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What's Being Done On . . . Political and Civic Participation of Youth?
This section focuses on groups and projects that promote youth involvement in policy making and strive to ensure that youth voices are heard and incorporated into governments' policies. 18to35-USA www.18to35.org/ 18to35, a national non-partisan organization based in Washington, DC, is dedicated to engaging young adults in public policymaking. The common explanation for lack of youth perspective in the decision-making is that young people do not vote in large numbers. This is why many organizations encourage young people to take part in the elections through their "Get Out to Vote" campaigns. The 18to35's approach to bringing youth issues and concerns to the forefront of policy debate is based on the assumption that young people often do not vote because they feel that their ideas are not heard by the decision-makers. Therefore, 18to35 seeks to "Get Out the Voice" of young adults and challenge elected representatives to take a notice. Its mission and activities incorporate three primary tenets: innovation, deliberation, and participation. Though innovation techniques, 18to35 challenges young adults to think outside of ideological and partisan boxes and to develop new and creative solutions to national problems. By bringing together young adults and decision-makers to deliberate policy issues, 18to35 advances the dialogue on policies, empowers young adults to become more engaged in the dialogue, changes the decision-makers' attitudes toward young adults, and educates young adults on the policy issues. In addition, 18to35 equips young adults with the tools required to convert their ideas into action. Some of the skills, taught on- and offline, include: organizing coalitions, running an issues-based campaign, writing effective letters to elected officials, and using the internet to engage in policy debates. At the Table Initiative - USA www.atthetable.org/ Grounded in the conviction that institutions and communities benefit from the voices of young people, a growing national movement of youth and adults is working to secure a place for youth "at the table" where decisions are made that affect them. At the Table Initiative is designed to provide resources and information about how to involve young people in decision-making. Hosted by the Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development, At the Table Initiative was formed to facilitate coordinated, sustainable national youth participation. At the Table works together with a number of partners across the United States to educate and inform about the value of youth participation as well as to prepare youth and adults to work together to create positive change. The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement - USA www.civicyouth.org The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE), based at the University of Maryland's School of Public Affairs, promotes research on the civic and political engagement of Americans between the ages of 15 and 25. CIRCLE is a clearinghouse for relevant information and scholarship on the topic of youth civic engagement. The CIRCLE Web site includes links to a variety of publications, a list of organizations committed to youth civic engagement, as well as a database of youth civic engagement organizations, which can be viewed at www.civicyouth.org/practitioners/org_links.htm. Choices for the 21st Century Education Program - USA www.choices.edu/index.cfm CHOICES is a program of the Watson Institute for International Studies at Brown University that seeks to engage students at the secondary level in consideration of international issues and contribute to a renewal of civic engagement among young people in the United States. As part of the Choices program, in the run up to the 2004 elections, high school students across the nation are deliberating in classrooms on the role of the United States in the changing international environment and making their voices heard by elected officials and policy makers. The project, titled "the U.S. Role in the World," includes a detailed lesson plan and reading suggestions. The lessons are designed to encourage students to think about a range of policy alternatives. This activity features an extensive online student ballot that engages students in consideration of the issues and provides a vehicle for them to express their views. A report on the results of this ballot will be distributed to the White House, members of Congress, and the media in January 2005. Comhairle na nÓg (Youth Council)- Ireland www.dublin.ie/index.asp?locID=7&docID=-1 Comhairle na nÓg is an Irish term for Youth Council. Each city or county in Ireland has created a Comhairle na nÓg to give voice to young people aged 7-17 living in Ireland. The objective Comhairle na nÓg is to ensure that the youth voice is heard at local level. Dublin's Youth Council is the largest in Ireland. The 55 members of the Dublin Comhairle na nÓg were elected from over 500 children of ages 7-17 who participated in six prior youth seminars. The underlying principle for the creation of such councils is that children are not only citizens of the future but are important stakeholders of the city now with their own aspirations and needs. The Youth Council meets every second month to discuss issues relevant to young people and advise policy makers on young people's concerns. This year, the Comhairle na nÓg seminars focus on the review of the Dublin City Development Plan. The themes discussed are transportation, infrastructure, community development, and open space/recreation. The youth