Courtyard café: Youth

 

Summary

  • No point in voting.
  • Government is made up of established elites.
  • Sense of apathy, helplessness, disconnect and disenfranchisement, and the idea that  my vote makes no difference.
  • Politicians are focused on election cycles, not long-term issues facing youth.
  • Youth don’t understand politics.
  • No point in voting.
    • Government is difficult to access, slow moving, no real change
  • Politics is a joke:
    • Full of old white men that don’t listen
    • Dominated by a different generation — youth don’t feel included or like their voices are heard and therefore don’t feel connected
    • Government is made up of established elites
    • For older, more experienced people
  • Apathy, helplessness, disconnect and disenfranchisement:
    • My vote makes no difference
    • Politicians focused on election cycle, not long term issues facing youth.
    • Most candidates are older. Issues do not affect them in the same way that younger people will be impacted
    • Different priorities
  • Politics is too competitive — “ I shouldn’t get involved.”
  • Unique challenges for youth in rural BC to get involved.
    • Ex. Lack of gathering places, physical distance, lack of transit, alienation from urban centre.
  • Youth don’t understand politics

 

Summary

  • Include civics in the K-12 curriculum
  • Directly Support youth involvement
  • Change the voting environment  — lower the voting age to 16
  • Engage through existing youth friendly media and events
  • Make politics more mainstream for youth
  • Develop youth focused policy

 

Education:

  • Include civics in the K-12 curriculum
  • Educate students so they know how their votes works
  • Volunteers hours high school students
  • Update obsolete curriculum and engage youth in curriculum development

Directly Support youth involvement:

  • Create or facilitate a youth shadow committee that works with the party, MLAs and candidates to champion youth/progressive policy
  • Financial support such as bursaries, grants, contests
  • Sponsor a youth summit
  • Develop a youth mentorship program

Change the voting environment:

  • Lower the voting age to 16
  • Make voting day a party
  • Making voting fun
  • Support youth candidates
  • Make voting more accessible for youth
  • Online voting

Engage through existing youth friendly media and events:

  • Support youth led climate strikes
  • Online
    • Work with existing young influencers
    • Documentary audiences ex. Chasing Ice
    • Instagram for content and friends
    • Facebook for events and contact list
  • Piggyback on existing events
  • Friends groups
  • Outdoor activities
  • Faith groups concerned with climate change
  • Bike rides
  • Flash mobs

Make politics more mainstream for youth:

  • More youth role models
  • Politics in daily life, find politics in everything
  • Encourage youth groups, promote events with sign up for group activities
  • Coach youth to overcome the fear of speaking out
  • Promote leading together and breakdown traditional establishment divisions
  • Walk the talk and gain credibility with youth

Develop youth focused policy:

  • Having youth involved in development and incorporate youth values as an objective
  • Have a youth policy team
  • The current BC Greens policy document does not mention youth specifically. Add policy areas of specific interest to youth such as:
    • Education/ education choices (types of education/trades)
    • Affordability accessibility
    • Technology/AI/ Automation
    • Privacy
    • Impact of climate change on future generations
  • Shadow caucus for youth
  • Involve youth in curriculum development
  • Courses on politics and social issues in schools
  • Improve youth access to policy discussions through use of apps for example
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