This case study of youth involvement in public decision-making is one of several done for Health Canada by the Canadian Association for School Health. To return to the beginning of Selected Case Studies of Youth Involvement in Public Decision-Making click here.

Environment Canada has established a Youth Round Table that acts as a Youth Advisory Committee to the department. The Round Table has 12 representatives selected from among several national and provincial/territorial youth organizations. The Round Table advises the Minister and officials from the Action 21 (Environmental Action) Program within Environment Canada. The first meeting of the Round Table was in June 1997 and the second was held in January 1998. Between meetings, the Round Table members communicate by e-mail and through a private website. Advice to the Minister is communicated by letter from the Round Table. A full time staff person has been assigned by the Department to facilitate the work of the committee and youth involvement in the department.

This example of youth involvement in public decision-making is perhaps the most sophisticated and best supported one examined in the study of nine examples. A Youth Advisory Committee was established under Ministerial approval in Environment Canada. Youth representatives were chosen from several established national and provincial organizations. Consequently, almost all of the young people had considerable experience in such activities. Many of the youth are actually young adults between 20-30 years of age. The commitment from Environment Canada officials to the process is considerable and has been sustained for two years. A full-time staff person is responsible for facilitating youth input into the department. The Minister is actively seeking the input of youth through this mechanism. Despite these advantages, this Advisory Committee can be described as a good beginning. The impact of the youth participation is only beginning to be felt. The significant challenges associated with any citizens having influence on the decisions of a federal department are at work in this example. However, even with this context in mind, the process at meetings has had to be adjusted to take into account the specific needs of young people. For example, using technology as the primary medium of communications did not work as intended. Also the format of the meetings have been revised to accommodate the participation style of the young delegates. As well, the connections between the Round Table and other Youth Environmental organizations needs to be more clearly described and/or supported. Although the 12 young people are chosen from some of these youth organizations, the connections between them as well as all of the youth environmental organizations are not always clearly established.

A. Basic Descriptive Data

The Description of Program/ Process is Clear and Understood

The Round Table is a Youth Advisory Committee comprised of 12 representatives who have access to other youth environmental networks

The Purposes of Involving Youth are Clearly Linked to the Goals of Environment Canada

The Youth Round Table is seen as a pilot for the department. This type of program was never done before. The Round Table was begun as part of the Action 21 (Environmental Action) Program within the department. However, the initiative is also part of the department's goal of citizen participation. The reasons for involving youth were based on a feeling that that the Department was not reaching youth with its messages. The project was initiated by senior staff and supported by the Minister. The Committee has formal terms of reference, but the focus is more on the nature of the Committee's activities than on outcomes from their activities.

Previously, the department's involvement with youth was sporadic. Each branch had its own programs and attempts to reach youth. For example, the youth delegation that was organized in an ad-hoc way. There were funding programs that attempted to reach youth with environmental messages.

The Youth Leaders are Representative of the Audience

The focus is on mobilizing youth leaders or activists rather than all youth. The age of the intended youth audience is 16-25. The youth involved in the committee come from various sectors-aboriginal, geographic, francophone etc., but the youth representatives are representative of the intended activist youth audience.

The Assigned Resources are Adequate

There is a designated budget, with support and travel for meetings, a web page and computers are supplied where necessary A full time staff person has been assigned on youth issues, with a part time manager. The designated staff person was hired after the second meeting of the committee. Up to that point, professional facilitators were used to support the meetings. The adult to youth ratio is 12 youth to 1.5 staff The process is not dependent on other or private sector contributions

The Succession of Youth Participants is being Considered

There were 13 trained youth volunteers in the beginning of the committee's work. One has dropped out due to personal commitments. They are older youth. The committee members have begun to discuss their succession process to replace themselves. It is not decided how this will be done. There is an issue of how to ensure that other youth organizations (who were not selected to send a rep initially) can have a chance at the positions while recognizing that the current organizations have developed a relationship with the process and are more likely to be able to name a representative.

