Participation is not a black-and-white concept; it includes different levels and stages. At Youth Academy, we aim to move from informing and involving young people toward genuine influence and self-directed action.
Following Hart’s (1992) Ladder of Participation, participation can be described as follows:
- Informing: Young people are told about issues and decisions.
- Consulting: Young people are heard, but decision-making power remains elsewhere.
- Involving: Young people are involved in planning and implementation.
- Influencing: Young people have real decision-making power and the ability to impact outcomes.
- Self-directed action: Young people plan and carry out activities independently, with adults as supporters.
Youth Academy actively creates opportunities to move up these steps toward deeper and more genuine participation.
How Youth Academy promotes participation in practice?
In practice, Youth Academy promotes participation by:
- organizing training and producing support materials on participation and interaction for adults working with young people,
- developing games and other interactive, interaction-enhancing learning materials for young people on societal and youth-relevant topics,
- reaching young people in more vulnerable positions, such as minority groups whose experience of participation needs additional support,
- funding young people’s own projects in schools or other youth activities,
- organizing interactive workshops on societal issues and sharing young people’s perspectives with decision-makers,
- co-designing solutions with young people and adults to address challenges in young people’s lives and society,
- communicating young people’s ideas and successes.