Within the partnership, academic skills are matched with the diversity of knowledge and expertise of multiple key stakeholders across different contexts, including young people and local community organisations.
What did we do?
Our partners in India and Brazil have independently developed socially innovative approaches to build youth agency, active citizenship and youth as partners in development. These approaches were used to address the multifaceted challenges associated with youth poverty, livelihoods and inequalities. The project provided the opportunity to ‘scale up’ these practices, embedding them in local practice, and to monitor, evaluate and learn across contexts for wider applicability.
Youth participants in our projects have highlighted the importance of:
- Rights education and advocating for the marginalised;
- Input into the types of skills/ livelihoods options offered;
- Connecting localised challenges with policy;
- Non-judgemental platform through which they can carry out piloting of ideas;
- Learning to be a protagonist;
- Contributing to local media and being heard in the creation of inclusive cities.
Partners
Within the partnership, academic skills were matched with the diversity of knowledge and expertise of multiple key stakeholders across different contexts, including young people and local community organisations. This project built a strong partnership between academics, government and non-government organisations, and youth collectives. The project team included partners from India, Brazil and Scotland:
- Youth for Unity and Voluntary Action (YUVA), India
- Fields of View (FoV), India
- National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA), India
- International Centre for Research and Policy on Childhood (CIESPI), at Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- University of Edinburgh
The City Caravans supported youth-led social innovation projects by: (1) equipping youth with critical knowledge skills through problem identification and capacity building, (2) developing strategies where youth are partners in development.
City Caravans India: Mumbai
Mumbai is India’s financial hub, where 41% of the population live in slums. The high percentage of informal sector workers in urban areas, around 67%, are attracted by potential livelihood opportunities in the city. The selection of youth co-researchers were based on YUVA’s existing, strong community ties.
City Caravans Brazil: Volta Redonda
Volta Redonda, Brazil is an industrial city of 215,000 people. The city faces challenges related to the lack of job opportunities and skills training, and violence. The selection of young people drew on CIESPI’s work with community youth groups over two years.