recommendations from the seminars are submitted to Dublin City council's planning department. In addition, he Youth Council members were recently consulted on development of advertising code for children. Each city's Comhairle na nÓg chooses and sends representatives to the National Youth Parliament, where participants discussed issues that concern youth throughout the nation. European Youth Forum - Europe www.youthforum.org/en/ The European Youth Forum (EYF) is an international organization established by national youth councils and international non-governmental youth organizations to represent the interests of young people from all over Europe. The EYF strives to influence national and international youth policies by advocating for policies that would protect youth political and social rights. It fights for higher youth employment levels in Europe, for comprehensive social protection for youth, and against social exclusion among young people. Along with European institutions and youth organizations around the region, it works on development of successful European youth policy that would stress the participatory principle of democracy. The EYF also works on development intercultural links through discussions on common strategies with regional youth organizations from Asia to Latina America. EYF works to empower young people to participate actively in the shaping of Europe and the society in which they live. It provides, coordinates, and keeps members up-to-date on variety of relevant training opportunities; and publishes a variety of documents and reports, including its Youth Opinion magazine. Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy -Palestine www.miftah.org/ Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy (MIFTAH) is an independent Palestinian institution with offices in Ramallah and Jerusalem committed to fostering the principles of democracy and effective dialogue based on the free and candid exchange of ideas. MIFTAH's currently conducts a series of activities aiming to address the absence of a public discourse on the importance of the youth perspective, particularly those of voting age, in Palestinian political parties. First, MIFTAH has prepared an "information kit" on the status of Palestinian youth vis-a-vis key political and societal development indicators, such as education, health and legislation. The "information kit" is based on locally-conducted research, as well as the work of NGOs that address these issues. This kit serves as a resource for the program participants - youth and political party representatives alike. The next step in the series of activities is to conduct an assessment of needs through interviews and focus-groups that are designed to address issues of lack of youth involvement in political parties. MIFTAH seeks to identify reasons for the marginalization of youth in political parties, challenges facing young civic leaders, priorities in democratizing the political party structures, and the views of the young leaders on their role in the party. MIFTAH then facilitates a further discussion among senior members of parties in order to identify challenges that need to be addressed to have more meaningful participation from the younger, majority segment of Palestinian society in political party politics. The discussion is followed by two strategy workshops in the West Bank and Gaza for young democratic political leaders, that provide practical tools and skills for developing meaningful and credible agenda to enhance their role in political parties. Sierra Leone Youths in Crises Centers - Sierra Leone Contact: slyic@justice.com The Sierra Leone Youths in Crises Centers (SLYICC) works to empower youth to become agents for positive social change though literacy campaigns, advocacy, and civic and human rights education. SLYICC, based in Freetown, promotes peaceful democratic transition through government accountability, free and fair elections, and citizen participation in governance. The Center currently leads a grassroots civic education campaign and trains young community-based democracy promoters. As part of this campaign, SLYICC works on producing a manual on local-level democratic governance. This project also includes two three-day regional workshops on participatory governance and creation of a network of democracy activists resulting from the workshops; training on democratic governance for representatives of civil society and traditional leadership such as chiefs, administrative officers, heads of secret societies, and local opinion leaders; and workshops for artists interested in promoting civic participation in local governance through music, stage public performances. SLYICC plans to produce a CD-Rom on district governance in six local languages. Young Parliamentarians Forum of Pakistan - Pakistan www.pildat.org/ Young Parliamentarians Forum (YPF) of Pakistan was formed in April 2003 through the efforts of the Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency (PILDAT). YPF is a forum for young members of the National Assembly and Senators. The forum membership is open to young parliamentarians of all parties, and currently includes 47 parliamentarians belonging to 9 political parties. The main objectives of the YPF are to develop the leadership skills of young parliamentarians and to equip them with the skills and capabilities to better perform their representative, legislative, and over-sight functions. In October 2003, members of YPF visited Germany where they had an opportunity of learning from German experience in legislature and governance. Youngstars Foundation - Nigeria www.youngstars.interconnection.org/ The Youngstars