For your Stakeholders
Coaching and Mentoring:
To course-correct & take-over turnkey implementation of ‘Youth Advisory Group’ (YAG) Project. VIVA was called in to use strategic communication to steer the program to its desired outcomes.
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Context
UNFPA had an extremely ambitious vision - To build a cohort of youth from diverse backgrounds - inclusive of marginalized, members of the hearing impaired community, LGBTQ, Rural, Urban - into an Advisory Group that informs and provides recommendations for the State Youth Policy & Programs concerning young people in India. Engender Health worked collaboratively to actualize this vision. Our role was to build leadership and advisory capability in this cohort so that they can become catalysts of change within their own communities and provide appropriate program recommendations respectively.
Challenge
The biggest challenge we observed was the extremely wide disparity in the cohort. Members of the group were from widely divergent backgrounds, had varying capacities & exposure levels.
However the existing program design had a very homogenous approach for a vastly heterogenous group. The involvement of multiple stakeholders - the young people, mentors, state nodal officers - made it a layered program with varying expectations. This resulted in affecting the motivation and therefore the effective participation of the cohort.
Results
Systematic Level:
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YAG members represented UNFPA as Youth Ambassadors at prestigious national and international fora
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The collective voice of the cohort shaped actionable recommendations, ensuring UNFPA programs are inclusive and responsive to the needs of the communities they serve
We were referred to as ‘Coaching & Mentoring’ partners for the Youth Advisory Group by the UNFPA and Engender Health. Appreciated for our proactive & preemptive strategies and ‘impeccable implementation’.
Community Level:
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YAG members became change agents within their communities, driving awareness and impactful actions on issues of SRHR and gender equality
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They served as bridges between their communities and systemic structures, amplifying grassroots voices to inform and influence decision-making processes
Individual Level:
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Over the course of an year, YAG members grew into confident advisors, equipped with the skills to navigate critical discussions and propose actionable recommendations
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Members experienced personal transformations, with improved self-belief, communication skills, and the ability to represent their unique perspectives effectively in diverse forums
Resources
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Youth Advisory Group Learning Document: A reflective and practical guide which includes administrative processes, high-level takeaways, and key learnings gathered during the program
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Voices of Change: The Youth Advisory Group Journey towards Leadership and Impact: A compelling collection of success stories that capture the transformative journeys of YAG members into leaders and community changemakers
Solution
VIVA brought in a strategic lens to the program design by tailoring capacity-building efforts to address the diverse needs and backgrounds of the cohort. By integrating adaptive engagement methods and creating relatable touchpoints for all stakeholders, VIVA enhanced the YAG project’s inclusivity and effectiveness.
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Systems Thinking: The 1st thing we did was bring in a Systems Thinking-led approach to analyze the program structure. We analyzed Youth motivators, Community need, Policy priorities, existing Public Program structures & Bureaucratic motivators - so the Youth could be developed into capable advisors.
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Fragmentation of Cohort: Based on that we fragmented the cohort into sub-cohorts based on carefully selected parameters. We ran state-level bootcamps and shifted away from the one-size-fits-all approach.
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Human Centered Design: Next, we applied principles of Human Centred Design to identify cohort level motivators which resulted in increased relatability & improved passion levels among the members to participate and contribute with recommendations
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Overhaul of the capacity building journey: We completely overhauled the sessions, carefully selecting topics and creating modules & engagements that resulted in members learning-by-doing and building their own capacities experientially across various areas like: Building knowledge, Research capability, Observation & Analytical skills, Reflection & Articulation, Recommendation writing, Confidence building, using social media for expressing social views
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Rewards and recognition to improve program outcomes: Gamified the entire program goals & tasks so that each group were actively engaged, constructively competitive and most importantly - had FUN! This was tied into an interesting Rewards & Recognition program that kept members motivated throughout.