The Policy Framework for Youth Participation is Stable

There is a formal written statement on youth participation that is guiding Environment Canada. Youth participation is part of overarching international commitment to involve youth as a part of an international agreement on Environmental Protection.

A written plan is being developed to cover youth participation within the Department.

Good and Bad Examples of Involvement are Understood and Acted Upon

The Committee was asked to review the criteria for funding projects under the Environment Canada Action 21 Program so that these programs become more accessible to youth. The committee reviewed the criteria and made recommendations to Environment Canada officials that were acted upon. The officials want to expand the influence of Youth Committee beyond the Action 21 Branch of the Department.

The Committee members have struggled with their role, both the adults and the youth. Is it a lobby group or advisory group? Members of the committee were nervous about individuals speaking on behalf of the committee. An agreement was established to have youth speak "as members of the Round Table but not for the Round Table".

A big impediment to the work of the committee is geography, there is too much distance to keep the youth interacting. Time is too compressed at meetings. An attempt to use a Website Chat did not work. The ability of youth to use such technology was over-estimated. There is still a discussion underway as to whether the Chat space on the website should be open to other youth.

Steps have been taken to prevent this feeling of isolation between meetings. Environment Canada staff have tried to organize sustaining activities between meetings so that youth did not feel like outsiders when they came to Ottawa. The format of the meetings has been changed to make the process more participatory and more fun for the young people. The goal is to reduce the impact of a rigid adult agenda being placed on the youth committee.

B.     Levels of Involvement

The Level of Collective Participation (Using the CMHA definition) is not Clearly Understood

Under these CMHA (1995) definitions of youth involvement, (see Investigative Framework) the Round Table would be considered a networking and developmental (structure) model. There is a clear intent to include youth in the decision-making structure of Environment Canada. But there does not appear to be sufficient attention being paid to the linkages between the many environmental youth groups and the Round Table. The youth are accountable to their own group and have established mechanisms to report back but there is not process to enable the Round Table to consult effectively with all of those organizations. The uncertainty of the succession process within the Round Table is an illustration of this linkage problem.

The Levels of Individual Involvement are Working

The ways in which the young people participate indicate that the levels of individual participation are evolving well. The roles being assigned to the youth vary, with specific roles and tasks being assigned equitably. There are working groups on different topics and tasks. An attempt to have all committee members compose a letter to the Minister proved to be very difficult. Consequently this task is now  delegated to one or two people, with the others reviewing the drafts.

C.     The Roles of Youth in the Process

Both Adults and Youth Initiate Issues

Adults are able to bring issues to committee (e.g.. Action 21 Funding materials). Youth have also initiated discussions of issues (e.g.. MAI, Caribou and Voisey Bay)

D. The Quality of the Process

Basic Principles about Involving Youth are being Respected

The members of the group feel safe to speak, having overcome initial concerns that they would be co-opted. Some frustrations related to technology spilled over into one meeting because some were not able to access the information prior to the meeting.

Youth identify the problems, discuss them and end up with recommendations. Feedback on those recommendations is provided from the Department. The consultants hired to facilitate the first meeting may not have been appropriate. The revised support through a staff person is considered to be more effective. Expectations about the capacity of the Round Table to influence the Department vary among the youth, based on their experience, so it is difficult to say that all are satisfied with the process.

The level of youth participation skills is being considered somewhat in that technology training was provided. As well, an exercise in personal asset mapping has helped to identify skills and interests among the youth. The varying level of experience among the youth (some have had considerable experience in lobbying at the federal level ) causes some difficulty.

Some of the Barriers to Youth Participation are being Addressed

The varying level of youth skills and commitment also led to corrections in the process of meetings. Cellular telephones were banned as they were interrupting meetings. Calls before meetings of the committee are made to each youth delegate to ensure that the youth are prepared for the meetings.

The credibility of the youth representatives with other youth was assured by selecting delegates from established youth organizations. The next set of members will be selected in consultation with the current members. However, there may be a need to establish a process among all of the youth organizations to ensure that they feel they are represented, even if the members do not come from their own group.

