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Capturing the Process:Follow-up to the Rural Youth Dialogue Project

The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the New Brunswick Advisory Council on Youth and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Government of New Brunswick.

Rapport également disponible en français sous le titre Saisissons le processus : Suivi du projet Dialogue jeunesse rurale

Contents may not be reproduced for commercial purposes, but any other reproduction, with acknowledgments, is encouraged. Please credit the source as follows:

Capturing the Process: Follow-up to the Rural Youth Dialogue Project.

Produced for the New Brunswick Advisory Council on Youth.

Researched by Miguel LeBlanc, Community Coordinator

For more information, contact:New Brunswick Advisory Council on Youth130-77 Westmorland StreetP.O. Box 6000Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada E3B 5H1E-mail: [email protected]: www.youthinfo.ca

© NEW BRUNSWICK ADVISORY COUNCIL ON YOUTH (2007)ISBN: 978-1-55396-992-1

CNB 4478All rights reserved

Follow-up to the Rural Youth Dialogue Project 3

Table of ContentsIntroduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Section One: The Follow-Up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Section Two: Developing a Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Acadian Peninsula . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Eskinuopitijk First Nation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Hampton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Chipman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Charlotte County . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Woodstock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Grand Falls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Section Three: Key Learnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Section Four: Recommendations Based on Responses and Discussion from the Rural Youth Dialogue Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Funding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Meaningful Youth Engagement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Acknowledge the Rural-Urban Divide. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

A Province-Wide Community Needs Assessment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Section Five: Acknowledgement of Partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Capturing the Process4


Introduction

In March 2002, the New Brunswick Advisory Council on Youth (herein referred to as the Youth Council), among other stakeholders, undertook an initiative, entitled the New Brunswick Rural Youth Dialogue Project1, to engage rural youth in the Province of New Brunswick. The result of the Rural Youth Dialogue Project was the development of eleven Youth Action Teams. Each team identified specific issues that they wanted to address in their respective communities. The following document captures the follow up phase of the Rural Youth Dialogue Project

that spanned from 2004 to 2006. The main objective of this initiative was to continue the community development process with the Youth Action Teams. The community development process was intended to facilitate a process to develop leadership and community stewardship with rural youth; to increase community capacity building; and to engage rural, francophone, and aboriginal citizens to mobilize in their communities regarding issues identified as important to them.

1 For more information regarding the Rural Youth Dialogue Project, please consult the following document available on the New Brunswick Advisory Council on Youth's website entitled Capturing the Process: An Examination of the New Brunswick Rural Youth Dialogue Project - http://www.gnb.ca/0049/PDF/Capture_e.pdf


SECTION ONE: The Follow-UpThe initial steps that were involved in the follow-up phase of this project involved the engagement of the original Youth Action Teams, which were developed at the Unlocking Minds: Rural Youth Take Action dialogue in the winter of 2001. The follow-up phase, entitled Rural Dialogue: Engaging Youth in Rural Communities, took place from 2003 to 2005. The Youth Council, with funding and support from Justice Canada’s National Crime Prevention Strategy Community Mobilization Program and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Rural Secretariat, hired a community coordinator to continue the process of engaging youth living in rural communities. The project’s main objectives were

• To meet with original Youth Action Teams

• To meet with rural communities to create new Youth Action Teams

• To facilitate the development of project proposals aimed at crime prevention through social development

• To develop a website highlighting proactive youth initiatives that are taking place in rural communities

• To facilitate a community and social development process that is initiated by both youth and adult leaders in the community who are working with youth

• To ensure that the Youth Council continues to support youth engagement in rural communities

• To ensure that the Youth Council continues to represent the rural youth of New Brunswick through membership on the Rural Team New Brunswick, a multi-sectoral initiative of both Provincial and Federal departments levels.

• To continue to raise the profile of the Youth Council in rural communities


SECTION TWO: Developing a ProcessThe Youth Council is the provincial body representative of youth, which voices the interests, needs, concerns and perspectives of young people aged 15-24, and presents recommendations to government and to the public. This is achieved by acting as an advisory body, through resource coordination, research and consultation. Through its actions, the Youth Council strives to be a catalyst for increasing youth involvement in society. The leadership role in the Rural Youth Dialogue Project was undertaken by the Youth Council, since it was agreed by all partners that the Youth Council was in the best position to continue the follow-up phase. The general themes of the follow-up phase were:

• To develop leadership and community stewardship in rural youth

• To increase community capacity building

• To engage rural, francophone, and aboriginal citizens

The Youth Council, with funding from Justice Canada, and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, hired a community coordinator to begin the community and social development process. This took place a year after the original Rural Youth Dialogue. This provided a major challenge and required the re-engagement of the original members of the Youth Action Teams. This highlighted the importance of sustainability in efforts such as the Rural Youth Dialogue Project, as it was found that most participants were no longer available to continue their involvement with the initiative. Nonetheless, through innovative means, the Youth Council

was able to engage other youth and adult leaders to work together to develop proactive community initiatives.

