PYDA Case Study: Leon & Taylor
Leon and Taylor talk about community youth participation and youth advocacy. They were able to contribute in an interagency process as valued stakeholders, liaise with the wider youth sector and ensure a youth perspective was included in the decision making process. The narrative demonstrates the importance of youth participation in the wider community.
“When e-scooters, Lime scooters in particular, were introduced to Christchurch, they started by doing a short 2-month trial over summer. A reference group with different stakeholders was formed to have discussions around what it might look like and what rules and regulations they wanted in place, should that trial be extended. In this group they had representatives from the Police, ACC, CDHB, St John, Age Concern, the Blind Foundation and a few people from the Christchurch City Council. We were asked to be on the group to share the youth of Christchurch’s voice on the topic, after we did our most recent online survey and some face-to-face surveys with people out in the community.
It was important that we were around the table. I suppose we (youth) were a key stakeholder, who would probably be using the e-scooters and that voice wasn’t represented in the other people around the table.
To capture a youth perspective, we had a day where we went out into our community and surveyed young people across Canterbury and Christchurch. We also discussed it at youth council meetings with the group as well. Those surveys had a few clear messages coming through, so it was quite easy to represent what young people were thinking. The feedback we received on the e-scooter trial, as well as the feelings of the youth council, was brought to the reference group.
The reference group process wasn’t youth led; we were there as people who were supporting the voice and we weren’t leading the group. But we definitely felt like equals. They definitely gave us the opportunity to speak. They asked us for our opinion and we felt comfortable to say our opinion when the time came.
However, one of the challenges of the group was – we would go into a meeting and points were raised, and then they would turn to us and ask, “What do young people think about it?”. But we didn’t have time to get young people’s opinions on it. Yet, they just wanted an answer then and there, which was quite hard, ‘cos I’m then just giving my own opinion, I’m not giving the opinion of young people. If they had said, “Can we discuss this at next meeting and how can we support you to get the voices of young people for that next meeting?” that would probably have been easier, rather than just asking us for the opinion then and there.
Overall, we think it went quite well. When you get that many stakeholders around a table though, you’re always going to have differing ideas around things. We don’t know if we arrived at too many conclusions that everyone agreed on, but we had some really good discussions, and everyone was aware of what everyone else was thinking. There were a few people around the table who had opposing views. We feel there was more of that side.
We learned more about reference groups, that we do have a voice and that we do have the power to share the youth voice in Christchurch. That was definitely a good opportunity for us to develop ourselves in that manner. It also highlighted the importance of having youth on those boards. If we weren’t there, possibly those views wouldn’t have been represented. The young people we had spoken to were predominantly positive about the Lime Scooters. Young people were a key stakeholder, key people who would use the e-scooters and to have their voice represented in the decision-making was important.
It almost felt like if that youth voice wasn’t there, it possibly could have been forgotten or not considered.”
Practitioners’ Perspectives
Connected Communities
Weaving with the Three Key Approaches
Strengths-Based
The inclusion of the young people as equals around this table recognises the value and perspectives that young people bring to their communities. The young people were able to enhance the mana of the reference group, and further develop their own strengths by consulting their peers and including the voices of many other young people in the community.Respectful Relationships
The young people involved in the reference group were connected back to their own youth council and a youth worker for extra support. The other members of the reference group asked the young people questions and they felt able to give their opinions.Building Ownership and Empowerment
This was demonstrated by the young people’s initiative to include other youth voices in the process. The young people identified the challenge of being expected to be able to speak for all young people without having the opportunity to consult. If the reference group process had included the opportunity to consult with more young people in its process, this would have further built ownership and empowerment.The young people acknowledged that there were varying voices around the table, and limited times when everyone around the table agreed. However, the young people were satisfied with their role, were active participants and played a role that was meaningful.
Relevance for Funders/Policy Makers
Young people and communities influence each other, and connected communities require positive youth development practices from many different people and organisations. There are many policies and frameworks that guide how young people are able to be active participants in their communities, and the three key approaches in this document are useful guides to what needs to be included. It is important to recognise the needs of the young people as separate from the needs of the group, and be able to understand which needs drive the action or agenda.