Guiding Principles of Youth Engagement
Equal Partnership
When youth and adults have equal decision-making powers
Bringing in Diverse Perspectives
Engaging youths with differing identities and perspectives allows for fresh ideas and insights
Tokenism
A young person is included for the sake of saying youth are included
Authentic Relationships
When the relationship between youth and adults are genuine, trusting and collaborative
Increase Relevancy and Effectiveness
Incorporating youth feedback helps ensure that services are tailored to the current needs of youth
Consulted
Respect for Individual Youth Context
Ensuring that there is respect for the diverse situations and systems impacting youths
Highlighting the Value of Lived Experience
Recognizing Lived Experience as a valuable knowledge base and Compensating youth for their expertise
Co-Development and Partnership
When young people jointly develop all projects, services and processes that impact or interest them