Meeting the Needs of Youth-at-Risk in Canada : Learnings from a National Community Development Project

Appendix: A

Site Summaries

Yukon Youth Empowerment And Success Project

In March 1994, Canada's Drug Secretariat, in partnership with the Yukon territorial government, as well as other provincial and territorial governments, hosted a workshop in Edmonton. The purpose of the workshop was to bring together youth and service providers to begin planning for the development of community-based programs for at-risk youth. Among the participants from the Yukon at that workshop were Charlotte Hrenchuk from Alcohol and Drug Services, Carol Cunningham, Ryan Aubichon, Sandy Michaner and others who felt a strong commitment to get some youth-at-risk programming under way in the Yukon. Following the workshop, these same people got together with other youth and service providers back home and put forward a proposal for funding a Yukon-wide effort. They titled that effort the Youth Empowerment and Success project.

The overall goal of the project is to help Yukon youth who are "at risk" to learn the skills they need to start acting on their own behalf -- developing, creating and delivering their own social and recreational programs. The project originally identified five project objectives:

1. to establish a viable network and thriving organization capable of responding to community and member needs on the issues of youth-at-risk;
2. to develop working relationships with other community resources working with youth-at-risk;
3. to develop a centre point youth centre in Whitehorse, based on youth ownership and empowerment;
4. to work with youth-at-risk; and
5. to increase public awareness of the issues and problems of out-of-the-mainstream youth.

The project faced a number of obstacles in its early stages. Creating a board of directors with representatives from all 15 communities in the territory proved unworkable. It became clear after a meeting in June 1995 that territory-wide meetings were difficult to organize and expensive to hold. Because of these difficulties, a decision was made to establish an executive council in Whitehorse that would assume many of the duties of the board of directors between meetings.

The project was the only one in the national project to have both an adult and a youth coordinator. Their idea was to combine the experience and skills of an adult coordinator, with the relevance and credibility of a youth in training. This arrangement has worked well and is credited with much of the success the project has enjoyed.

At the June meeting, participants were asked to identify some of the issues affecting youth in their communities. Although many of the issues they identified were found in other parts of the country, some were new, and some received a higher priority than they did elsewhere. Some of the issues that appeared on the regional lists included racism, no role models, abusing parents, poor stereotyping by television of First Nation peoples, and no political support from leadership.

The representatives thought that having similar workshops in their own communities would be a good idea. This would allow local people to become involved in planning their own programs. Other program ideas included identifying youth for positions in local government, setting up a resource and information trailer where youth could meet or have youth organize a public meeting. Communication and information needs were at the head of the list of program ideas in most of the communities. Unfortunately, the summer months interfered with the execution of many of these community plans.

In the fall of 1995, a meeting of youth from the Yukon was held to form a steering committee to plan a territory-wide youth conference. Fifteen youth and five adults worked on plans for a conference that is scheduled to take place in March 1996.

Over the past several months, YES has begun to work closely with the local media. Through YES, young people are now being given the opportunity to speak on issues that involve them. For example, CBC Radio has contacted the office to speak with youth on the issue of vandalism, on issues affecting youth-at-risk, and to ask for their reactions to the work being done by the Youth Initiatives Working Group.

"I believe the media are focusing on positive youth initiatives and including youth in the discussion because the YES office has been sharing information about 'at-risk' youth issues and advocating for youth involvement in the issues that affect them." (Project coordinator)

The YES project has also come closer than any of the other CD-OOMY projects to a basic goal of community development which is: rallying those with power in the system around a superordinate goal identified as important by youth. Evidence of their success is found in the fact that a specific objective of the Working Group on Youth Initiatives for the 1995-96 year is:

"To continue support to YES to ensure their goals and objectives are successfully achieved."

At the same time, the YES project has worked on its own agenda as well. It has begun to raise public awareness of youth issues through its involvement in the media; it has established a talking circle to deal with youth who are in a healing process; it has set up the organization for the youth conference; and it has initiated efforts to get a youth resource centre under way. The biggest challenge for the YES project in the near future is to maintain its balance by not becoming too bureaucratized by association with government and community power brokers, and losing touch with the at-risk youth constituency that is the foundation of its strength and credibility.

