The purpose of this study is to investigate in what ways volunteers at local youth empowerment organizations can contribute to the prevention of adversity and intimate partner violence among youths, as well as their perception of the needs of their target group. Another aim is to discuss the possibilities of cooperation between different agents working to support adolescents, which includes volunteers, schools, parents and other adults. This subject is relevant for social work as organizations in the nonprofit sector can be established as producers of welfare services. The investigation is conducted through qualitative thematic analyses of interviews with four volunteers from two different organizations, and the analysis is presented in three themes. The theoretical perspectives applied are street-level bureaucracy, ecological system theory, stigma, and gender theory. The empirical body describes both opportunities and limitations of the preventative work, and the result implies that no single agent has enough resources to decrease adolescents’ social vulnerability by their own means. Therefore, the possibility of cooperation between agents in various levels of the ecological system is discussed. The conclusion of this study is that all agencies need to contribute to create more effective prevention and support measures to reduce youth adversity and intimate partner violence, and volunteers can play a key role in this work.

Higher education institutions play a crucial role in fostering innovation, research, and knowledge transfer that directly impact the attainment of the SDGs. Postgraduate education, in particular, provides a unique opportunity to train and equip the next generation of leaders, researchers, and professionals with the necessary skills, knowledge, and interdisciplinary perspectives required to address complex global challenges. The concept of the resource nexus emphasizes the interconnectedness of different resources (e.g., water, energy, food, materials) and the importance of adopting a holistic approach to sustainable development. By promoting collaborations and partnerships between the Global South and North, we can facilitate knowledge exchange, capacity building, mutual learning and technology transfer, thus creating a positive ripple effect across regions and addressing common sustainability challenges.:Background & Rationale Recommendadions Strengthening Postgraduate Education for Sustainable Development Scaling Up Resource Nexus Research for Sustainability Transformations Empowering Change Agents South-North Collaboration and People-to-People Exchanges International Cooperation for Sustainability in Education Promoting Multifaceted Approaches to Sustainability Youth Empowerment for the 2030 Agenda Leveraging Digital Platforms for Education Conclusion

(En)Compassing Heart explores and documents the organizational journey of POR AMOR Community Enhancement Initiatives. POR AMOR is a current, Toronto based, youth-led, non-profit organization I co-founded with three other young women in 2003. POR AMOR initiatives focus on youth empowerment and specifically helping young people to make responsible transitions into adulthood and become active leaders in their communities. Through the use of arts-informed methodological practices, this project is constructed as a modern narrative, infused with spoken-word poetry, to track the journey of a young girl from her passion for the arts to becoming an empowered individual within her community. The young protagonist is representative of the journey of POR AMOR, our journey as young people navigating our way to meaningful work in communities. The mission of POR AMOR is to promote and facilitate art-based youth empowerment initiatives in local and international community contexts.

(En)Compassing Heart explores and documents the organizational journey of POR AMOR Community Enhancement Initiatives. POR AMOR is a current, Toronto based, youth-led, non-profit organization I co-founded with three other young women in 2003. POR AMOR initiatives focus on youth empowerment and specifically helping young people to make responsible transitions into adulthood and become active leaders in their communities. Through the use of arts-informed methodological practices, this project is constructed as a modern narrative, infused with spoken-word poetry, to track the journey of a young girl from her passion for the arts to becoming an empowered individual within her community. The young protagonist is representative of the journey of POR AMOR, our journey as young people navigating our way to meaningful work in communities. The mission of POR AMOR is to promote and facilitate art-based youth empowerment initiatives in local and international community contexts.

Thesis (PhD. (English Studies)) -- University of Limpopo, 2020 / One of the important duties of performative art is the idea of creating a sense of recognising people’s predicaments, especially those whose voices have been suppressed. This study seeks to employ Applied Theatre techniques to investigate community underdevelopment and youth under-empowerment with a view to discover why there is a prevalence of the human-trafficking plague in Africa, with South Africa and Nigeria as case study. On the assumption that this approach could possibly have a desolating effect through the way in which some community members would feel about their situations, field works in Mabopane (South Africa) and Eleyele (Nigeria) were conducted in order to examine the prevalence of the neglect of the youths of these communities as well as human-trafficking occurrences and possibilities. Through the results from field works, the study seeks to unveil possible relationships community and youth neglect share with the human- trafficking scourge in both regional leading countries, in particular, and the globalised world, in general. KEYWORDS: Applied Theatre; Human-Trafficking; South Africa; Nigeria; Community Development; Youth Empowerment.

The purpose of the current study was to help amplify and analyze Black American elementary student voice in a post-2020 world. Discussions and writings were conducted at the students’ charter school in spaces where students voiced what it meant to be a Black American youth through both verbal and written means. The current qualitative study focused on using discussions and creative writing to help participants make sense of their identity in their school, community, and the United States. This research provided students’ counternarratives regarding stereotypes associated with being Black American students and focused on how such spaces can positively impact Black American students. The current study used a narrative inquiry via youth participatory action research with critical race theory serving as its theoretical framework. Additionally, the current study also addressed development of critical consciousness as interpreted from a nigrescence framework. When discussing the Black American experience in predominantly White spaces, an analysis of themes revealed fourth- and fifth-grade Black American student participants felt personality mattered most when defining oneself as a Black American. Participants also discussed themes related to both racial battle fatigue and an awareness of how their Blackness in predominantly White spaces had been racially profiled and policed. Participants discussed the United States’ historically violent nature toward Black Americans, wanting to be representatives of representation in predominantly White careers, a desire for equitable treatment from White adults, and an appreciation for trusted adult allies. Through it all, participants noted a desire for changes in their communities and an overall appreciation for engaging in the work with one another also came forth. Findings suggested elementary-aged Black American students wish to work in community with one another and want to share information regarding their experiences to assist educators in cultivating more welcoming spaces in their school communities and beyond.