Youth+ Handbook Aims and purpose of the programme

Introduction

Young people are a key ingredient in the future of nature conservation, and the EUROPARC Federation is committed to ensuring they have a voice. At the EUROPARC conference in The Cairngorms in 2018, the Youth Manifesto was launched, and is a source of ideas and inspiration to ensure the involvement and empowerment of young people.

The EUROPARC Youth+ program is our answer to the Youth Manifesto and aims to provide guidance and support to Protected Areas for the successful engagement of young people. It offers innovative means to young people to develop their knowledge and skills on communication, leadership, advocacy and nature conservation, enabling them to become ambassadors of their local Protected Areas.

The Youth+ program is addressed to Protected Areas and managing authorities member of EUROPARC Federation and it is aimed at young adults aged 18 to 30 years. The Youth+ is coordinated at European level by EUROPARC and managed locally at park level by members.

This document offers further information and techniques for developing key skills.

This manual introduces the Vision, Goals, Principles and Values of the Youth + programme. It then goes on to provide more detail about the four key pillars of the programme and how Rangers, Youth Mentors and Protected Area managers can develop the skills of young people in these four areas.

Vision of Youth +

Youth from Protected Areas from all over Europe created the following declaration, which is at the heart of the Youth+ program.

THE AIGUESTORTES DECLARATION

“We are Youth+. A group of highly knowledgeable and motivated young people from all around Europe, who want to help and get more involved in our Protected Areas.

We are here because we want to give something back and the sooner we can help, the better.

But how can we do this?

We can be powerful and passionate advocates for nature and Protected Areas.

We can volunteer to support environmental education programmes.

We can work with protected areas and give a youth perspective on projects and policies.

We can be the voice of nature from and to young people.

And with your help, we can learn together and continue on to be the next leaders of nature conservation.

Too old is too late. We all need to do our part. Let us step in now to protect and improve our parks, so we can learn together, work together, and set a strong base for the coming generations.”

By the participants of the 1st International Youth Camp. Aiguestortes National Park, 4th September 2015.

Youth+ programme description

It has been acknowledged and understood that young people can make a valuable contribution to caring for Protected Areas. The Youth Manifesto stated that:

“Young people play an important role in looking after our Protected Areas: They are the decision-makers of tomorrow and they are capable to help leading the way to a sustainable future of our parks already today – if they get the chance to have their say. It is vital that young people get involved in the governance of Protected Areas, so they can share their perspectives on the issues that will impact their future development and that of our natural and cultural heritage. And it is now that they can develop thoroughly the skills it will take to manage resilient parks and build sustainable communities.”

The Youth+ programme offers the opportunity for such skills development, provides opportunities for Ranger/Mentor development and benefits Protected Areas. The Youth+ programme would:

  • Assist Protected Area rangers and youth mentors, with tasks and with their own development.
  • Raise standards of rangers, mentors and youth, through peer learning and exchange of experiences on a good international programme.
  • Support local Protected Areas. The programme would help with local agenda 21 requirements as it regards local participation and improves governance for Protected Areas with more and wider participation and representation. It can ensure intergenerational exchanges if the whole community of the park area is involved, providing additional social benefits.
  • Ensure engagement of the younger generation at a local and European level. Protected Areas need to engage with youth, and to recognise and address the lack of connection. The programme’s involvement of Youth+ would help Protected Areas in managing Junior Ranger programmes and others for younger children.
  • Provide Protected Areas with volunteers. Well trained and experienced Youth+ can contribute to the work of the Protected Area, making management more efficient and effective.