The Halifax Site : The Community Youth Network

There were no project-related activities under way at the time the national CD-OOMY project began. The first step taken by the project team was to consult with the regional Health Canada and provincial representatives supporting the project. A decision was made to canvass key actors in the local youth services community to determine if there were any existing community-based initiatives addressing the at-risk youth population that we could work with. We discovered that two such initiatives existed: one, sponsored by the municipal government, involved the establishment of a youth-at-risk committee among municipal departments, the educational system, the police and other municipal agencies; the other was the Community Youth Network (CYN), an organization of community agencies working with various sectors of the youth population. After some discussion with people in each of these groups, the project team decided that it should approach CYN since it fit the requirements of the CD-OOMY project more closely.

The CYN has been in existence in Halifax for over 10 years. Its mission is to provide relevant programs and resources to its members. CYN represents the concerns of its members to government and society at large. It works to improve cooperation, communication and networking among its members and it takes a leadership role in bringing the community together on topics of concern related to youth. Prior to its involvement with the national project, CYN had met its members' needs by providing timely and useful workshops on issues of concern to youth-serving professionals. Over the years, CYN had focused primarily on those working in the youth employment field. As CYN evolved, its mandate began to change. In addition to deciding to expand its membership and reach out to others in the community, CYN was considering greater involvement in advocacy, public education, promoting the recognition of youth culture and increasing youth participation. These emerging goals, coupled with its long-standing commitment to community development through network building made collaborating with CYN a natural choice for the Halifax site.

A meeting between project officials and the CYN executive was held on February 24, 1995. The project team explained the purpose of the national project and the expectation it had of CYN. Basically, the objective of the project team in approaching CYN was to offer some support for its community development activities in exchange for being allowed to document its efforts to addressing at-risk youth issues. As it turned out, the timing of our request was perfect. CYN had been considering expanding its activities just at the time the project team approached it with the offer to collaborate. After having its questions answered by the project team members, the CYN executive committee agreed to participate in the national project.

CYN held its Annual General Meeting on May 25, 1995. Plans were discussed for a community meeting to be held later in the spring. Jennifer Moore was hired to organize the community meeting. She worked with Janet Kenny, a member of the executive, in planning and coordinating the day's activities. In all, 64 agencies were contacted and invited to participate. A package of information was sent to prospective participants containing a list of youth-related issues that had been identified for action at a prior CYN workshop. Participants were asked to consider these issues, identify one they wished to work on and indicate the type of commitment they were willing to make in terms of staff or other resources they could provide. Follow-up telephone calls were made to remind people of the meeting and asking for their commitment.

The community meeting was held on June 26, 1995. More than 75 people attended, including 25 young people and representatives from some 30 youth-serving agencies in the community. In the afternoon, participants broke into four task groups and worked on issue identification and the development of a workplan. By the end of the afternoon, a number of objectives were identified, including starting a newsletter, improving the image of young people in the media, doing advocacy and public education, putting the youth issue on the public agenda in Halifax, etc. The groups scheduled meetings for September to begin the work they had planned.

During the summer, the CYN executive undertook a needs assessment based on a perceived unease in the youth-serving community over funding cutbacks and changes in funding priorities for youth services. Nadien Godkewitsch, a university student with the appropriate research skills, was hired in June to undertake this study. A total of 35 youth-serving agencies were contacted and representatives from 29 agreed to participate. An additional 8 interviews were conducted with representatives of various funding agencies in the region, including federal, provincial and municipal governments.

The findings of the study revealed considerable concern over funding cuts and shifts in funding priorities related to youth services. Many had experienced cuts. Ironically, 6 of the 29 agencies that participated in the study were no longer in existence 8 months after it was completed. Many of the remaining agencies continue to fear for their future. A great deal of uncertainty was expressed over forthcoming changes to the Canada Assistance Plan, the development of Regional Health Boards, and the impact that amalgamation of the region into one large municipality might have on the youth service system in the area.