After contacting all adult leaders that were involved with the original Rural Youth Dialogue Project, the Youth Council assessed both the level of interest that existed and the feasibility of the projects to be undertaken. Four communities would be worked with in 2004:

• the Acadian Peninsula

• Eskinuopitijk First Nation Community

• Chipman

• Hampton

In 2005, the Youth Council continued its supportive role with these four communities, and engaged three new communities:

• Grand Falls

• Charlotte County

• Woodstock


Acadian PeninsulaThe Youth Council’s main role was as initiator and planner of the community initiative2. The process that was involved was to contact and organize a preliminary meeting with a small group of youth and adult leaders. The goal was to begin a dialogue process where the youth were able to express their concerns and interests to adults. Throughout the discussions it became apparent that the issues that the adults believed to be a concern to youth were quite different from what the youth actually identified as concerns. This process allowed the youth and adults to share their own interpretation of the realities of living in their respective communities and therefore engage in authentic dialogue with one another. The results were impressive - the youth identified concerns of bullying, while the adults never realized it was a major issue among youth in the community. By the end of the dialogue, the youth decided that they wanted to hold a regional forum called “Jour-J”, to discuss the issues of bullying and develop a youth anti-violence video.

Eskinuopitijk First NationThe Youth Council's role was as initiator, encourager/supporter, and planner of the community mobilization process3. The work in Eskinuopitijk First Nation illustrates the importance of adult leaders playing an active role in community initiatives. In this community, the youth were interested in developing a skateboard park and youth centre. The Youth Council began the process of engaging a trusted and respected adult leader that the youth felt comfortable working with. Once the adult leader was identified, discussion meetings began with both youth and adults. The project

started well at first, however, once the adult leader was no longer able to continue a leadership role, the work ceased. This illustrates the importance of building not only the capacity of youth, but also having the capacity and commitment to working with youth. It is important to state that this incident is not an isolated case, but rather that it is a real and ongoing struggle in rural communities throughout the province.

2 For a more in-depth discussion regarding the key roles of the community coordinator, please consult Bill Lee's Pragmatics of Community Organization (1999) pp. 56-68.3 Lee, B. (1999). Pragmatics of Community Organization 3rd Ed. Mississauga: CommonAct Press.


HamptonThe main role of the Youth Council was as planner of the community mobilization process4. The community group in Hampton community developed an initiative with respect to social justice issues, as deemed important by the community. A key learning from this project was the importance and necessity of a more authentic dialogue process between adult leaders and youth. As demonstrated by several community initiatives identified in this document, one of the strongest indicators of success in youth-oriented community mobilization initiatives is the level of involvement of youth and adults in an inclusive authentic dialogue process. The lack of authentic dialogue between the two parties in this particular process was one of the reasons that the initiative in question was unsuccessful.

ChipmanThe main role of the Youth Council was as planner of the community mobilization process5. The community initiative was the R.E.S.P.E.C.T. program, which deals with youth issues such as building healthy relationships, self-esteem and community respect. The R.E.S.P.E.C.T. program illustrates the importance of having an adult leader who is sympathetic to the issues and concerns of youth. An effective adult leader must be able to gain respect from the youth in the community and work with them to develop pro-active and innovative ideas and projects in the community.

Charlotte CountyThe main role of the Youth Council was to be an encourager/supporter, popular educator, and planner in the community mobilization process6. The Youth Council was approached by the Healthy Youth-Healthy Communities initiative to help in the community mobilization process. In Charlotte County, the initiative was to conduct a regional assessment with the 40 Developmental Assets, which is a needs assessment tool that measures the needs of youth of the community7. After an assessment of Charlotte County, the committee developed a youth committee in each high school with the goal to engage a greater number of students in the process. These core groups, of approximately ten youth each, developed and organized a two day regional conference for youth across Charlotte County. This was done with the help of adults who took on a supportive role. The goals of the countywide youth conference were to develop and prioritize the ideas and concerns of youth in their respective communities and begin the process of building healthier communities.

4 Lee, B. (1999). Pragmatics of Community Organization 3rd Ed. Mississauga: CommonAct Press.5 ibid6 ibid7 For more information on the approach that developed the 40 Developmental Assets, please consider reviewing the following two texts:Kretzman, J. & McKnight, J. (1993). Building Communities from the Inside Out: A Path Toward Finding and Mobilizing

A community's Assets. Chicago: ACTA Publications.McKnight, J. (1995). The Careless Society: Community and its Counterfeits. New York: Basic Books.


