Vancouver Working Group Discussion Paper

The Youth Friendly City

Introduction

"The state of the young in any city is the litmus test for the city's level of sustainability and vibrancy"

– Anna Kajumulo Tibaijuka, Executive Director, UN HABITAT

Cities are growing at an unprecedented rate worldwide. This calls for innovative and dynamic programs and policies that can effectively meet the needs of citizens living in urban environments. The proportional increase in the number of children and youth living in cities, as well as their capacity as active citizens continues to be underestimated by local and national governments. In the upcoming World Urban Forum, to be held in Vancouver in 2006, there is an urgent need and opportunity to showcase the capacity of young people to participate in creating inclusive, healthy and vibrant cities.

A call to involving children and youth as architects and agents of change in their cities

While cities urgently need to provide for young people's needs, this paper focuses on children and youth's participation as the cornerstone for children's well-being and the creation of sustainable child and youth-friendly cities. Provision of health, clean water, hygienic sanitation, safe communities, good living conditions and proper nutrition are central to children's survival, development and protection. Throughout their development, children and youth need to be involved as meaningful partners in the planning and design of these services. Not only because they have a right to a voice in matters that concern them, as clearly stated in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and other UN documents, but because they are the greatest experts on their environment and a powerful resource for social change.

Engagement through action: The case for child and youth participation in urban governance

Child and youth participation is in many regards a ‘messy' concept. It is difficult to define and hard, in the short-term, to systematically evaluate. Participation is a contextual concept, with its meaning depending on the socio-cultural environment. There is also a political reality in many countries preventing adult citizen's full involvement, let alone children's political participation. For these reasons, cities have rarely identified child and youth participation as a guiding principle. This must urgently change, and there are lessons learned to help guide this process.

This paper presents an accumulating body of research highlighting the value of children and youth's participation in that it benefits their own development as well as that of their communities and nations. Young people's participation in local community development provides an opportunity for concrete action, and a greater likelihood of children and youth witnessing the impact of their actions. By supporting child and youth participation, one also addresses one of the critical realities of cities, namely the growing sense of child and youth disconnection and alienation. Meaningful participation provides for meaningful relationships and networks - a key aspect of full and healthy child, youth and adult development.

The goals of the paper

This paper presents inspiring examples of participatory child and youth programs involving children ages 10-24 locally, in Canada, and globally. In addition to presenting child and youth-driven programming, we provide profiles of children and youth actively engaged in their communities. These personal profiles, based on the voices of participants, provide a powerful testament to the commitment of children and youth in improving urban life.

These stories point to ways in which young people can be involved in all dimensions of urban development -- including research, planning, programming, advocacy, project management, and decision-making -- as well as in advancing policy initiatives that strive to ensure equal access to the necessities of urban life. The nature of these examples of child and youth involvement is diverse, ranging from youth-driven organizations, shared-decision-making to consultations. While there are differences between low and high-income countries, particularly in terms of the urgency and nature of the issues at stake, the experiences reflected in child and youth's participation are comparable. There are crosscutting challenges and lessons to be learned on the approaches taken; these are presented throughout the paper. The Environmental Youth Alliance (EYA) and the International Institute for Child Rights and Development (IICRD), University of Victoria, took the lead in developing this document, in partnership with a range of organizations working with youth at different levels (see credits). Throughout this process an effort was made to work collaboratively with multi-sectoral organizations across Canada and internationally. It is recognized though that time constraints have forced us to limit the scope and diversity of child and youth-driven programming represented in this paper. Furthermore, given the location of the lead organizations and the World Urban Forum, there is also an emphasis on Canadian examples. We hope the focus on building on our local strengths and practice will inspire change locally, and globally, as well as stimulate discussion among the many dynamic organizations around the world that are engaged in promoting the active participation of children and young people in their cities.

The collective experiences gathered in this paper demonstrate the potential of children and youth to build capacity, to become insightful resources in developing strong and thriving local neighborhoods and cities. The case studies demonstrate the passion and energy of young people when they become meaningfully engaged in the collaborative effort to bring about transformation in improving their world. Based on the rich diversity of experience, this paper charts a course that links research policy and practice in developing greater integration of services that supports the well-being of the world's children and youth and their cities.

Children and youth have diverse needs, and make important contributions across many aspects of city life. In light of this range, this paper discusses child and youth issues and experiences under 4 ‘types' of cities, rather than under a single city.

Resilient city discusses how, in environments not always designed to enable their resilience, children and youth, not only survive stress, oppression, and adversity, but draw from their marginalization to improve their urban communities.
Secure city identifies children and youth threats to safety and security and presents the multiple prevention and intervention measures children and youth are engaging in to safeguard individual and community well-being.
Capable city focuses on child and youth participation in the context of local government.
Livable city chapter examines the involvement of child and youth in creating livable cities through five key issue-areas: water, transportation, food security and space, sustainable technology and innovation, and going ‘glocal'.

The needs, aspirations and contributions of young people need to be reflected in the life of the city.

Mayor Larry Campbell
City of Vancouver
Inaugural Speech
December 2, 2003

We recognize that the coverage of each theme is not exhaustive, nor does each chapter define the city type. Rather our hope is to point to the richness of initiatives and experiences undertaken in recent years among national and local governments around the world. Each section provides a series of recommendations for defining calls of actions to foster leadership in bringing forward local programs. Special focus is placed on policy and programs that can go to scale and be made more sustainable.

We hope this paper inspires policy-makers programmers (local, regional, federal government, UN HABITAT) and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to work in partnership with young people in creating child and youth friendly cities that improve the standard and quality of life for children and their communities.

Artwork obtained through the City of Vancouver, Youth Outreach Teams, "Youth As a Resource" Poster project.

Respect Youth Portrait: Vanessa Osler

Boarder on Trash Can: Andy Chung

Keep Growing Piece: Lucy Doytchinova

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