Study participants identified a number of ways of responding to their concerns. One of the most important strategies was to promote community development and increase the cooperation and collaboration of existing agencies. Another strategy involved establishing partnerships with other community members such as the business community. The participants also identified a much larger role for young people throughout the youth service system and at all levels. Youth-initiated projects and youth empowerment were seen as ways of counteracting many of the negative stereotypes associated with youth. The use of volunteers was also mentioned as a way of meeting some of youth needs during this era of decreasing resources.

A follow-up meeting to discuss the results of the study was called for November 24, 1995. Over 100 reports were sent out to CYN members with an invitation to attend the meeting, provide comments on the report and discuss future action based on the findings. While some 30 people attended, there was some disappointment among the CYN executive that the response was not stronger. The report generated a great deal of verbal and written feedback, however, few members appeared willing to do anything based on the report findings.

The experience with the research report reflects one of the most pressing concerns of the current CYN executive. CYN has a lot of moral support among its membership and is encouraged to keep working. The problem is that this support seldom translates into the membership taking on the responsibility for acting. The CYN executive is expected to do the work on community projects. However, members of the executive are already over-burdened and cannot realistically be asked to take on any more responsibilities. The executive attempted at the June meeting and with the research report to get the community to act on its own behalf on issues that it had identified. Again, while much moral support and some verbal commitments were made, the bulk of the work has fallen to the CYN executive.

In considering this problem, members of the executive offered several explanations. To begin with, some noted that the timing is poor for starting community development activities in Halifax. People are concerned about their own jobs and agencies. They are having to make do with less and CYN work would be on top of already heavy workloads. Secondly, CYN had been largely involved in sponsoring useful seminars and workshops for its members. CYN was venturing into new territory asking members to become involved in advocacy. Given the uncertainty of the political climate, few appear to be inclined to do so at the moment.

CYN has taken these events in stride and continues to pursue its objectives. Its advocacy role is still at the forefront as Nadien, who is now on the executive committee, is developing several projects based on the research report. As well, CYN sponsored a media forum involving young people and representatives from the print and electronic media in the community. The goal is to open up a dialogue in hopes of countering the negative stereotypes of youth currently portrayed by the media. CYN has also prepared a brochure to advertise itself and its activities. A newsletter has been started as a result of the June community meeting and this is going into its second edition. Finally, a youth fair is being planned for late spring. Youth accomplishments would be highlighted at the fair through exhibitions of music, art, theatre, sports, etc. The youth fair may be held at a large, centrally located shopping mall.

The Montreal Site

Prior to its involvement in the national CD-OOMY project, the at-risk youth issue in Montreal had received considerable attention. A number of studies were published between 1993 and 1994 which focused on youth violence, substance abuse, homelessness and other problems associated with street youth and other marginal youth in the city. Municipal, provincial and federal authorities as well as members of the youth service community noted the increasing numbers of young people using social services in the city. Many appeared to have multiple problems and a large number were much younger than in the past.

The research indicated that many of these young people had been through the provincial youth services system. In general, the existing system had been unable to meet their needs. The research indicated that there are numerous agencies and workers providing services to the same target population. There is a lack of resources, however, to develop mechanisms that promote cooperation, communication and collaboration among these service providers. They often find themselves alone in their efforts, often without the means or support to address the needs of their client group. In many instances, individual agencies have little knowledge about the services provided by others working with the same target population.

At the time the national project began, momentum and support for establishing an interagency network among those working with street youth was gaining support. Problems associated with at-risk or marginal youth had also been made a priority by the provincial government. The objectives of the national CD-OOMY project were consistent with developing a more efficient and effective way for service providers to address the needs of the target population. This could include the participation of young people in this effort.

