YOUTH WORK IS... LEADING WITH

I liked the visual of the "Ladder of youth participation."I think the Degrees of Participation are very important. It's important for youth to be involved in decision making! I thought the first step labeled "Youth-Initiated Shared Decisions With Adults" was really interesting. It's where the youth have the

ideas, set up the project, and invite adults to join them in making decisions. You don't see that enough in youth spaces and I think it would be really beneficial for youth to be allowed to brainstorm ideas and create projects by themselves without assistance from adults until the decision making time. It allows young people to grow, develop new skills, go through trial and error, and to feel empowered. Although in the other four steps in the Degrees of Participation youth aren't as independent, the adults are still informing them on what is going on and taking their opinions seriously unlike the Non-participation where the youth are being asked to part in events but not understanding why. Young people do not benefit at all from being told what to do, what to say and what to think, especially with no understanding. Youth should be involved in the process and have a clear understanding before being asked to participate in anything. Young peoples voices, opinions and thoughts matter and should always be valued.

"We refer to quality youth-adult relationships as partnerships because we believe that these relationships are only truly authentic when they exist outside of traditional power hierarchies and negative constructions of youth. In using the phrase "youth-adult partnerships" to describe the intergenerational relationships that facilitate high levels of youth participation and power, our work intentionally builds on the work of Shepherd Zeldin and his colleagues, whose research on the quality of youth-adult relationships has been ,a core part of our own learning."

- I love this! I love that they refer to the youth-adult relationships as "partnerships". I think its' important for young people and adults to have a partnership like this where young people are able to be heard, seen and valued. Spaces where partnerships like this exist young people will are more likely feel more supported, safe, valued and included. Young people will have adult expertise and support. Adults can also benefit from a youth-adult partnership. The partnerships can enable people and programs to develop toward their full potential.

I love Youth In Action! I love everything the organization stands for and does for the community. I love that they designed the program with different types of learning. I think it's so important to have a curriculum that supports all types of learners because not every young person learns the same. I think it's extremely important to have staff that are deeply in tune and connected to each young person because young people need that. Young people need to be supported and have someone look out for their well-being. To have someone genuinely care about your personal development and growth is special and every young person deserves to have to someone in their life who cares that much. I like that they have a strong youth-adult partnership where they allow both adults and youth to lead. Lastly, I think their team building activities are really cool and engaging. To practice in trust, invulnerability, risk-taking, and being uncomfortable is all part of growth and development.