Youth+ principles and values

Building on this, guiding principles and values of the Youth+ programme were developed, as part of a consultation in July 2018 with young people, rangers, mentors and Protected Areas across the network. The programme is developed taking into account expectations and needs of youth:

  • It is a non-discriminatory, inclusive programme, which requires a professional approach and high quality standards;
  • It promotes international exchange, to develop positive, cooperative and social skills, and encourages the active citizenship of youth;
  • The programme should become part of the ordinary work managed by Ranger Service/ Protected Area staff in collaboration with others involved in the area’s management;
  • It enables youth previously involved in Junior Ranger (JR), or other equivalent programmes, to maintain and develop a relationship with the Protected Area and staff;
  • It aims to encourage positive action and youth engagement;
  • It is based on learning components of communication, advocacy, leadership and nature conservation activities, to enable youth to be ambassadors of their local Protected Areas;
  • It is coordinated at European level by EUROPARC and managed locally at park level;
  • It is a flexible and adaptable programme that offers a local and European perspective on Protected Area management, focusing on the role of youth;
  • It provides real nature conservation work experience, but can also include cultural and social topics;
  • It develops skills in Rangers and Protected Area staff to deliver and maintain the programme with youth at high quality standards;
  • It is built on a partnership between rangers/field staff, Youth+, the Protected Area and EUROPARC: a partnership agreement is to be subscribed between EUROPARC and interested parks;
  • It supports the aims and values of the EUROPARC Federation.

YOUTH+ program goals

The main goals of the Youth+ programme are to:

  • Build a Sense of Belonging and Ownership among the youth community in Protected Areas.

It is felt that the Youth+ programme should aim to build a friendship group and safe place for young people to meet, have fun and share interests and experiences.

  • Contribute to developing Youth Advocacy.

The programme aims to strengthen the ability of young people to become youth advocates of their areas. It aims to create the conditions for youth to be listened and consulted in the management of their Protected Areas, ensuring fresh inputs and support.

  • Further develop Youth Skills, providing inspirational experiences.

Most Protected Areas are actively promoting initiatives for children and young people (e.g. Junior Ranger program), but not many have yet developed follow up programs. The Youth+ provides the opportunity for committed young people who have been through those programs to continue to stay involved and engaged in their areas. As such, it answers to the wishes of young people expressed in the EUROPARC Youth Manifesto to create opportunities for young people to live, work and volunteer in their areas.

Youth+ Where to start: essential guiding points for Protected Areas.

The EUROPARC Youth+ program is directed at Protected Areas and managing authority members of the EUROPARC Federation. The Youth+ program is a free initiative for EUROPARC members. If your organisation is not yet member, please apply here.

Once a Protected Area becomes a member, it has to register and subscribe a joint agreement which regulates the management and running of the Youth+ program. The form is available here.

Programme and activities:

The Youth+ program is aimed at youth aged 18+, who are living within or close to the Protected Area. Members are free to select their best target groups and to choose their own way to recruit youth. EUROPARC recommends involving youth who have experienced environmental education programs in the park (e.g. Junior Ranger). The Youth+ program should be considered as a follow up program, an opportunity for youth willing to stay engaged with their Protected Area and communities.

Here are some tips on how to make the most of the Youth+ programme:

