Meaningful youth participation refers to the genuine, inclusive, and impactful involvement of young people in decision-making processes, activities, and initiatives that affect their lives, communities, and futures. Throughout 2024 your gifts were used to define good practice around MYP, helping to develop a framework that can be used throughout the organisation. This framework was used when launching the#60daysin60ways campaign in August, which aims to showcase stories from young women in the Movement across social media.
This campaign serves as a tool to collect examples of young people in the Movement who are actively engaged in decisions that affect their lives and communities. Highlighted below are a two stories from Member Organisations that demonstrate the power of Meaningful Youth Participation and Collaboration.
GirlGuiding New Zealand actively encourages youth participation in all levels of decision-making and is working to embed a youth participation approach into its organisational culture.
The National Girl Advisory and Participation Group (GAP) is an initiative that provides continuous opportunities for girls to participate in decision-making across the organisation.
The Girl Advisory and Participation Group is formed of 10 Rangers (girls aged 12-17) from the 10 regional hubs of GirlGuiding New Zealand. This enables girls from across the country to participate in decision-making.
The Girl Advisory and Participation Group are highly active, meeting to discuss and offer their views on a range of topics including girl opportunities, programme content, delivery of events and the best way to communicate with members.
Each Group member holds voting rights and can contribute to the decision-making of this governance body. These voting rights are laid out in the constitution so they are assured for every AGM.
Girl Guides of Canada have lots of different ways of having their voices heard. The programme is created and run in a way that ensures that girls feel empowered to make their own choices and have their voices heard.
The initiatives we want to focus on are the National Youth Council and Provincial Youth Forums, where young people between the ages of 12 and 17 have the opportunity to contribute to events and programmes in their Province, as well as decision making across the national organisation.
The Youth Council members have contributed to many different parts of the organisation, including presenting reports to the Board of Directors, speaking at Guiding evenings, and ensuring young people’s voices are heard at a national level. They have championed key issues that impact young members of the Girl Guides of Canada, including Indigenous issues and engagement, socioeconomic bridging, how to retain members past Guides and many more! Members of the Youth Council play an active role in reviewing applications, conducting interviews and identifying candidates to sit on the Board of Directors. Ensuring that those key decision makers are appointed by young people, to drive forwards young people’s views.
Individual Provinces have Youth Forums, and young people have taken the lead on many youth-led projects. Alberta Council Youth Forum created a youth-led challenge in 2020. “You and the World” encouraged members in Alberta to dive into understanding friendship, focusing on communication and reflecting on how they interact with their community.
Young people can grow as leaders and make an impact in their organisation at the same time. They are at the centre of their own experiences and can drive the organisation to better fit the ever-changing needs of our youth.