Youth and Community Development Innovations in Civic Participation (ICP) is a non-profit social change organization that supports the development of innovative, high-quality youth civic engagement policies and programs both in the US and around the world. Founded in 2001, ICP is dedicated to creating opportunities for young people to change their communities for the better and build essential skills for future success. Funded through a multi-year grant from the Ford Foundation, we partner with individuals and organizations around the globe to stimulate innovation around two civic engagement strategies: national youth service and service-learning. At ICP, we believe that well-structured youth service programs can provide innovative solutions to social and environmental issues, while helping young people develop skills for future employment and active citizenship. For more information, visit www.icicp.org. Introduction ployment or further education and training oppor- Innovations in Civic Participation (ICP)1 has tunities translates into disempowerment and often written this paper to demonstrate how civic ser- results in an increased sense of fatalism and weak- vice programs2 are one of the few proven and ef- ened initiative. In the absence of opportunities, fective strategies for empowering young people to risky behavior such as drug use, unsafe sex, and address the issues identified in the World Bank’s gang violence all too often fills the void and per- strategy paper on Children and Youth and help to petuates the cycle of poverty, unemployment, ille- achieve the Bank’s central goal of reducing pov- gal activity, lost production, and lost opportunity. erty. Rather than providing programs that deliver The causes for the problems that youth face services to young people, structured service pro- worldwide are complex and the solutions will not grams allow young people to play an important be simple. Nevertheless, it is imperative to engage role in addressing the development priorities in youth in the process. Although the concept of their communities. Creating the opportunities and ‘youth as resources in development’ is increas- infrastructure for these programs requires a com- ingly acknowledged, the mitment of resources over time. practice of engaging Lasting change The Bank’s strategy paper identifies five key youth in development best occurs when issues affecting youth prospects worldwide: activities as full partners communities • lack of adequate education and life skills is still not fully accepted. support youth • unemployment and precarious work International experience and youth • violence and crime has shown that service contribute to • risky behaviors organizations for young their • limited empowerment and exclusion people, while building communities. Structured service programs address these issues citizenship skills, can by: help society to appreci- • providing ‘hands-on’ learning opportunities ate young people and help young people to view where youth develop transferable skills and themselves as a resource for change, rather than as competencies, a troubled, at-risk group. The examples below • creating a pathway to further training and illustrate how the ingenuity, solidarity, and crea- employment, tivity of millions of ordinary young people can be • offering constructive alternatives to negative directed towards critical social, political and eco- behaviors, nomic issues around the world. • empowering youth to actively address urgent social, economic, and political issues in their The Case for Service communities. Lasting change best occurs when communities support youth and youth contribute to their com- Background munities. Youth should be viewed not as ‘clients’ At 1.7 billion, today’s youth comprise the or a set of deficits that need to be addressed, but largest generation ever to enter the transition to as essential protagonists in tackling development adulthood.3 In many developing countries, three - needs. Around the world, young people are mobi- quarters of the population are under the age of 30. lizing for civil rights, organizing for environ- The values, attitudes, and skills acquired by mental justice, and advocating for school reform. youth—and especially the choices made by the They are serving on agency boards, raising con- current generation of young people—will influ- sciousness through the arts, and providing ence the course of current events and shape the neighborhood-based services. These efforts chal- future in fundamental ways. lenge portrayals of youth as ‘victims of poverty’ At the same time, there is increasing concern and ‘problems’ in society, as well as the typical about the status of young people, particularly in focus of professionals on youth needs and defi- countries transitioning from war where many de- ciencies. An investment in youth service has hu- militarized youth possess limited education and man, social, and economic benefits that positively life skills. For many youth, limited access to em- impact the development of individuals, communi- Service As A Strategy: Youth and Community Development ties, nations, and society as a whole. youth service.”7 Human capital formation—the knowledge, Service also has an important economic im- health, skills, energy, and creativity individuals pact. In countries where empirical studies exist, use to solve problems and earn a living—is one of the contribution of volunteering is estimated to be the strongest engines for economic growth in de- between 8% and 14% of GDP.8 In the United veloping countries. Young people States, President Clinton estab- who volunteer are 50% less likely The participatory aspect lished AmeriCorps in 1993, a pro- to abuse drugs and alcohol, be- of service can contribute gram that allows American citi- come involved in delinquency, or to a heightened zens of different ages to volunteer drop out of school.4 A study by understanding of the for a period of 12 months to James L. Perry and Ann Marie forces which shape strengthen American communities Thomson found that participating governments and through service. A cost-benefit in national and community ser- societies, leading to analysis of AmeriCorps estimates vice has direct benefits to skills greater transparency, that for every US $1 spent, the development and satisfaction, accountability, and country receives between US educational opportunity, self- improved governance. $1.60 and US $2.60 in return.9 On esteem, and physical and mental an individual level, service con- health. The authors further argue that national ser- tributes to capacity building processes by helping vice is an efficient and effective way to solve the individual to develop marketable skills, pro- community problems. In all but one of the 14 viding access to workplace networks, and boost- studies cited, benefits exceeded costs when na- ing confidence and self-esteem. tional service was applied as a problem-solving approach.5 Youth Service As A Strategy When youth are positively engaged through service, research indicates that social capital and For Poverty Reduction And citizenship increase. Social capital refers to basic Human Development: codes of conduct, trust, and cooperative behavior Lessons Learned among individuals and groups—the intangible 1. Youth Service in Education/Training foundations of a free society. Service fosters trust School enrollment rates have increased world- between citizens and helps develop norms of soli- wide, but the quality of education is undermined darity and reciprocity which are essential to stable by limited resources, outdated curricula, irrelevant communities. Apart from the tangible goals of skills training, poorly trained teachers, and limited their activity, working together helps bridge dif- access to new knowledge and technology. ferences that lead to greater trust and respect School completion rates remain low in many among persons who may otherwise never come countries, and many girls and boys do not together. Research suggests that when networks of achieve basic literacy or numeracy before they voluntary organizations are created which link drop out of school. In Africa, as few as 5 p e r - different interest groups, the increased interaction cent of young people attend college. Youth ser- leads to improved understanding and increased 6 vice projects enable schools to address social tolerance of diversity. The participatory aspect of needs and enhance educational quality at the same service can contribute to a heightened understand- time. ing of the forces which shape governments and During the 1990s, Argentina experienced ma- societies, leading to greater transparency, account- jor social and economic changes, which eventu- ability, and improved governance. At the World- ally led to the dramatic 2002 financial crisis. As wide Workshop on Youth Involvement as a Strat- the gap between rich and poor widened, organiza- egy for Social, Economic and Democratic Devel- tions of civil society took a leading role in fighting opment in 2000, Harvard’s renown professor of poverty and corruption and in offering alternatives Public Policy, Robert Putnam, offered, “All our to renew political practices. Educational institu- societies need more social capital…and in my tions, in turn, faced a growing social demand, but view the single most promising area of initiative is teachers were often overwhelmed and unprepared 2 Service As A Strategy: Youth and Community Development to deal with these pressures. With schools playing tion (ILO) estimates that 74 million