Using Ice Breakers to Help Young People Build Trust and Camaraderie

Discussing sensitive topics like underage drinking, drug use, and depression can be uncomfortable, but it's crucial to have these conversations in order to protect their well-being. In this blog, YEN will explore five important issues that young people face today and provide tips on how to approach these topics with sensitivity and care.

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Say goodbye to awkward introductions and hello to meaningful interactions! Whether you're an educator, parent, or mentor, these icebreakers can help to create a meaningful, positive experience for the young people you are working with.

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Young people should be paid for the time they spend advising and sharing their expertise. Here are some best practices for organizations and agencies working to compensate young people fairly and equitably.

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Research has confirmed time and time again that participation in the arts leads to positive outcomes for young people, both in terms of their cognitive development and their mental health and well-being. If your organization is ready to incorporate the arts into your programs, here are some ways to start.

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Sex education content often focuses on straight, cisgender young people, but this ignores LGBTQ+ youth. Using language that removes gendered terms to talk about bodies and the sexual things that people may do with them helps include and respect people of all genders and sexual orientations.

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Should your organization work with young people? The data says YES! Here are 7 reasons why having young leaders in your organization can make your youth engagement programs more successful.

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Podcasts are a great way to connect, learn, and get inspired. With access to podcasts on the go through apps like Spotify, apple music, and Bluetooth streaming, it's more accessible than ever to tap into new ideas and voices wherever you are. We have compiled a list of incredible podcasts for educators and young people. These podcasts feature youth voices and ideas about youth empowerment, youth engagement, community building, and much more. 

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Everyone benefits when young people are engaged and encouraged to be in leadership roles. Adults benefit by enhancing their own competencies, learning to better understand and value youth, and increasing their commitment and energy to their organizations. Building leadership and engagement in young people will create great habits that will last a lifetime. Here are just a few ways you can begin to develop young leaders.

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October is National Bullying Prevention Month, a time to focus on and raise awareness on bullying. National Bullying Prevention Month was founded to help transform a society that accepts bullying into a society that recognizes that bullying must – and can – be addressed through education and support. We are sharing some tips and resources for spotting and dealing with bullying in the classroom and how to create a safe space for students.

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YEN Learning & Engagement Specialist Azzia Roberts presented at the Adolescent Health Initiative 2022 Annual Conference in early August. The presentation, titled “The Youth Engagement Network: Innovating for Meaningful Youth Engagement Across Sexual and Reproductive Health Interventions,” gave an overview of the YEN’s innovative approach to addressing meaningful youth engagement in sexual and reproductive health programs.

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School planning has been well underway for educators. With the first day behind us or just around the corner, the YEN team wanted to share some tips and resources that may prove valuable for educators wanting to improve and sustain youth engagement.

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A 2018 study by Hopelab and Well Being Trust found that 93% of youth aged 14-22 use social media, with most being active online daily. Young people aren't just socializing online; they are researching and reaching out about important topics like personal health. Here are some tips for engaging with youth on social media!

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Engaging youth in our communities is more critical than ever as a broader range of issues begin to affect the lives of young people. For any society to become genuinely welcoming and vibrant and for youth to reach their full potential, young people must be able to commit to, participate in and influence their communities. Learn About Why to Engage Youth in Our Communities!

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Youth engagement is a trending topic on agendas in 2022, but how are organizations putting it into action? Learn more about how 4 YEN partners are engaging youth in creative ways within their programs and resources.

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With 90% percent of young people ages 13-17 reporting to have used social media, it only makes sense that some of the content you create should include their voice. In addition to being an essential space for information sharing, youth engagement on social networks can help young people feel informed, empowered, and represented.

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ETR's YEN (Youth Engagement Network) recently participated in a healing-centered engagement course with Flourish Agenda. The self-paced training allowed YEN team members to get certified as healing-centered engagement practitioners, an asset-based and culturally-rooted approach to healing and well-being for young people of color and their adult allies.

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For its first-ever ‘Teen Talk’ and in recognition of September’s Sexual Health Awareness Month in 2021, National Health Foundation chatted with Jacky Gonzalez, a youth consultant and participant in NHF’s Be a STAR program and activist for reproductive rights.

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Organizations that involve youth as partners in making decisions that affect them are more likely to be effective at engaging the population and, therefore, to have a more significant impact. Workshops and empowerment training too often only focus on telling young people what to do and fail to consider that, through their experiences, young people can provide valuable knowledge to the decision-making process.

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At ETR’s Youth Engagement Network (YEN), we get excited about learning and discovering new approaches for meaningfully engaging young people. Using our wins and insights over the last year and a half, we are highlighting four resolutions that might make you rethink how your organization engages young people in 2022.

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ETR's Youth Engagement Network (YEN) is a 3-year project funded by the Office of Population Affairs aiming to increase the number of young people who effectively engage in sexual health programs and services to promote optimal health, prevent teen pregnancy, and reduce sexually transmitted infections (STI).

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Youth engagement is an intentional partnership between youth and an organization where young people are involved in all parts of an organization, from decision-making to implementation.

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A theory of change (TOC) is a comprehensive description of why a particular way of working will be effective, showing how change happens in the short, medium, and long term to achieve the intended impact.

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ETR's Youth Engagement Network (YEN) envisions that all young people, and particularly those who experience systemic marginalization or discrimination, have the ability and opportunity to be meaningfully and equitably engaged in the programs, policies, and systems that affect their lives and communities.

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