With this background in mind, a series of meetings was held involving provincial and federal government representatives and members of the project team. Discussions were held regarding the Montreal site and several decisions were made about what was to be done. These discussions led to the identification of a number of objectives. First, the Montreal project would focus its attention on Montreal Centre since it had a visible at-risk youth population and a number of youth service agencies working with these young people. Specific segments of the at-risk youth population were identified for particular attention. These included those with substance abuse problems, those on the run from family homes or the youth service system and those newly present on the street.

An objective of the Montreal site was to work toward the establishment of an interagency network that would help to make youth services in the area more accessible, timely and appropriate for the client group. This would be accomplished through facilitating better and more efficient communications, maximizing the use of existing resources and ensuring that there is continuity in the services being provided. The project also emphasized preventive approaches and encouraged and supported strategies that helped young people develop solutions and meet their own needs. Plans were also discussed about a way of evaluating their efforts to guide their ongoing activities.

In the winter of 1995, Nicole Paré-Fabris, the provincial government representative working on the project, began negotiations with 12 agencies in Montreal Centre that worked with at-risk youth. She was familiar with some of these agencies since they were on a regional committee addressing the issue of homelessness in the city. Participation on this committee provided an opportunity for some of these youth-serving groups to make contacts and develop relationships. Nicole felt that these existing relationships were important and could provide the basis for a strong network of youth-serving agencies in Montreal Centre.

At the same time that negotiations were going on with the community agencies, Nicole was preparing a funding proposal to the provincial government to support the community development activities for a period of two years. She was also negotiating with the regional representatives from Health Canada for support of this initiative. Meanwhile, the negotiations with the community groups indicated that some important decisions would have to be made regarding the organization and staffing of the community development project. For example, while it was clear that a coordinator had to be hired for the project, it was less clear where this person would be housed, who would directly supervise the activities of the coordinator and who would administer the project finances. The potential political nature of these decisions required ongoing contact with agency representatives and careful planning.

By late spring of 1995, funding proposals had been submitted and plans were in place to proceed with the project once funds were available. At the same time, the provincial government was undergoing a large internal re-organization. In June, Nicole was asked to take up responsibilities in another department and was assigned to this new position on a permanent basis in August.

The project was re-invigorated when Claire Blais took over the project file from Nicole in December 1995. With funds in place, Claire was able to build on the work previously completed. She held several meetings with youth-serving agencies and their clients to develop a detailed workplan for the project. These discussions led to the decision to develop simple mechanisms that would promote fast and effective communication among agencies. In turn, these new means of communicating and cooperating would allow a better deployment of existing expertise and resources, resulting in an enriched and effective range of services.

A coordinator was hired in February 1996 to assist in the development of the interagency collaboration. It was clear from the initial contacts with the youth-serving agencies in the area that they were interested in participating in the project. They were well aware of the potential impact the project held for them. They were also conscious of the importance of their involvement in the planning and implementation of project activities. Already, eight organizations were coming together to exchange ideas and discuss their experiences regarding the challenges of working with the target population. Their plan at this stage is to work with existing structures and solidify linkages before instituting new ones. As the group develops, it will be able to take on increasingly larger and more complex tasks aimed at improving the situation of high-risk youth in the community.

The Montreal site provides us with an opportunity to address some of the challenges that can be encountered doing community development work in a large urban area. First, it is clear that the wider political and economic climate can have a direct and significant impact on these types of projects. In the case of Montreal, developments with the provincial government have influenced the nature and timing of activities. In addition to the question of funding, staff

members and changes have also been significant. Secondly, the Montreal experience highlights the difficulties of working with different decision makers in a single project. Youth, agencies, regional, provincial and federal representatives were involved in the Montreal project in one form or another. These participants have different views and interests, and meeting them can be time consuming, tricky and often impossible. Finally, in this period of shrinking resources, there is considerable pressure to develop projects that can generate tangible results in a short period of time. Community development is often a slow and difficult process that takes time to realize. It is also extremely difficult to measure the outcomes of the community development process directly. Decision makers have to be convinced of the value of supporting such efforts in the face of competing projects that offer much more tangible and immediate results. As one member of the Montreal team noted,

"It is challenging in this environment to take a local problem to the regional, provincial and federal levels without being put in a straight jacket."

