Whenever young people say that an activity is particularly powerful or meaningful for them there is a set of conditions present. These conditions can feel difficult to pin down, especially when adults are too busy or too inexperienced to identify them. The following Principles were devised after I spent several months working with a group of youth at a public high school in New York City.

Authentic Youth Voice is…

• Collective – Activities are led by youth and adults together – not individually
• Connected – Activities embody interdependence and model it among youth and adults
• Empowering – Youth voice is a driving force throughout activities
• Equitable – Adults recognize young people have differing backgrounds that require different approaches
• Focused – Activities are appropriately outcome-driven
• Healthy – Respectful disagreement, speaking up, and other avenues that equalize disparities between youth and adults are at the core of the activity
• Learning – Young people gain skills, knowledge and tools to be effect agents of change
• Mutually Beneficial – Young people and adults acknowledge each other’s dreams, actions, outcomes and reflections
• Relevant – Activities are responsive to the lives of young people
• Responsible – Adults and youth develop and sustain their capacity to be “response-able”
• Substantive – Activity design and outcomes are designed to impact individuals, organizations, communities and society
• Self-Motivated – Young people feel driven to participate

Providing these guidelines or devising their own can become an essential function of any youth group or youth-serving organization that seeks to engage young people in social change. These Principles can serve as a guide for the development of new programs and the evaluation of current activities.

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Other tools are out there, too – share your thoughts in the comments below! For more information about how The Freechild Project can help support youth voice in your community or organization, contact us.