Foundation, a youth training and advocacy organization, works with rural and urban youth in northern Nigeria. Its staff consists of four members and several young volunteers of both Christian and Muslim faith. The Youngstar Foundation strives to empower youth and to participate in building a sustainable democracy in Nigeria. It educates youth about democratic governance, political processes, and means of constructive political participation. The Youngstar's recent projects include Democracy Town Hall Meetings for youth in Niger, Kano, and Bauchi States, providing training to youth on how to promote freedom of expression and how to communicate effectively in a democratic environment. The participants in the Town Hall meetings receive a Youth Handbook on Democracy and Free Expression containing a report on government administration prepared by the Youngstars. In addition Youngstars organizes internships with state and federal government offices, including the National Assembly of Nigeria Abuja for several young people. Youth Action Group - Nigeria Contact: youthsactiongroup1@yahoo.com Youth Action Group (YAG), based in Imo State, Nigeria, uses research, advocacy, publications, political education, and social activities to promote democracy among youth, women, and other disadvantage segments of the population. One recent program includes a weekly call-in television program called Youth Parliament, which provides a forum for youth to discuss important issues affecting them. The program promotes an open debate with youth moderators and members of government. Topics include democracy, conflict resolution, unemployment, HIV/AIDS, schooling, human rights, and gender inequality. YAG's program encourages youth to share ideas and concerns in order to produce proactive policy recommendations. Participants formulate recommendations during each program which are then collected and printed in a handbook and distributed to government policy makers. To encourage extended off-air discussions, YAG organizes a Youth Parliament fan club for youth and students. Youth Alternative - Ukraine Contact: mol-alt@future.kiev.ua or future@future.kiev.ua Youth Alternative aims to encourage young people to participate in Ukraine's political life. It was formed in 1994 when it played an active role in increasing voter participation among young people through distributing get-out-to-vote literature to millions of Ukrainians and organizing rock concerts in various cities with an emphasis on the importance of voting. Since 1995, Youth Alternative has run the "Students for Parliament" project, through which it has organized student internships in the Ukrainian Parliament. While the parliamentarians benefit from hard work and skills of the students, the students gain practical experience in public affairs and build network with other public-spirited youth. Youth Project of the Citizenship Institute - Brazil www.icidadania.org.br/ Citizenship Institute (Instituto Cidadania) is a non-governmental organization based in Brazil that acts as a mediator of discussions within civil society. It has facilitated a national discussion among youth movements that focus on developing a proposal to the federal government on the national youth policy. The process to date has included a series of seminars in diverse parts of the country. The purpose of this process has been to develop public debate, to deepen discussion, and to gather ideas and proposals through a process that is decentralized and participatory. The process recently culminated in two-day international youth seminar, "Youth Policies: An International Panel," that took place in Sao Paulo, Brazil on April 15-17. IFES-Youth Senate Program -Haiti www.ifes.org/ The International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES) based in Washington DC provides professional advice and technical assistance in promoting democracy and serves as an information clearinghouse on elections, rule of law, governance, and civil society. It puts a special emphasis on youth participation, leadership, and public service in all regions of the world. In Haiti, it has launched a Youth Senate program in cooperation with the Haitian Parliament, the Haitian Ministry of Education, the Parliament of Quebec, and Associates in Rural Development. Students were selected though and essay competition to become youth senators who then spent several days in Port-au-Prince learning about policy making process in Haiti and participated in a mock parliament. They proposed and debated a number of laws, and passed laws mandating to increase environmental protection and improve services to people with disabilities. Three outstanding senators were awarded a one-week trip to Quebec, where they met with Canadian parliament. Another aspect of this program was the involvement of the Haitian Association for the Blind (SHAA). The youth senators met with a group of young blind people, assembled by SHAA, and the two groups worked together to develop legislation that appropriately addressed the needs of blind citizens. About "What's Being Done On . . . " For three months at a time, we highlight the activities of various organizations in different global regions, and links to important resources, that are focused on a particular theme or area of democracy work. Each new theme is announced via DemocracyNews, and the information from the previous installment is placed in the archives below. We hope to receive and post information about the work you or others may be doing that is focused on these issues. Send information via e-mail to the or by fax to (202) 378-9889. |
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