  • Protected Areas shall develop a three year programme of activities ensuring coherence and sustainability of the initiative in the medium term.
  • EUROPARC recommends starting the activities with a relatively small group of youth (15-20 max) and to work with the same group over the first three years. The number of participants will depend on park resources and energies.
  • The activities should have a regular frequency, and be well distributed all over the year.
  • It is recommended that the Youth+ programme becomes part of the ordinary Protected Area work e.g. environmental education department, possibly managed by Ranger Service, or equivalent, in collaboration with other departments of the Park Authority.
  • It is recommended that a section of the Protected Area management plan is dedicated to the vision of young people. Pressure groups can be established to best make changes and influence decision makers. Networking and awareness raising initiatives, with and amongst young people of other protected areas, are also considered very valuable.
  • The program of activities shall be structured around the four pillars: leadership, advocacy, communication and nature conservation.
  • The program should offer youth the opportunity to: improve their skills and to put into practice their acquired knowledge and experience, taking direct responsibilities helping the Protected Area.
  • Activities should provide real nature conservation work experiences, and possibly include cultural and social subjects. Most of them should be done outdoor with nature.
  • This should be a youth lead program. However, the ranger service, or equivalent (preferably internal Protected Area staff), shall be responsible for coordinating and supervising the activities with young people.
  • A 2-5 days camp, organised at park level, is a great opportunity to complete and integrate the activities of the year.
  • EUROPARC recommends valuing and using the EUROPARC Youth+ logo, and where possible to provide uniforms, t-shirts, caps, etc. This will help create the feeling of belonging to a group.
  • A certificate or award shall be adopted by the park, and distributed to the Youth at the end of each year. This will help develop a real sense of achievement and community spirit.
  • Protected Areas are encouraged to involve and connect the Youth+ groups with their governance model (for example create youth+ boards/councils or have youth+ representatives attending park boards…)
  • Youth+ shall be encouraged in getting part of the international network: organise twinning with other groups in other countries, learning exchange events, writing articles, news, and sharing pictures and ideas via Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with other groups.
  • Protected Areas are asked to support and facilitate the participation of their rangers/mentors and Youth+ in the dedicated networking and training opportunities organised by EUROPARC: events for Rangers, international Youth camps, workshops and conferences.

Protected Areas, Rangers and Mentors

Clearly, key to the program is the Protected Area managing authorities and their staff involved in youth engagement and environmental education - rangers and mentors - who will be implementing and coordinating the activities with young people. Rangers and mentors may need to be up skilled to assist Youth+. To do so properly, an assessment of skills and competences required of Rangers/Mentors should be carried out, followed by any necessary training and development. Possibly, an assessment of the training needs of Youth+ can also be done, supported by the Rangers/Mentors.

With this in mind, there will be specific preconditions to be considered, together with skills required at an organisational and individual level.

Protected Areas

  • Willingness and commitment to engage with youth. This means they will need strategic decision-making, a dedicated plan (medium term), capacities and resources.
  • EUROPARC membership is required as a precondition to run the Youth+ program.

Protected Area Ranger/Mentors Teams

  • It is necessary to have Protected Area staff (or associated with the Protected Area) with responsibilities for the management of youth environmental education activities: e.g. Rangers, Mentors…
  • There has to be a variety of work tasks, like nature conservation, management and monitoring, patrolling, interaction with visitors, nature education.

Ranger/mentor skills required

  • Leadership
  • Good communication
  • Collaboration
  • Knowledge of working with young people
  • Teaching/training skills

An online training needs assessment can be found here .

Youth+ Four Pillars

As part of a consultation exercise, Four Pillars, or key skill areas, were identified as making up the main components of the Youth+ programme.

Therefore, the Youth+ programme will be composed of training modules covering theory and practice in:

  • Communication – using a range of communication skills to be able to act as good leaders and advocates.
  • Advocacy – being the voice and ambassador for their local Protected Area, raising local and European campaigns.
  • Nature conservation – youth being involved and contributing to the management of habitats and species in their Protected Areas.
  • Leadership – of JR programmes or similar in the host/local Protected Area, or other activities agreed with the park, to have a role in the governance of the Protected Area.

Communications

Communication skills include a whole range of techniques, including: speaking to groups or individuals, writing letters, adverts or press releases, having a presence on social media through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and so on.

Being effective in our communication is an important life skill at any age, and the Youth+ programme offers young people a chance to develop those skills. This is important within this programme as it will help to enable young people to be effective advocates and leaders.

In a previous project, a toolkit and manual were created which should offer helpful tools and ideas.

Advocacy

Advocacy is speaking on behalf of someone else to put their arguments, situation and issues to a wider audience, particularly to decision makers. It may involve speaking, acting or writing on behalf of something or a group who have limited ability to exercise their rights. This includes plants, animals, habitats and so forth. Advocacy may also include youth groups, community groups and disadvantaged groups. It can be working to influence public policy in social, economic, political, and cultural spheres in order to bring about justice and positive change in human rights and environmental issues. Advocates may organise a group around a cause and work to implement changes that have a lasting and positive effect.

