There are 1.8 billion young people between the ages of 10-24; the largest generation of youth ever. 600 million of these are young women. Although young people remain disproportionately affected by global issues like conflict and climate change, they have demonstrated resilience, and a capacity to innovate and adapt to their changing world.

In response to these emerging challenges, youth movements have expanded across the globe, and decision-makers are paying increasing attention.  Research on young people specifically has been growing since the 2000s.  Within both types of intervention, there is growing recognition that centring young people’s voices – in a meaningful way – is essential to their success. It is crucial to create space for the young people themselves to engage with and address the issues that are most important to them: nothing about us without us.

The current landscape

Youth engagement is grounded in the 1989 United Nations Convention on the Rights of a Child (UNCRC), a legally binding agreement which compels governments to meet children’s basic needs and help them reach their full potential.  

While significant progress has undoubtedly been made,  and there are programmes that promote youth involvement, substantive participation remains limited. In reality, there are thousands of youth who are interested in engaging in research – but their participation is often tokenistic. Why is it important? Because integrating and centring youth perspectives into research makes it more likely that the evidence generated can shape and frame high-level policies and commitments that are designed to improve their lives.

Especially in sectors like healthcare and social policy, youth voices are frequently underrepresented. In the field of health solutions research, for example, young people are advocating for their involvement in all stages of digital health research design, implementation, and governance. 

There is a world of difference  between research that is about young people and research that includes young people. In 2019, researchers found that less than one per cent of all empirical child and adolescent studies published that year used a YAG (youth advisory group) to inform their child or adolescent focused health research. It is a concern that young people’s voices are still marginalised and overlooked – especially by research that claims to be about them, and for them. This rings especially true for adolescent girls, who face structural barriers commonly grounded in oppressive social norms and cultural biases. 

Why does this matter?

Put simply, sidelining youth voices means missing opportunities for more comprehensive, inclusive and innovative research outcomes. For instance, in terms of:

Fresh perspectives and innovation. Growing up familiar with the latest technology and social trends offers innovative ideas that can revitalise traditional research approaches and ensures that knowledge reaches and resonates with young people. 

Achieving long-term impact. Involving youth ensures that outcomes are relevant and beneficial to future social circumstances and structures. In turn, this is more likely to be conducive to sustainable solutions.

Researchers, services and policymakers are becoming increasingly aware that those who are best placed to understand the needs of young people, are young people themselves. In this study published in the BMC Public Health Journal, researchers found that initiatives which involved youth participation throughout the research cycle had improved participatory outcomes.

Diversity and representation. Including youth from various backgrounds allows us to obtain a more holistic view of society, its issues, and how different groups of people may be affected. It increases the likelihood that the research will be implemented in a way which reflects the needs of all demographic groups. 

Calling for youth inclusion is one thing – how can we show young people that their voices really matter?

• Always give feedback. Young people will know their voices matter when they are shown and told about how they made a difference. Going back to individuals on their ideas shows that their singular voice matters, not just the whole group.
• Consider cultural and contextual factors. Especially when working with young people from historically excluded demographics,  it is necessary to consider their needs and reduce barriers to their participation. Build upon their perspectives and acknowledge the different areas of power to address imbalances that could arise in the development of a research project.
• Provide professional learning for youth. Help develop and strengthen young people’s skill sets and understanding about how research can be carried out, including helping them understand methodologies, data collection tools, and data types. This involves allocating time and resources for conversations, collaboration and co-creation with youth, and ensuring they have leadership roles and support. 
• Support youth in taking action based on research findings. This can be done by mentoring youth in taking action on research findings by considering how research can inform practice and facilitate change.  
• Know the difference between centering their voice, and ‘giving them voice’.  While giving voice to young people is an important first step, it still implies that it is in non-youth’s hand to grant participation in their forums. Centering youth voices, on the other hand, seeks to break down the barriers that exclude youth voices. The following visual created by Emily Markovich Morris and Omaer Naeem illustrates this distinction:

How are others including and centring youth voices?

The Youth Advisory Group on Climate Change: Advisory group to the UN Secretary-General with a focus on advancing his climate action agenda. This provides him with practical and outcome-focused advice; diverse youth perspectives and concrete recommendations.

Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR): An innovative approach to positive youth development based on social justice principles. It involves adolescents constructing knowledge by identifying, researching, and addressing problems through adolescent-adult partnerships.

Child Outcomes Research Consortium (CORC) UK: CORC helps organisations that support children and young people to measure mental health and wellbeing. They use the Lundy model of participation to ensure children and young people have the space to express their views and have them acted upon. 

UNICEF’s Voices of Youth U-Report: U-Report is UNICEF’s digital community for and by young people, where they can share opinions on topics that matter to them. Using real-time insights and solutions, U-Report shapes policies and decisions in communities, countries and around the world, working side-by-side with young people.

Innovations for Youth (i4Y): i4Y is a cross-disciplinary, innovative research hub addressing issues of youth equity through collaborative research, training and community engagement.