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Making your Organization and Programs Youth-Friendly (From a Youth Perspective)

Making your Organization and Programs Youth-Friendly
(From a Youth Perspective)





We’ve all seen some of the TV ads and posters about HIV/AIDS that have been created for youth. Some of them used to be really lame because they were put together by adults without youth involvement. What often happened is that the adults got together an idea to do a program for youth, they pulled together their "experts" and started making plans. If they were doing a poster, they would come up with 5 different versions. At this point, they would call in the "youth representatives" and ask which one they preferred. Adults today are starting to realize that this is not adequate youth involvement. Youth should be involved from the very beginning.

So much good information is out there but youth are not paying attention because of the way it’s presented to us. We need to have a role in designing projects that work for us. Fortunately, adults today are starting to get youth more and more involved in making projects for youth.

The tips below are for organizations that have, or would like to have youth as clients. It will help you make your organisation and its programs, projects, and written materials youth-friendly through youth involvement. There is also a quiz which will help you find out whether or not your organization is youth friendly.

Why Involve Youth?

· We know our needs best.
· We can lend advice as to how issues that affect us can be approached in a way that will appeal to us.
· We’re enthusiastic.
· We’re creative.
· We’re passionate.
· We are open to new ideas.
· Hey, it’s cheaper for you to get us to do the work than to hire a high-priced consultant!


Quiz: Is your Organization Youth-Friendly?

1) Where are you located?
a) A convenient location that is accessible by bus or by walking
b) Accessible by bus but a bit out of the way (not central to community)
c) It’s so hard to get there that even your own staff hates commuting to work!

2) What are you hours of operation?
a) You’re open on certain evenings and weekend days so youth in school can come in
b) You’re open a bit late on one or two nights
c) You’re open regular business hours. Youth might have to skip school to get services there

3) What is the atmosphere in your organization?
a) It’s a really relaxed jeans and t-shirt kind of place. People can walk in, grab a cup of water, have a seat on our couch, and chat
b) It’s a quiet, professional, but friendly atmosphere
c) Youth will really stand out here. The only place to hold a meeting is in a
fancy boardroom and staff almost all wear suits

4) How do you advertise your programs to youth?
a) You advertise and send resources to youth magazines and hang-outs, youth shelters, other youth services, in schools, and sexual health clinics. You have a youth section on your website and your youth posters are all over town. You’re also easy to find in the phonebook and on the net
b) You advertise and send resources to some youth service organizations
c) You don’t advertise and send resources to youth

5) Do youth know about the services you offer?
a) Your name is well known and most youth in town know where you’re located
b) Youth who are already accessing some services probably know about your organization
c) Few youth understand what services you can offer them

6) How does your staff react when young people come in?
a) Staff is totally cool with young people. Most or all of staff have experience working with youth issues. Lots of them are young too!
b) Staff is kind and respectful of youth but most don’t have any particular expertise working with young people
c) Staff is a bit judgmental and/or condescending of youth, especially when they have piercings, tattoos and blue hair!

7) How do you communicate?
a) You offer services in all of the major languages common in your community, in simple language so most people can understand. You use pictures a lot so people with literacy issues can still get the message
b) You offer services in some of the languages common in your community and use fairly non-technical language
c) You offer services in one of the languages common in your community. You make the assumption that most people already know what terms like ‘seroconversion’, ‘meds’, ‘two-spirit’, ‘barebacking’, and ‘cocktail’ mean, and use lots of jargon and acronyms

8) What kind of youth programs do you offer?
a) You have programs targeted to youth that are youth-driven. Youth are involved at every level
b) Your youth programs are created and managed by adults who are sensitive to youth issues. Adults have power over the program but youth are occasionally consulted
c) You have no specific youth programs but youth are allowed to participate in your other programs

9) How do you think youth feel about their involvement in your programs?
a) Youth report feeling empowered and proud of their involvement in planning and implementing your projects
b) Youth seem to be unclear about their role, wondering things like "Am I assessing these programs or contributing to them?"
c) Youth aren’t really involved

10) What resources do you offer youth?
a) You offer all kinds of youth-friendly resources relating to various topics (aboriginal, gay, lesbian, bisexual, drug use, tattooing, prisons, Hepatitis C, housing, addiction, etc.)
b) You have one or two brochures aimed at youth
c) You have nothing youth-specific

11) Do you know where to refer youth?
a) You know a lot about the youth agencies and services out there. You give referrals to youth to places where you know they will be treated well
b) You know a few youth agencies and tell youth to go there, even though you’re not sure if they will be able to help them with their particular needs
c) You don’t know much about youth services in your area and usually tell youth to try to find out what’s available on their own

If you picked answer ‘a’ for all or most of these questions, congratulations! Your organization is youth-friendly. Keep up the good work! If you picked mostly answer ‘b’, you are taking good steps toward a youth-friendly organization, but more work could be done to make youth feel comfortable accessing your services. We hope that you can get some good ideas from our suggestions below. If you answered ‘c’ for most of the questions, your organization is probably not a place where youth feel comfortable. For your organization, there is lots of room for improvement to make it youth-friendly, so please have a look at our tips below on how to do this.

