Walking the Talk: Putting Youth in Charge

Our latest addition to Profiles in Action looks at work underway with our Making Connections partners in Albuquerque. The coalition in New Mexico is one of 16 communities selected to participate in the PI and Movember initiative Making Connections for Mental Wellbeing Among Men and Boys.

Project lead Francisco Chavez of the New Mexico Department of Health Office of Office of School and Adolescent Health offers his perspectives on the work to date:

“It’s been a really interesting process and a lot of lessons learned: how to build a coalition, how to engage youth in an authentic way, and really overcome some of our own barriers and reputation,” he said. “The community did not necessarily trust that we had the best interests of the young men at heart.” 

He said one of the keys to ensuring authentic youth engagement has been working with partners who share the vision that “youth can truly be in charge and be the guiding force” of the work. Read more here about how this looks in action.