The eternal dance of youth and age

Nelson Mandela once called youth the engine of change, a truth that history has affirmed time and time again. The greatest innovators and conquerors in history were men and women of youth. Alexander the Great as a young man created one of the largest empires in history, stretching from Greece to India. His military genius and vision reshaped the ancient world. Joan of Arc, at just 17, led the French army to pivotal victories during the Hundred Years’ War, shifting the tides of history. Isaac Newton was in his early twenties when he formulated the laws of motion and gravity. Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison harnessed the power of electricity and illuminated the world, forever transforming the human experience, all before the age of 30.

Yet, for as long as young people have been at the forefront of transformation, they have also faced resistance from those who came before them. Experience, with all its wisdom, often sees youth as reckless, naive, or impatient. On The contrary, youth, with all its energy, sees experience as cautious, stagnant, and unwilling to embrace the urgency of the moment. This tension has played out across generations, the old guarding the world as it is, while the young push toward what it could be.

Revolutions, both quiet and loud, have always begun with the bold defiance of youth, with those unwilling to accept the status quo and daring enough to challenge it. From the streets to the boardrooms, from digital activism to political movements, young people have repeatedly proven that they are not just the future; they are the force that propels the present. Experience may warn against the risks, but youth reminds us that change has never come from playing it safe.

There is perhaps no place in the world where the conflict between youth and experience is more pronounced than within the African context. Across the continent, the overriding cultural theme is presumably respect and deference for elders. In many African societies, age is synonymous with wisdom, and experience is considered the ultimate teacher. Leadership, authority, and decision-making often rest in the hands of the older generation, with youth expected to listen, learn, and wait their turn.

Our deep regard for age is not unreasonable. Wisdom accumulated over decades becomes tradition, and tradition provides society with stability, guidance, and a sense of continuity. However, when tradition becomes an unchallenged truth, it can only lead to stagnation. The world is changing at an unprecedented pace, and only agility and the fearless curiosity of the inexperienced can make the most of it. In politics, business, and social movements, young people like the generations before us, are proving that they have the vision, agility, and courage to navigate newer realities. Yet, in many spaces, they are met with closed doors and the insistence that they must first “earn their place.”

Africa stands at the intersection of tradition and transformation, and the wisdom of age and the fire of youth have clashed at the point of converging. All over Africa, deference to elders is non-negotiable, oftentimes coming at the cost of progress, stifling the very forces that drive change. The youth, armed with innovation, courage, and urgency, push forward, often dismissed as reckless or inexperienced. This tension is not just a cultural standoff, it is the defining struggle of our time.

Here’s something to consider: what if the tension between youth and experience isn’t a conflict at all, but a necessary cycle, one designed to keep the world in motion? Perhaps this push and pull isn’t about who is right or wrong, but about balance. Experience provides the roots, but youth brings the wind. One holds the world steady, the other pushes it forward.

In our society, where respect for elders is deeply ingrained, we often frame this dynamic as opposition; wisdom versus impulse, tradition versus change. But what if, instead of seeing it as a struggle, we saw it as a relay race? The older generation has run their leg, gathering insight and endurance along the way, but progress only happens when the baton is passed. The greatest threat to any society is not the impatience of its youth or the caution of its elders; it is the refusal to pass or receive the baton at the right time.

The world’s most pivotal moments have always been shaped at this intersection. Every generation that once rebelled eventually ages into the guardians of the status quo, while the next generation rises with its own ideas, its own urgency. This is how civilizations advance, not by dismissing the old or silencing the new, but by knowing when to listen and when to lead.

If wisdom is knowing the way, and youth is having the courage to walk it, then true progress lies not in choosing one over the other but in forging a path together. The question is not whether youth should challenge the old or whether elders should hold on to power. The real question is: Can we build societies where wisdom does not stifle ambition and where ambition does not disregard wisdom? Because if we can, then we are not just moving forward—we are moving forward with direction.

Eyesan Toritseju is a graduate of Civil Engineering from Covenant University turned serial entrepreneur and corporate strategist. Passionate about society and the cultural ideologies that shape us, he explores how these forces propel or inhibit progress through his writing. In his column, Cosmopolitan Nigeria, Eyesan examines how young Nigerians navigate the complexities of culture, religion, and identity in a rapidly evolving world.