The staff person assigned to the committee works actively to secure the ongoing support from adults in the department. A "positive profile" is maintained. The impetus for the Round Table came from the Minister, with the new Minister being interested and supportive as well. Steps are being taken to try to establish the Round Table within the mainstream of the Department, but there is no overall plan to do so yet. The convenience of the process to youth is considered as well. Meeting dates are selected in consultation with the youth.

Some Enabling Factors are in Place

Various kinds of youth are encouraged to speak up at meetings to raise their particular concerns. For example, the issue of the northern caribou herd was discussed and dealt with at the request of the member from the NWT. There is an active recruitment process in place to ensure that youth are replaced when their term is up. A subcommittee has been formed to ensure effective succession planning. Part of the agreement among members when they started was that they would seek their own replacements after they had finished their terms. A staggered term of office for the Round Table is being considered.

No budget is assigned to assist youth representatives in consulting their constituency. Members usually ask for input from their own groups. Environment Canada staff are acting as mentors of the individual members of the Round Table as well as the whole group.

The youth are naturally responding to issues in a positive way, seeking to offer solutions at the same time that they raise problems to be addressed.

The agenda and the process at meetings has been changed to accommodate the wishes of the youth.

Most of the Developmental Needs of Youth are being Met

The youth are acquiring competencies related to lobbying and being active at the national level. Some have spoken at meetings and with the media. Youth representatives report on their activities at each meeting and this provides some opportunity for recognition within the group. The Minister has recognized the group collectively in several speeches. However, no overt recognition activities have yet been taken outside of the group. The meeting formats have been changed to make them more fun for the youth. There are informal opportunities for the youth to form friendships, but no active planning has been done in this regard. The safety and security needs of these young adults are minimal. Consequently, there is not much planning done in this area.

Youth are Accountable

The youth representatives are expected to consult with their own groups before each meeting. They are expected to keep up with their e-mail correspondence and to attend meetings. The Round Table has a clear mandate, a plan and a schedule of actions that require the youth representatives to meet deadlines. Youth have been required to forge consensus on points as they write their advisory letters to the Minister.

Some Adults are Prepared to Support the Youth Participation

The staff person assigned to the Round Table speaks to other staff within the department to encourage those adults to respond to the youth concerns. Officials from the Action 21 staff help the youth throughout the process, including emotional support and guidance on procedures and gathering information. Explanations about the constraints and limits of the Round Table are explained as well. Resolving differences of opinion without personalizing the disagreement still needs more support and work by the members of the Round Table.

E.     Nature of Support Specific to the Type of Involvement

When asked to compare the processes and role of the Youth Round Table relative to other consultative groups within Environment Canada, both the youth representatives and department officials were cautious about making any claims that the youth participation was equitable to other groups. The support from the Minister's Office and senior department staff was recognized and appreciated. However, other consultative groups are either more specific (e.g.. dealing with a particular issue and therefore are more focused. Or, the other committees are more senior (e.g., The Round Table on the Environment and the Economy. Some of the expertise of the youth in expressing the concerns of young people are being recognized but there are limits to the level of influence that are recognized.

F.     Evidence of Impact

The impact of involving the youth in this advisory committee is just being considered now. It is clear that the youth leaders have acquired new skills in technology, some are now more aware of the departments and federal activities (some already were aware).

The impact on the youth audience is more difficult to assess. The Round Table gave good advice on the youth selected for the Polaris Project and they have successfully revised the criteria for the Action 21 Funding Program. Presumably, a comparison of activities funded under that program can be made subsequent to the next round of applications to determine if more or better quality youth projects were funded.

The impact on youth health or environmental skills, knowledge or practices would be even harder to assess. Presumably, more or better projects funded under Action 21 or the improved activities of the Polaris Network can be tracked back to the Round Table in some manner.

The impact on the policy-making practices of Environment Canada can be described however. The Minister has decided to include at least one youth representative on each of the Issues Tables being established to deal with climate change. The Minister is clearly conscious of the Youth Round Table, seeks their advice and listens to their input. Youth representatives are playing a visible role in the activities of the department.