Environmental Advocacy involves both protecting the public from environmental hazards and protecting the natural world. For example, a community group with an advocate (leader) may lobby local government and educate the public to help protect a local nature reserve that they feel is important.

John Muir believed that it is not enough for people to be in sympathy with the plight of the natural world, but that they must become ‘active conservationists’, as campaigners, as practical project workers, as scientists, as artists, as writers.

The aim within this programme is to help young people develop their advocacy skills so they can speak for nature in their Protected Area and also represent and speak for all the young people in their area.

Practical conservation

This demonstrates the individuals’ connection between themselves and nature or the Protected Area. For many young people, the start of their journey with Protected Areas is doing practical conservation work, often as part of a Junior Ranger Programme. As an engaging activity it’s ideal for maintaining young people’s interest, and is also a useful means for developing other skills. Simple activities like leading a group tree planting, can give young people the opportunity to develop leadership, planning and communication skills, as well as knowledge about the natural world.

Leadership

Leadership skills are important as they give young people the ability to lead (for example) Junior Ranger activities.

In workshops, young people considered key elements of leadership to be having clear goals and a vision. This was followed by integrity and setting a good example. Focusing on team interests and needs were also identified along with being able to offer support, encouragement, recognition and inspiration. Additionally, clear communication, being able to stimulate work and an expectation of “the best” were seen by young people as important leadership skills.

EUROPARC will be creating learning opportunities for Protected Area rangers and mentors to support and facilitate the start and management of the Youth+ program across Protected Areas in Europe.

Annex: Skills, learning points and practical examples of activities for Youth+.

Becoming a good communicator

Communication skills are essential for future nature conservationist. Skills in this field the Youth+ Programme can help develop include:

  • Presentation skills: becoming confident at public speaking, making interesting presentations
  • Talking to people in authority
  • Effective use of social media
  • Effective listening
  • Creating messages for local or national media: press communication, creating original events.
  • Video editing and photography: creating simple videos and interesting pictures for engaging social media content

Becoming an activist

The Youth+ Programme can help young people find their own voice, and be the representative voice of their community or natural area. This includes:

  • Learning suitable language and posture for public speaking
  • Learn how break down technically complex messages
  • Understand decision making processes
  • Learning how to speak on camera
  • Learn how to address the community

Learning nature conservation

Of course, there are plenty of nature conservation skills Youth+ can and should learn. Topics include:

  • Knowledge on invasive species
  • How to stay safe in nature
  • Learning the science behind ecosystem functioning
  • Species and biological communities
  • Biodiversity monitoring
  • Techniques of practical conservation

Becoming a leader

The programme is a great opportunity for young people to work on their leadership skills. These include:

  • Learning to lead games and activities
  • Developing their debating skills, like negotiation, visionary ideas, handling negative comments or "parking" currently unsolvable problems
  • Learning different leadership styles and be able to adopt them to different activities

Example activities

GPS tours for families - Helps develop Presentation skills, Nature Conservation Skills, Advocacy Skills and Leadership Skills

Youth+ take over the leading role in this activity; a ranger/mentor is accompanying the group, but just as a backup, and stays in the background. Youth explain about specific characteristics of the park/N2000 and the region.

Before they do this activity, they are briefed by a ranger and have a look at the trail and the various stations of the tour. They also receive profound knowledge of the park and its characteristics.

This activity helps building their public speaking and presentation skills; furthermore, they learn how to guide a group, in a safe environment with a ranger as backup.

Support during the Junior Ranger Programme, helps build public speaking, presentation and leadership skills

Youth+ support rangers/mentors during the four day basic programme and the Junior Ranger programme itself.

Groups consist of up to seven kids accompanied by a ranger and a Youth+. They play games with the kids or even explain some specifics they learnt during their time as Junior Rangers.