How to Involve Youth

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• Draw our interest. Give us youth-friendly materials that will educate us and get us fired up about the issues. Don’t make us read some 50-page boring manual full of jargon.
• Make us aware of what you do. Many of us don’t know about existing programs and organisations aimed at youth. Distribute information, flyers, and posters advertising your services, set up displays at health fairs and youth expos, and do presentations at our schools and community centres.
• If you want your youth program to work, you have to include us from start to finish. That means more than having just one token youth representative.
• Involve us in the actual design of the program. Let us help decide what the content and format of the project is going to be. Have us implement the program in cooperation with you so that we learn the ropes.
• Let us do the HIV/AIDS prevention education work. If you want to get the important information about HIV/AIDS out there, we need to talk to our peers about it. That means peer education.
• Get feedback from us throughout your project. You may want to use a youth committee. Youth committees should be made up of at least 50% youth representation, and a youth chair or co-chair person. A youth committee might meet in person, through teleconference, or though an e-group.
• Actively recruit young volunteers through schools, community groups, and on the Internet.
• Make sure that everybody understands what our role is. Have a discussion before the meetings begins and clear up a few issues: do the youth have the power to make decisions? Will those decisions be respected? Who has the final say on what the programs will look like? This will ensure that there are fewer arguments in the middle of the project.
• Let us help draw up our own job description so that we feel committed to our duties.
• Let us organise ourselves. We know who we feel comfortable working with.
• Allow us to recruit our peers as program participants.
• Let us help with the written materials as well. We can write, edit, and add funky graphics that appeal to us.
• Involve us in the media coverage of the project. Make sure that we’re there for media events.
• Reward us (materially or emotionally), especially those of us who are volunteering our time. We feel valued when we are paid a small stipend or given perks. But rewards don’t have to be material. We feel validated when our contributions are publicly recognised, when we receive a thank-you card or a certificate, or when there is a little party held in our honour.
• Involve us when you are evaluating your youth projects. You may already be doing interviews and surveys of youth that participate in your program or project, but consider also using us to conduct the surveys, gather information, and count the results (See CAS’ Evaluate This! tool for more information on doing evaluations).

Helpful Hints for Working with Young People

• Use "our" language.
• Be clear and upfront. Tell us exactly what you want from us in a direct manner.
• Let us tell you exactly what we feel we can do and what we want to do instead of having you delegate duties for us that we might find boring, unchallenging, or overwhelming.
• Allow us to learn from experience. Don’t be too pessimistic. Instead of telling us that we can not do something, let us try for ourselves and see if we can make it. We’ll learn from our mistakes.
• Ask us open ended questions like "what would you like to see happen as a result of this project?" Those kind of questions will get us talking.
• Don’t be a dictator. It breeds rebellion! If you want us to do something, ask us respectfully. Later on in the working relationship, we will know what our responsibilities are, so we will just do our duties without having to be asked.
• Don’t ridicule or disrespect us.
• Our identities are forming and changing. Please don’t label us.
• Be humble. Admit it if you’re wrong or you don’t know something. We will do the same.
• Be open minded and let us really teach you about ourselves and about what we know. Don’t just assume that you know what we’re all about.
• Try to be impartial when disputes arise between young people, and don’t feel like you have to settle all our problems for us. Keep in mind that sometimes it’s better to let the people involved settle their own disputes.
• Show us that you have faith in us. Once we’ve proved ourselves, let use make some independent decisions. This will help us build confidence, competence, and leadership skills.
• Give us responsibility and don’t always fix our mistakes for us. If we know that someone is going to fix everything after we make a mess, then we’ll be more likely to fight amongst ourselves and procrastinate.
• Don’t be judgmental.
• Let us know when we’re doing a good job. When we feel like we’re actually making progress, it gives us to confidence to move on with the project.

Making Written Materials Youth-Friendly

• Just like when you’re talking to us, when you’re writing for us try to use "our" language.
• Use a friendly and conversational style.
• Don’t forget that some of us are more literate than others. If youth with low literacy skills can understand your materials, the more literate ones will also understand. Try to keep it at a Grade 4-6 level.
• The Canadian Public Health Association’s National Literacy and Health Program offers a Plain Language Service (PLS). PLS, at www.pls.cpha.ca, offers plain language revisions and workshops. (the service is not free)
• Write directly to your reader.
• Use common words instead of technical jargon.
• Use short and simple words and sentences.
• Use illustrations to make your message clear.
• Keep it short and sweet. Like we said, give us youth-friendly materials that will get us fired up about the issues rather than 50-page boring manuals.
• Use funky graphics to catch our attention. If something LOOKS boring, we might assume that it IS boring.
• Get us involved in writing and reviewing your written materials.
• Test out your written materials with a sample of youth.

Conclusion

These tips are just a few of the many things that an organization can do to become youth-friendly. Small things like using "our" language, cool graphics, pamphlets and posters that appeal to us, and making your office a little less imposing do wonders to attract youth.

One of the best ways to make these kinds of changes to your services and resources is to involve youth in your projects. Youth understand our own interests best. Having us participate in every aspect of youth projects will allow us make the project suit our needs. Harnessing the creativity, enthusiasm, and dedication of youth will ensure that the project is innovative and effective. Together we can work to make services and resources for youth that are relevant and helpful.


Acknowledgements:

The Canadian AIDS Society gratefully acknowledges YouthCO AIDS Society for their contributions to this tool.