While all parties wanted the Montreal site to be autonomous, they all wanted to see their own objectives met in the project.

The High Level / Hay River Site

The possibility of participating in the national CD-OOMY project was part of the ongoing discussions of a key group of individuals in High Level/Bushie River Reserve, Alberta and Hay River/Hay River Reserve, Northwest Territories. Some of the early members of the group were Penny Mossman from the regional office of Health Canada (later replaced by Joanne Laskoski); Susan Yazdanmehr, a program consultant for the Northwest Territories; John Campbell with Alcohol and Drugs of the territorial government Health Services Department, Darlene Gartner, Gerry Cyr and Pat Chemago from Alberta Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission, Joanne Barnaby and Norman Yakeleya of the Dene Cultural Institute in Hay River and Glenda Wilson of the Hay River Alcohol and Drugs Program.

These talks progressed through the late summer and early fall of 1994 until a decision was reached to include High Level/Bushie River Reserve and Hay River/Hay River Reserve (HL/HR) as a "twinned" site in the national CD-OOMY project as the communities share similar cultures and geographic location. The rationale for this twinning was to encourage cooperation, collaboration, and the sharing of resources and information among smaller communities of the North. The coordinating group felt that much useful information could be gained to better meet the needs of transient population and culturally diverse youth who live in isolated northern settings.

Once the decision had been made to participate in the national project, planning activities began for a community meeting to be held in early 1995. The meeting was seen as a catalyst for assisting youth and adults in both communities to come together to identify issues of concern to young people in the two communities. Information was going to be provided to the participants about the community development project and they would be invited to discuss opportunities for using the project to address some of their concerns.

The community meeting was held in High Level Alberta in February 1995. Some 60 people participated, including young people from both communities, First Nations representatives and representatives from youth-serving agencies, provincial/territorial and federal governments. Those in attendance had an opportunity to spend time together to get to know each other, to participate in various cultural and recreational activities and to discuss issues affecting the young people in their communities.

Workshops and discussion groups were also held to identify possible activities they could undertake. Some of the things they identified included writing a newsletter, doing a needs survey to find out what youth want, having an opportunity to be involved in decision-making groups, providing young people in both communities with more things (social/recreational) to do. At the time of the meeting, High Level had an interagency committee for youth established, and had invited young people to participate. Hay River was thinking about setting up such a committee and some meeting participants were eager to ensure that youth could participate. A workplan was also developed by each community with a promise to meet again and keep in touch with each other.

The groups in each community met over the next several months. In High Level, efforts were under way to develop a newsletter, to conduct a survey/needs assessment in the high school, and to plan a dance for the fall. Hay River undertook a number of activities to raise the profile of the group including holding a name and logo contest. Jason Brewster submitted the winning design entitled "Teen Power." Hay River also held a pizza party which attracted 24 youth and was covered in the local media. The survey was started before school let out for the summer but it was not completed since some of the high school students could not be included in time. They planned to complete the survey in the fall.

In Hay River, the energy generated by the February community meeting had dissipated by summer. A pizza party was held with over 300 young people in attendance. Glenda tried to get the help of the schools in maintaining support for the youth group. Since there was no interagency committee in Hay River at the time of the community meeting, follow-up activities fell to Glenda and her staff. More support such as a paid staff member would have helped facilitate activities during this period in Hay River. As summer approached, a new youth group leader emerged and it was their intention to complete a youth needs survey by fall. The fall was also the time that a community meeting was being planned in Hay River, so much needed to be done.

Moresette Howlette took over for Penny Mossman in the fall. Many of the service providers that had worked with the High Level group had left their jobs over the summer. When Gerry Cyr fell ill in August, it brought project activities in High Level to a temporary halt. A decision was made to allocate some project resources to hire a part-time coordinator to work with the project in High Level. Carrie Brodie originally volunteered as a project coordinator but was hired as a part time employee in early December 1995. Some of the reasons for the loss of service providers from the original group was high staff turnover among service providers, high case loads and the large geographical areas they cover. Part of the problem in dealing with an over-burdened schedule is the difficulty providing services to distant communities and the inability to attend committee meetings. The service providers who remained with the project experienced the same problems. Some community organizations did not sanction or support the project.

