NYC Youth Civic Engagement Coalition Releases Report Examining the State of New York City’s Youth Civic Ecosystem
The report was undertaken following DoSomething research that found that only 58% of young people in New York believe in their ability to affect change in their community as compared to 72% of their counterparts nationally. The report examines five months of interviews and surveys representing over 5,000 young people as well as NYC teachers and local civic organizations to gain insights into how New York City’s civic sector can close this gap and the tactics needed to create a thriving civic landscape that reflects the diverse and future-thinking generation set to one day lead New York City.
READ THE FULL ASSESSMENT HERE
According to the report, of the 8.3 million residents in New York City, nearly one million are between 15-24 years old, but the fewer than 1% of New York City students have graduated with the newly created “Seal of Civic Readiness,” the State’s formal diploma recognition that a student has attained high levels of proficiency in terms of civic knowledge, civic skills, civic mindset, and civic experiences.
The report goes on to identify four key components of a healthy youth civic ecosystem and how to address existing gaps and opportunities for youth civic participation:
1. Promoting discovery of civic identity and agency
2. Establishing civic knowledge and readiness
3. Supporting civic participation
4. Building towards civic innovation
“This analysis showed us that even in a place like New York City, which many assume is a bastion of civic participation, there are serious gaps and inequities that prevent young people from stepping into their power. It is critical that all young people have a sense of civic identity and are equipped to participate in the full contact sport of the City’s civic life. The only way that New York can thrive as a city is if a large majority of our city’s young people understand the full scope of civic engagement opportunities available to them and have the skills necessary to claim our democracy and their role in shaping it,” said DeNora Getachew, CEO of DoSomething and member of the New York State Civic Readiness Task Force responsible for designing the Seal of Civic Readiness.
With support from The Charles H. Revson Foundation, DoSomething, YVote and the organizations in the NYC Youth Civic Engagement Coalition are working together to address these gaps and ensure that New York City becomes a model for what is possible when a city has a healthy youth civic engagement ecosystem. Some of these activities include:
- YVote launched a Youth Civic Hub, created by and for youth, to centralize resources including election information and both paid and volunteer civic opportunities.
- DoSomething is hosting Art of Democracy events across NYC to build a collective of 1,000 young people and ensure youth voices are centered during NYC elections.
- Riley’s Way Foundation is supporting its Call for Kindness Fellowship, providing funds and support to youth-led projects making a difference in their communities.
- The Citizens Committee for Children launched YouthAction listening sessions led by youth to develop policy priorities and facilitate meetings with elected officials.
- Generation Citizen is training over 100 NYC teachers and engaging Youth Civic Policy Fellows to increase awareness of the Seal of Civic Readiness.
- The Youth Power Coalition is working to increase the number of 16-17 year olds on community boards, the only NYC civic institution that includes those under 18.
- Press Pass NYC is supporting student journalists in covering civic issues and events.
- Coalition members including DoSomething, Press Pass NYC, Intergenerational Change Initiative, and League of Women Voters are creating civic wings at NYC career fairs for youth to discover paid opportunities to put their civic skills to use.
"Young people have the most at stake, yet are often an afterthought rather than a centerpiece in democracy building. The NYC Youth Civic Engagement Coalition is actively working to center youth as stewards of the future and build the connective tissue needed for collective impact. By building a for-youth, by-youth platform like the Youth Civic Hub, we can provide the necessary onramps for youth to engage and create the change they want to see," shared Sanda Balaban, Co-Founder & Director at YVote.
“DoSomething is helping to seize the opportunities identified in the report through our Art of Democracy program,” said Keely Quinn, VP, Programming & Impact at DoSomething. “Through in-person events and pop-up storybooths, our events are helping young people share stories of what they want to see change in their community and giving them the tools to make their voice heard at the voting booth and beyond. We have already reached over 1,000 young people with our events through our Fall 2023 pilot and will be scaling these efforts in 2024 leading up to the election.”
Macy Harrell
DoSomething
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