Learn About Issues Youth Are Working On:

Diversity  Dig into diversity with two student groups Focus on Community of Racine: High school students facilitate diversity circles with middle schoolers—race, sexual orientation, and other types of diversity. Intercultural Leadership Initiative, Vilas County: High School students act as facilitators and mentors to younger students to reduce racial tensions and promote cultural understanding.

The Great Prevention Sharlen Moore, Urban Underground, Milwaukee. Healthy relationships and STD awareness, sexual-content media effects on young people. Learn how youth are targeted and how to help yourself and others.

Promoting Healthy Relationships Chippewa Valley High School Youth Action Coalition. Youth across Wisconsin are promoting healthy personal relationships and working against dating violence. Learn about teen relationships and making a positive change through presentations and personal actions.

Entrepreneurial Environmental Change: Starting a Clean Energy Corps, Youth Energy Squad, Michigan

This youth group helps low-income families save $400-$500/year, cutting carbon emissions, and preparing young people to be leaders in the clean energy economy. They will share their program retrofitting houses for energy efficiency and talk about developing entrepreneurial and change agent skills to benefit the environment.

Hitting it Hard: Alcohol Use and Abuse Taylor Putz, student intern for the Drug Free Communities Task Force of Fond du Lac County and STAAND member; Shawna Baar, Wautoma STOP; Sue Allen, Wisconsin  Prevention & Youth Development Specialist; Hilary Bilbrey, Inspired by Family, Stevens Point. Youth and adult partners size up Wisconsin's addiction to alcohol and the widespread damage that results. Learn how youth/adult teams across Wisconsin are talking it up, educating people, helping to change or enforce laws, and taking a stand for safer, healthier lives.

Select Your Tactics:

• Video/Digital Storytelling
• Expression through Visual Arts, Posters, Clothing
• Youth Organizing, Hustling for Change
• Granting Writing/Fundraising
• Advocacy with Elected Officials
• Youth on Boards

Conference Goals:

• Gather and engage a diverse group of youth and adults who believe in youth voice
• Develop and share skills among youth/adult teams
• Provide models of community actions led by youth and adults
• Increase engagement in local and statewide issues
• Build the movement for youth voice in Wisconsin

Sponsors: UW-Extension 4-H Youth Development, Urban Underground, Racine Focus on Community, Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Wisconsin Department of Children and Family Services – Brighter Futures Initiative, Wisconsin 4-H Foundation, Wisconsin Youth Voice. This material is based upon work supported by the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under Agreement No. 2002-45201-01528, Amendment 1.