The next major event for the HL/HR site was a community meeting held in Hay River from September 29 to October 1, 1995. The purpose of this meeting was to exchange information and reassess the status of the project. While there had been plans for a number of youth and adults from High Level to attend, circumstances changed at the last minute making it impossible. Gerry Cyr represented the High Level group at this meeting. From Hay River, six youth participated as well as Glenda, Irene and Shaun from the Alcohol and Drug Society (ADS) and Roy from an open custody facility nearby. The group developed a mission statement and developed a workplan. Social activities included a barbecue on the banks of the Hay River attended by the group members and their families.

The Hay River group decided to get a place to meet as soon as possible and received permission from Glenda to use ADS facilities. They identified their goal as "Providing alternative choices in order to 'combat' alcohol and drug abuse." They planned to work with Irene to develop some skills. They were also going to have a contest to name their group. They were also planning to hold a Much Music Video dance in the fall as a way of increasing awareness of their group and its activities.

In November, Glenda resigned her job to pursue other employment and the project was taken over by Irene. The youth started a contest to name the group and have been active in promoting themselves. They have contacted the Town Council and the local MLA to alert them about the group's activities. They are still planning a dance and looking for their own meeting space. The parents' group from the school has agreed to work with the youth on various activities. One is a special needs teacher who will help the young people with peer helper training.

In High Level, the group has been meeting regularly since September. Some of the young people completed the survey of senior high school students with Carrie's assistance. This was also seen as an opportunity to recruit youth to the group. Twenty-five indicated some interest and four asked for more information. Other activities were discussed but there does not seem to be a lot of interest among older teenagers in the community. The group considered approaching younger teens.

Some of the challenges experienced in HL/HR are similar to those found in many other communities. Getting people involved and sustaining their commitment is not easy. While special events can generate interest and participation, it is difficult to have the youth remain actively involved in the day-to-day activities of the group. Some of the special challenges faced by small, Northern communities were mentioned above. Factors such as high turnovers among service providers as well as service providers wearing many hats were present. Other challenges, however, represent specific concerns such as community denial of issues, an accepting attitude by adults and youth "of things the way they are" and a perception by youth and adults of a lack of anonymity and confidentiality. There is also a belief that small towns do not experience the same degree of difficulties as the larger centres.

Manitoba / Saskatchewan Site

One of the five sites that was a participant in the CD-OOMY project was the region of Manitoba/Saskatchewan. The Addictions Foundation of Manitoba, through Herb Thompson, Colleen Allan and Saskatchewan Health, through April Barry, Leila Campbell and Shirley Highfill, both agreed to be the provincial partners with Health Canada regional and national offices. Ken Horsman and Gordon McGreggor represented the Health Canada regional office.

Within this "site" there were nine projects covering 23 communities that were identified by their partners as being important locations for project support and information about community development learnings. At the time the CD-OOMY project began, each of the nine projects was under way through project funding from the Health Promotion and Programs Branch of Health Canada. The Regina Street Worker's Advocacy Project was complete in that its Health Canada funding had finished. All of the others were in various stages of development and were being supported by regional branch office funding for one to three years. The projects within the Manitoba/Saskatchewan site were as follows:

Winnipeg: Youth Sharing Today, Leading Tomorrow

This project evolved out of the Canada's Drug Strategies Workshop held in Russell, Manitoba in September 1993. The project was initiated by a number of key players, some of whom are still involved today.

"So we went to the Russell conference and we ended up doing a lot of venting about the system, about older youth, about how we talk about things for years and nothing ever changes. So we decided before we left that we were going to do something. I think everyone that was involved initially was from the conference."