Youth+ are also allowed to accompany a ranger on national camps and act as supervisors for the Junior Rangers (in this case, Youth+ over 18).

Interview with Nature - From 'Sharing Nature' by Joseph Cornell

This activity helps with communication skills (active listening) and advocacy skills (learning to represent somebody else).

In this activity participants choose a rock, a plant, an animal or a natural feature that has an interesting story to tell. They will ask it questions to find out all about it.

Participants should imagine what its life might be like and think what they admire about it. They also need to think about the kinds of life experiences it might have had.

While interviewing the subject and writing answers to the questions, participants should try to see life from its point of view. Because the rock, plant or animal cannot talk in the human sense, the youngsters should use their imagination to come up with answers. Tip: let them listening quietly for thoughts that tell how the object or animal might respond.

On a walk out

Participants will be asking questions and writing answers.

On the walk back

The need to find someone they don’t know and ask them about who or what they interviewed and the questions they came up with.

How to play: Select the category that matches the subject, then ask and answer the questions that most apply. Participants should feel free to make up their own questions and conversations.

Animal/bird – imagine becoming the animal/bird and answer some of the questions below.

  • Where do you live?
  • What do you eat and how do you find your food?
  • How does your life benefit others?
  • What are the things you like most about your life?
  • Do you ever travel to other places?
  • What would you like to tell others about yourself?
  • What concerns do you have?

Rock, natural feature or plant:

  • How old are you?
  • Where did you come from?
  • Have you always been the size you are now?
  • What is it like living in this particular place?
  • What events have you seen in your life?
  • Who comes to visit you?
  • How do you benefit others?
  • How do they help you?

A bridge too far

The aim is to build a bridge from Point A to Point B. The task needs to be done in a group. This exercise will help youngsters develop their effective listening and communication skills, as well as help strengthen their advocacy and leadership capabilities through team work.

The group will receive a selection of materials. It needs to include at least one item of natural material from outside. Alternatively, this can be done outside with all natural materials. The group will then need to build a bridge from point A to point B using these materials. The structure must support itself and the group should be given around 20 minutes to complete this (timing can vary).

To make the most out of this exercise the group members should consider the following:

  • Do I understand the task? If no - ask for clarification!
  • Do I have ideas on how to solve it? It's important that everyone in the group will get the chance to contribute to solving the problem. Just because someone is quiet, does not mean they do not have any ideas. Some people think as they talk, others think first, then talk.
  • What is our plan? What is my role? The group should plan on how they are going to resolve the problem. It may be useful to allocate different jobs or roles to different people, but make sure people are comfortable with the jobs they are given. The group should make an effort to allocate jobs according to peoples’ skill strengths.
  • During implementation: are things going according to plan? Are the roles allocated properly? Are the quiet ones being listened to? Are people getting too focussed on the task? Are people focussed enough on the task? Is everyone involved?
  • Celebrate success!
  • Review what went well and what could be improved

Advocacy in action

In this activity, small groups will develop a response to an issue of your choice, create materials to support your response and present this to the rest of the group. It should take around an hour and will help develop presentation, public speaking and debating skills.

Step 1 - Select an Issue

The group needs to decide what issue they are going to respond to. This may be a real issue that they know of or one that they've have made up.

Step 2 - Decide upon a course of action

Let the groups discuss and decide what would be the best way to tackle this issue, it may be –

  • Raising awareness through providing information
  • A community based project or programme
  • An organised campaign aimed at a particular audience

Step 3 - Get creative!

The groups should then design and create material that will support your Course of Action. This may be;

  • Publicity Materials
  • Activity Programmes
  • A petition or Survey

Step 4 - Present the course of action

The groups should then present their work. The presentation should include:

  • What issue are you addressing and why is it important?
  • Who is it aimed at?
  • What are you going to do?
  • What do you hope will be the outcome?