Young Vermonters ages 9-22 gathered on October 20th in Randolph to draft a Youth Declaration of Rights and express what they feel are salient needs for young people across the state.
Vermont Afterschool brought together 38 youth for the Youth Rights Summit spent at the Chandler Music Hall to meet new people from around the state, learn about what a right is from Action Circles’ Falko Schilling, and engage in discussions together.
The youth pulled together different ideas from diverse ages to come up with major categories of rights including:
- mental health,
- natural environment,
- social supports and connections,
- justice and equality,
- hobbies/entertainment,
- education,
- work/transportation,
- physical health,
- home/shelter.
Next steps include presenting the Youth Declaration of Rights at the Vermont Child Poverty Council on November 16, 2017, and gathering together partner organizations that work with youth within the 9-26 age range for a forum on Youth Work and Policy in Vermont on December 5, 2017.