The project objectives were:

1. to identify and address the gaps between young people's experience and needs, and the social policies that impact on their lives;
2. to provide youth with a forum that will enable them to address the needs, issues and concerns of youth as they perceive them in the context of the family, peer groups, school, social services and the community environment;
3. to initiate youth group projects and/or activities that are generated and controlled by youth;
4. to provide a forum for youth and community representatives in an effort to foster meaningful communication and understanding between the community and youth; and
5. to organize a youth and service provider workshop, where youth can participate as equal partners, in developing a coordinated community response, long-term strategies, and an action plan to address the needs and issues of youth today.

Assiniboine Youth Community Partnership Project

This project evolved out of a meeting in 1993 between interested volunteers and service providers. Among the participants were school officials who were interested in discussing what could be done to deal with some of the issues affecting the youth in the community. In the fall of 1993, a survey was done in Grades 7, 9 and 11 on alcohol and drug use. The survey revealed that there were a number of problems among youth caused by alcohol and drug use. The project was funded by the Health Canada regional office:

1. to motivate and empower high-risk youth/school drop-outs to deliver better coping skills and to improve self-esteem and for them, in turn, to adopt healthier lifestyles;
2. to increase the capacity of the community to recognize and address the problems related to adolescent substance abuse and to model and promote healthy lifestyles; and
3. to develop an expanded partnership among youth in the community at large, in order to address substance abuse-related issues and behaviours.

The Interlake School Leavers' Project

Within the Interlake region of Manitoba, a network was first formed in 1988 with representatives from four communities. Since that time, the network has grown to include eight communities of the Interlake region (Gimli, Arborg, Riverton, Eriksdale, Fisher Branch, Leunder, Ashern and St. Laurent) The group is made up of adult representatives from a variety of backgrounds, including education, health, probation services, police, Addiction Foundation of Manitoba staff, parents and students.

In January of 1994, the group's work was funded for a project:

1. to identify contributing factors on why youth leave school;
2. to develop local strategies to deal with the contributing factors leading to youth leaving school;
3. to get communities involved in planning; and
4. to foster community awareness of the School Leavers' Project.

Brandon: Developing Youth Today for Tomorrow

Another project which emerged out of the Canada Drug Strategy workshop was the Brandon: Developing Youth Today for Tomorrow project. The project was put forward by the Brandon Youth Services Council, an advisory and information sharing group of 22 youth-serving agencies. The project goals were:

1. identify the needs of the high-risk Brandon youth group through the use of a needs assessment;
2. actively pursue their involvement in planning for change; and
3. develop a long-term approach in working with out-of-the-mainstream youth.

The project was funded and began operations in June 1994. Although it was originally intended to be an eight-month project, funding was extended until March 31, 1996.

Saskatchewan Youth Strategy

The Saskatchewan Youth Strategy project also emerged from the Russell Canada's Drug Strategy workshop. This project was funded for a two-year period between April 1994 and March 1996. It has been able to extend its life beyond this period through conservation of resources.

The project was originally designed to cover eight communities, including Saskatoon, Regina, North Battleford, Prince Albert, Kindersley, Yorkton, Swift Current and Nipawin. The project objectives are:

1. to provide a forum in the form of youth retreats and workshops for at-risk youth to participate in the design and delivery of programs that reflect some of the unmet needs and concerns; and
2. to compile a provincial list of services available to these at-risk youth. This goal was subsequently changed during the first youth workshop in April 1994. The new wording for the goal is: "To encourage and empower youth to actively participate in the youth/adult partnerships, toward shared goal achievement in the programs and policies that affect youth directly."

The Regina Street Worker's Advocacy Project

In 1991, a group of service providers in the City of Regina came together to talk about the types of services that might be appropriate for women in the sex-trade business. In 1993, a workshop was held and it was decided that further research should be done, through a participatory research model, to identify the services most needed and how best to provide them.

In September 1993, what became known as the Street Intervention Committee submitted a project proposal under the name of the Street Worker's Advocacy Project (SWAP) to conduct this research. An application for funding was submitted to the Health Canada regional office. The objectives of the project were:

1. to determine further needs for support services as received by individuals engaged in the street sex trade. The focus will be on drug and alcohol addiction problems and solutions;
2. to produce a written report of the project in cooperation with those providing information in order to develop recommendations for future service, advocacy and support; and
3. to gather information about drug and alcohol addiction, demographics, and the needs of prostitutes in the downtown area of Regina.

