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Youth Service America

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Sustainable Development

Major group affiliation:
  • Children and youth
Involvement in UN Partnerships: Yes
If yes, explain in detail: YSA is privileged to work with UN Online Volunteers, who have contributed translation services for many of our publications. We also started a collaboration with UN Volunteers/Youth as the agency initiates its strategic plan for the next three years, disseminating information about each other's efforts throughout our respective networks. YSA has collaborated with the UN Foundation in different ways including the development of a guide to engage youth in leading malaria prevention campaigns and communication campaigns about youths' role as assets around the world, through the participation of Monique Coleman - first UN Youth Champion. The UN Programme on Youth and the UN Millennium Campaign are part of YSA's Global Youth Service Network and receive/disseminate information about Global Youth Service Day and other YSA programs.
Affiliation with other organizations: The Global Youth Service Network, coordinated by YSA (Youth Service America), is an expansion of our work with our partners to take the global youth service movement to a bold new level of visibility and impact. The Global Youth Service Network, convened by YSA (Youth Service America), is a coalition of local, state, national, and global organizations in 135 countries committed to engaging children and youth to solve problems and lead communities through volunteering, community service, service-learning, national service, and civic engagement. The Network represents a continued and growing commitment to engage even more partners in our collective work of engaging young people in changing their communities through service and to continue to find new ways to partner with other organizations that engage youth in service and service-learning. We currently work the following partners: 1. National Partners are national organizations, often with state or local chapters or affiliates, who promote YSA programs, mobilize their members or chapters to participate or support the work of YSA through collaborative programming with YSA. We currently work with 170 U.S. National Partners, including City Year, Earth Day Network, Girl Scouts of America, and the Special Olympics. 2. Global Partners are international organizations, often with offices or affiliates around the world. Global Partners promote YSA and disseminate information through their networks, encourage participation in Global Youth Service Day (YSA’s largest program) by their members or affiliates, and contribute their experience and connections to increase the scale and impact of Global Youth Service Day. We currently work with 50 Global Partners, including American Councils for International Education, United Nations Foundation, United Nations Millennium Campaign, United Nations Volunteers, United Nations Programme on Youth, iEARN, Inter-American Development Bank, Organization of American States' Young Business Trust, nternational Association for Volunteer Effort (IAVE), International Youth Foundation, and People to People International (www.gysd.org/national_global_partners). 3. Country Partners promote Global Youth Service Day or year-round youth service in their respective countries, mobilize partners and local project organizers, lead high profile events, engage local media and government officials, and coordinate project registration and reporting. We currently work with over 50 Country Partners including National Federation of Youth Organisations in Bangladesh, United Way Brasil, CCREAD-Cameroon, Joven360 in Costa Rica, PIDT in India, the Irish Youth Foundation, Russian Association of Girl Scouts, National Youth Development Agency (South Africa), Cooperation for Peace and Development in Afghanistan, and many others (www.gysd.org/countrypartners) 4. Local and Statewide Partners (United States) are state or local organizations that coordinate Global Youth Service Day projects that engage at least 600 youth volunteers, and engage local media and elected officials. 5. YSA Grantees are schools or community-based organizations that have received a grant from YSA for youth-led volunteer community projects. YSA distributes over $1 million per year in grants to support youth engagement to improve communities worldwide.
Publications: National Service Briefing - weekly Youth Changing the World; a Service Project Toolkit - updated yearly (translated into Spanish, Russian, French, Arabic, and Portuguese) A Semester of Service Strategy Guide- updated yearly A Teacher's Guide to Engaging a New Generation of Anti-Hunger Leaders Kids in Action Guide Youth Changing the World Tip Sheets Mission Planning Guide No Kid Hungry Guide Tips for young volunteers: Sparking an Idea, Getting the Word Out, Making it Happen, What Comes Next, Finding Friends for Change (all translated into Spanish and Portuguese) Youth in the Driver Seat.

Social Development

Affiliation with other organizations: YSA is privileged to work with UN Online Volunteers, who have contributed translation services for many of our publications. We also started a collaboration with UN Volunteers/Youth as the agency initiates its strategic plan for the next three years, disseminating information about each other's efforts throughout our respective networks. YSA has collaborated with the UN Foundation in different ways including the development of a guide to engage youth in leading malaria prevention campaigns and communication campaigns about youths' role as assets around the world, through the participation of Monique Coleman - first UN Youth Champion. The UN Programme on Youth and the UN Millennium Campaign are part of YSA's Global Youth Service Network and receive/disseminate information about Global Youth Service Day and other YSA programs.
Publications: National Service Briefing - weekly Youth Changing the World; a Service Project Toolkit - updated yearly (translated into Spanish, Arabic, French), Russian and Portuguese) A Semester of Service Strategy Guide- updated yearly A Teacher's Guide to Engaging a New Generation of Anti-Hunger Leaders Kids in Action Guide Youth Changing the World Tip Sheets Mission Planning Guide No Kid Hungry Guide Tips for young volunteers: Sparking an Idea, Getting the Word Out, Making it Happen, What Comes Next, Finding Friends for Change (all translated into Spanish and Portuguese) Youth in the Driver Seat
Purpose of the organization: YSA seeks to improve communities by engaging young people as volunteers in substantive roles. We work to open up more and significant opportunities for young people to contribute to the social and economic development of their communities through volunteer projects and participation in decision-making. Our key strategies include global mobilization campaigns like Global Youth Service Day which is the largest service event in the world, funding in the form of micro-grants to youth, youth practitioners, community based organizations and educators to engage youth as leaders in community development projects; training and resources to build individuals' and organizations' capacity to engage youth as volunteers, and recognition programs to elevate the role of youth as resources for their communities, their countries, and the world.
Confirmation of the activities of the organization at the regional, national or international level: Global Youth Service Day is the largest service event in the world, that YSA organizes every April since 1987. The campaign mobilizes youth in more than 100 countries (135 in 2013) to organize or join volunteer projects. YSA provides the global framework, communications campaign, resources, and partnership structure to generate thousands of youth-led projects around the world. Through micro-grants to youth, community-based organization leaders, agencies, and schools YSA contributes funding which is leveraged at the local level to organize large coalitions which in turn call on their youth to participate in Global Youth Service Day and year-round.
A list of members of the governing body of the organization, and their countries of nationality: Ken Bartels (Chair), Simone Berstein (Youth Member), Skylar Borchardt (Youth Member), Thomas Butta, Steve Culbertson (President and CEO), Jonathan Cole, Dale Stafford, Brian Murrow, (Youth Member), Kathy Payne, Phil Guerini, Martin Rodgers, Sean Russell (Youth Member), Frances Skinner-Lewis, Teresa Scanlan, Joanne Wilson, Marissa Vessels (Youth Member), Harris Wofford. All board members are from the United States.
Description of the membership of the organization, indicating the total number of members: YSA does not have a membership structure. It is a partner network based organization, whose members are convened through the Global Youth Service Network. As described in previous sections, this network integrates local, national, and international organizations that share a commitment to youth engagement through volunteering and civic engagement.
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