Leveraging Existing Orgs to Launch 100 Youth Prevention Clubs in Kansas | Episode 071 with Andres Mata

Andres Mata, a youth advocate and civic engagement leader, discusses his work with the YLink program in Kansas, which provides opportunities for civic engagement and youth advocacy through a mental health lens. He emphasizes the importance of understanding the history and players in a community, as well as speaking the language of different stakeholders. Andres shares an example of a successful project he worked on in college that addressed food insecurity on campus. He also highlights the power of youth involvement in creating change and encourages young people to take ownership and be persistent in their advocacy efforts.Chapters00:00 Overview of Y-Link and Civic Engagement12:51 Advocacy for Food Security in College28:16 Understanding the Community and Players31:13 Reframing Conversations for Effective Advocacy35:16 Youth Empowerment and Taking Ownership40:02 The Power of Small Actions and Contributions41:57 Closing Remarks and Call to ActionTakeawaysThe YLink program in Kansas provides opportunities for civic engagement and youth advocacy through a mental health lens.Understanding the history and players in a community is crucial for effective advocacy.Speaking the language of different stakeholders can help build partnerships and support for initiatives.Youth involvement is powerful in creating change and addressing community issues.Persistence and taking ownership are key in advocacy efforts.For feedback, questions and new episode [email protected]/vive18_