Southey Alcohol and Drug Awareness Program

The Southey project was originally developed by the Southey Alcohol and Drug Awareness Advisory Committee which had been formed, within this small community, out of a common concern for issues related to the use and abuse of alcohol and other substances. Overall, the project was directed toward increasing community awareness for the risks associated with substance abuse. The specific objectives of the project were:

1. to conduct a needs assessment on the extent of substance abuse in the Southey community;
2. to develop a partnership with youth and adults to develop awareness and intervention strategies to combat substance abuse;
3. to develop an information telephone line for substance counselling and help;
4. to set up a peer helper program; and
5. to set up a teen weekend drop-in centre.

The project was originally funded for an 18 month period between January 1994 and June 1995. The project was subsequently extended for an additional full year. Southey is a small community of about 700 people situated about a half hour drive from Regina.

Northern Youth Initiatives Project

The Northern Youth Initiatives Project began as a response to a question asked by the mayor of one of the three communities involved: "What can we do to keep our youth at home in their community?" The project was intended to address the departure of youth from the three Northern Saskatchewan communities of Beauval, Cumberland House and Pine House Lake, who would leave their communities and end up on the streets of one of the southern cities.

The design of the Northern Youth Initiatives Project was prepared by two Calgary-based consultants who had previously been involved with the three communities in a Healthy Communities project and an evaluation of a mobile treatment program, both run in the early 1990s. By the time the current project began in May 1994, all three communities had active interagency committees in place. The focus of the project was on personal healing, training, and the development of community infrastructure:

1. to create healthy and human community relationships;
2. to promote personal and community healing;
3. to create sustainable economic development;
4. to engage these communities in youth development and training;
5. to increase and sustain people participation;
6. to develop cultural and spiritual programs; and
7. to improve the general health of the three communities involved.

Meyo-Pimacihewin Project

The Meyo-Pimacihewin project was originally started at the Joe Duquette High School in Saskatoon in 1991. The intent was to bring spirituality and community involvement to the high school through the introduction of Native spirituality and culture. A number of workshops were held in this project involving school staff and students, including training trainers, peer helper training, holistic healing and wilderness training.

Some of the people who had been involved with the Joe Duquette school program attended the Canada's Drug Strategy workshop in Russell, Manitoba in 1994. As a result of their workshop involvement, a second project proposal was put forward to extend the first beyond the school into the larger Native community in Saskatoon. The objectives of the project were:

1. to decrease drug and alcohol abuse among high-risk First Nations youth;
2. to increase mutual support, consultations and structures among service providers of high-risk First Nations youth;
3. to establish community-based initiatives with service providers in Saskatoon that advance alcohol and drug abuse prevention and healing; and
4. to establish with Saskatoon service providers, culturally centred approaches to alcohol and drug abuse prevention and healing.

The objectives were to be achieved through a series of strategies, including networking with service providers; educating and supporting service providers; resourcing participants with culturally based prevention, intervention, assessment and aftercare materials; and servicing youth in the evenings and weekends with community-based culturally sensitive programs.

Networking Project

In addition to the above mentioned projects, the regional office also initiated a "Networking Project" to try and link the projects within the Manitoba/Saskatchewan region together. This project was under the auspices of Saskatchewan Institute for the Prevention of Handicaps and had two objectives. These were:

1. to produce a periodic newsletter about youth-at-risk issues and activities within each of the region's projects; and
2. to organize and host periodic workshops and training events for the project participants.

In addition to the above support, the Institute also received some funding to hire a specialist in the area of youth-at-risk programs, to work with all of the Manitoba/Saskatchewan projects. His function was to provide technical support to the projects, to assist in the design and facilitation of the network workshops and to link the Manitoba/Saskatchewan region with other work being conducted in the rest of Canada.