![\"by](\"http:\/\/artbridgesblog.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/TipAndTools-EmpoweringYouth-SKETCH.png\")
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photo by Sonya Reynolds, SKETCH<\/em><\/small><\/p>\n We asked Kerry Boileau, facilitator of SKETCH\u2019s Acting Out<\/a> program, to share some reflections and tips for creating space that engages and empowers youth.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Here’s an expert from \u00ab\u00a0Engaging & Empowering Youth\u00a0\u00bb:\u00a0<\/em> 1: PAY YOUTH FOR THEIR EXPERTISE!<\/em><\/p>\n If we are doing planning and decision making, we pay youth for their expertise. This is really basic. \u00a0It\u2019s important for youth to know that their input is valued. In order to engage youth, the programs you have on offer have to be interesting to young people, and so you have to have heard from young people from the get go!<\/em><\/p>\n 2: INVITATIONAL WELCOME<\/em><\/p>\n The way we welcome people into the space is important. We say, \u201cWelcome! This is a place where you can do a whole bunch of cool stuff.\u201d \u00a0You are always striving, striving to create diverse inclusion. There\u2019s a trajectory, and that\u2019s the beginning.<\/em><\/p>\n There\u2019s a kind of invitational welcome where I\u2019ll say what my gender pronouns are, right off the get-go. Whether the person says, \u201cOh, my name is so and so and my gender pronouns are \u2026\u201d or they say, \u201cWhat are you talking about?\u201d. \u00a0Either way, you are helping someone to feel safe or opening up space for conversation later.<\/em><\/p>\n The\u00a0ArtBridges Tips & Tools Series<\/strong> is funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation and translated with support from the Department of Canadian Heritage Interpretation and Translation grant.<\/p>\n Kerry Boileau<\/strong> has a wide range of experience working with young people, that spans over 25 years. \u00a0She is a facilitator of the Acting Out<\/a> program at SKETCH<\/a> where she has been a facilitator and program coordinator since 2002. Kerry also teaches in the Child and Youth Care<\/a> program at Humber College (2012-present). Her passion for collaborative creation and youth engagement is rooted in a commitment to social justice and anti-oppression practices.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" photo by Sonya Reynolds, SKETCH We asked Kerry Boileau, facilitator of SKETCH\u2019s Acting Out program, to share some reflections and tips for creating space that engages and empowers youth.\u00a0 Here’s an expert from \u00ab\u00a0Engaging & Empowering Youth\u00a0\u00bb:\u00a0 1: PAY YOUTH FOR THEIR EXPERTISE! If we are doing planning and decision<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n![\"TipAndTools-EngagingEmpoweringYouth\"](\"http:\/\/artbridgesblog.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/TipAndTools-EngagingEmpoweringYouth.png\")
<\/a>Click here<\/a>\u00a0for the full ArtBridges Tips & Tools: Engaging and Empowering Youth<\/a>. For more FREE resources and tools like this, please visit the ArtBridges Resource Portal<\/a> or reach Skye Louis, ArtBridges Info Resource Developer at skye@artbridges.ca.<\/p>\n