WoodstockThe main role of the Youth Council was as initiator and planner in the community mobilization process8. The Youth Council was approached and asked to facilitate a strategic planning session with young single mothers living in the community who wanted to have access to a daycare while they completed their GED. The young mothers believed that the current situation in Woodstock was not meeting their needs. Therefore, the role of the Youth Council was to provide its expertise by developing and facilitating a strategic planning session that would help the community’s grassroots committee to initiate a proactive plan of action to help the community’s single young mothers who wished to finish their secondary education.

Grand FallsThe main role of the Youth Council was as planner of the community mobilization process9. Some members of the Grand Falls community approached the Youth Council for advice in developing a local youth centre. The adult committee wanted to initiate a process of building a healthy relationship between youth and seniors in the community. This project was aimed at bridging the intergenerational gap that existed. The Grand Falls initiative illustrates the importance of involving youth at the beginning stages in the development of a youth-focused project. Unfortunately, that key aspect was in need of improvement in this case. Furthermore, the inability to secure hard infrastructure funding also played a critical role in the project’s downfall, even though the initiative had succeeded in developing partnerships with local businesses and had even identified a potential centre for the project.

8 Lee, B. (1999). Pragmatics of Community Organization 3rd Ed. Mississauga: CommonAct Press.9 ibid


SECTION THREE: Key Learnings• Ensure a third party with youth

engagement experience facilitates the dialogue between adults and youth.

• Ensure the third party is willing and able to go into the communities and meet with the youth.

• Dress in the same casual manner as youth who are participating.

• Encourage the selection of adult leaders who are sympathetic to the concerns of youth and open to authentic dialogue with youth.

• Use “youth-friendly” terms and be prepared to provide explanations upon request.

• Facilitate an inclusive process to allow every youth in attendance to voice their concerns and ideas in a safe environment.

• Ensure the decision-making process is at a pace that is comfortable for all youth participants.

• Have food (i.e. pizza and other refreshments) at the meetings.

• Expect cultural differences and different issues and perceptions at each local community dialogue. Be mindful to recognize, understand and accept those differences.

• Expect to encounter the need for greater access to funding for infrastructure to be identified. Provide information to funding sources where appropriate.

• Innovative ideas must be used in developing, maintaining and strengthening sustained and viable partnerships between the following three sectors: the voluntary sector, the business sector, and all levels of government.

• Be prepared to help in the process of developing, writing, and assessing project funding proposals.

• Provide in-kind contributions in the form of facilitated strategic planning sessions to local grassroots groups whenever possible.

• Emphasize to the community that youth have the capacity to develop innovative ideas and that your organization can provide them with the opportunity to take a leadership role in their respective communities.


SECTION FOUR: Recommendations Based on Responses and Discussion from the Rural Youth Dialogue Project

FundingFunding organizations need to recognize the challenges of working in rural communities, as major community-based organizations may not always be available to apply or receive funding dollars. It is recommended that funding programs from all levels of government also make small grants available to local grassroots organizations to initiate the process of building community capacity and to develop proactive initiatives of community and social development.

Meaningful Youth EngagementIt is recommended that youth should be meaningfully engaged in at least the strategies and decision-making processes aimed at them. A variety of best practices for engaging youth should be explored by any organization seeking meaningful youth engagement.

Acknowledge the Rural-Urban DivideIt is recommended that governments at all levels continue to recognize the rural and urban divide. A greater emphasis needs to take place in making sure that youth are involved in the decision-making process in policy-making that deals with rural/urban issues.

A Province-Wide Community Needs AssessmentIt is recommended that a province-wide rural community needs assessment be undertaken by all levels of government. The needs assessment would identify and quantify the needs and concerns of youth living in rural areas. Such a study would be an invaluable tool that local communities, businesses, and all levels of government would be able to use to develop proactive initiatives and solutions to address the needs of youth living in rural areas. This would be a long-term initiative for investing in the quality of life for youth living in rural communities.


SECTION FIVE: Acknowledgement of PartnersThe Rural Youth Dialogue Project was made possible by a partnership between the Youth Council, The National Crime Prevention Centre’s Community Mobilization Program, and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Rural Secretariat. Many other partners at local and provincial levels provided valuable assistance. Thanks are also owed to all the youth in rural communities who participated in this development project.

REFERENCESKretzmann, J. & McKnight, J. (1993). Building

Communities from the Inside Out: A Path Toward Finding and Mobilizing A Community’s Assets. Chicago: ACTA Publications.

Lee, B. (1999). Pragmatics of Community Organizations, 3rd Ed. Mississauga: CommonAct Press.

McKnight, J. (1995). The Careless Society: Community and its Counterfeits. New York: Basic Books.

New Brunswick Advisory Council on Youth. (2004). Capturing the Process: An Examination of the Rural Youth Dialogue Project.

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