSN Global MDP Association, supporting SDG implementation across 35+ universities in 24 countries. In this role, he launched a Global Challenge evaluated by the World Bank and Global Environment Facility across 15 countries, supporting young people implementing field projects responding to poverty alleviation and climate action, and a Masterclass Series that reached over 1,200 underserved youth. He also organizes global events and UN engagements for youth leaders. He is the Executive Director of Afflican, a nonprofit pairing youth-led task forces with international development projects across four continents. Its mission is to reimagine humanitarianism through co-creation, local transformation, leveraging the brilliance of young changemakers. He also helped establish the first Youth Advisory Committee of Good Neighbours Canada and led grant work supporting women and girls in Bangladesh and Myanmar. Previously, Max led national social innovation pilot programs in Canada that advanced the Sustainable Development Goals, coordinated multi-stakeholder partnerships, and contributed to reforms in professional education legislation in Ontario. He has published legal work on cybercrime, international labour rights, and family law, and spoken at forums including the UN, the Vatican, and the Inter-Parliamentary Union. He is currently pursuing a Masters in Development at Harvard University, where he is a Student Ambassador for the Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability and a Sustainability Leader at Harvard’s Office for Sustainability. He holds degrees in Law (Leeds), European Policy (European Institute), and International Development (LSE). Max’s work reflects a deep commitment to human dignity, social equity, intergenerational justice, and sustainable domestic and global change.