FYP Summit 2024 Guidelines

Guiding 5 Values & 4 Principles

Values

Authenticity 

We want the final event to be a high-fidelity reflection of what we, as a collective and committee of youth, want and can make happen by ourselves. If, for instance, without the pressure of accountability from compensation, we can only organize a small event, then we believe that is a true reflection of our current state. If the genuine state of youth today involves depression, feeling lost, and getting drunk or high or doom scroll every day, we bravely embrace and showcase that reality. FYP believes that to empower is to confront—the first step in solving any problem is to admit proudly showcase that there is one and showcase who we are. FYP is a safe space that doesn't suppress but aims to unleash. This event is about authenticity, about be fierce, be you.

We ask you to be fiercely authentic during your involvement and association with FYP.

Agency

The event aims to radically highlight our agency and elevate the agency of all youth. With this goal in mind, we ensure the organizing committee has complete autonomy in decision-making. The base funding for the entire event is pre-secured with no strings attached for complete freedom. 

Further, we take a radical stance on capitalism and believe that money, the very element that brings accountability, also diminishes agency. As such, all official committee members and participants will not be directly compensated. We will make every attempt to secure further funding, with the first priority being scholarship awards not rewards for all participating committee members, but this is not guaranteed in practice and, more importantly, not guaranteed  by principle. However, we do recognize how broke we all are, so intern and paid positions are available if interested in swapping. 

The organizing committee and general partners will have complete independent power to design the event, choose partners, speakers, participating youth and stakeholders however we see fit. FYP may have some organizational goals such as evaluation of events, expanding wiki and community, but again the organizing committee has complete agency so it is completely up to committee member to choose to implement them or not.

We ask you to be fiercely autonomous during your involvement and association with FYP.

Compassion 

Everything fyp does is about the people, people, people. We believe that all people are fundamentally kind and that compassion is the element that truly overcome any differences in interests, beliefs, identities, and groups and  bonds people together. We ask that all that associate with FYP to practice compassionate nonviolent communication with everyone we interact with, our family, our friends, our colleagues, and our “foes”. More detailed guides here.

We ask you to be fiercely compassionate during your involvement and association with FYP.

Togetherness 

Needless to say. No one needs to be and should feel alone. Within the personal boundary, FYP aims to foster togetherness. We are all in this together. 

We ask you to be fiercely together during your involvement and association with FYP.

Humor & Fun

Humor is the bridge that brings all of these principles together.  Jokes tell things real. Humor shows vulnerability. Most importantly, we are a bunch of 20 year olds, and the whole point of this is to have fun and PARTYYYY. 

We ask you to be fiercely partying during your involvement and association with FYP.

Principles

Principle 1: Take care of yourself. It would be pretty funny if a mental health advocate developed mental health issues from organizing a mental health event, so of all, the biggest priority is your own well being. And the first to-do is to make yourself happy. And then do the event and remember to prioritize self-care, set boundaries , and reach out for support when needed. 

Principle 2: Take risks. FYP's reach extends as far as prime ministers and billionaires, not because we possess world-altering genius, but because youth in our community have the audacity to imagine and the courage to reach out. Be bold, dream big, and fearlessly reach out to make our voices heard.

Principle 3: Be critical. As Plato said, "The unexamined life is not worth living," and at FYP, we encourage you to critically examine everything we do as a community, every aspect of this event, and the actions of each committee member. Each one of the organizing committees are leaders of the field and the conversation we are creating today can have a significant impact tomorrow on all youth. we encourage you to critically reflect & examine everything.

Principle 4: Emphasize grassroots and underserved communities. FYP believes there is no point doing anything if it doesn’t actually help the people, the struggling youth, the vulnerable. We committed to amplifying the voices of those who are often overlooked or marginalized