The ForYouPage.Org Manifesto [2023 Original]

ForYouPage.org is a youth-led NGO and a global coalition of youth advocates 🏾on a mission to unite young leaders 🧑🏼‍🤝‍🧑🏼👫👫 and mobilize our peers in grassroots advocacy for our individual flourishing and our collective social justice.

By joining forces, we aim to amplify our voices and empower individual advocacy by providing each of us with resources, opportunities, and support of a community.

By joining forces, we aim to inspire more of our peers to advocate locally and globally, to not only build a more equitable and sustainable world by our own hands, but to make friends, take risks, and to nurture our own growth within.

At ForYouPage.Org, we are committed to the following principles:

Principle 1. 🍀Youth Advocacy for Youth Flourishing 

We firmly believe the key to youth flourishing is to empower the youth to take risks and exercise agency through advocacy.

We believe the cause of youth mental health crises is the feeling of powerlessness - to not feel in charge of our lives and to feel hopeless on many urgent issues of our time. and we believe the solution is advocacy. Advocacy provides a platform for us to step out of our comfort zones and channel our passions into meaningful action, exercising our own power to contribute to the causes we care about.

[Our Approach 1] We lower the barrier for advocacy by connecting youth with a network of youth led social ventures and local volunteers and help with causes of their choice.

Principle 2. 🧑‍🤝‍🧑Youth Advocacy is for Everyone 

We firmly believe youth advocacy encompasses any grassroots action that involves giving back to and exercising kindness in our communities.

We believe that youth advocacy does not need to consist of grand actions only by the ‘cool’ and the ‘accomplished.’ Whether it's organizing a neighborhood cleanup, volunteering at a local shelter, or raising awareness about important social issues, we believe every act of leadership or  kindness is youth advocacy. Transcending notions of popularity or achievement, together we aim to create a culture where every grassroots community action is recognized, celebrated, and valued as a vital part of youth advocacy.

[Our Approach 2] We are fully open to all youth to participate in community advocacy at any level of commitment. We invite all grassroots youth to join us and we aim to serve  all youth by providing the requisite knowledge and connections.

Principle 3: 🩵Projects as Friendship Building & Connection Driven approaches 

We firmly believe connection driven collaboration through advocacy is not only a fundamental pathway to cultivating meaningful friendships but also the most effective way to get projects done.

When young individuals come together with a shared purpose, we form connections that go beyond mere acquaintanceship. By enhancing the collaborative nature of advocacy projects, we foster genuine bonds between participants grounded in mutual understanding, trust, and support. These meaningful friendships serve as a powerful catalyst, fueling motivation, resilience, and a collective drive to see projects through to completion.

[Our Approach 3] We employ people centered approaches. No interest forms. No deadlines. Our volunteers will connect with you directly. We help the youth find like minded people for advocacy projects that they can work on together.

Principle 4: 👻Fully Youth Led Collective 

We firmly believe youth advocacy cannot  be a solitary battle. We strive to be a collective, fully youth led.

When young people join forces, our voices resonate louder, our impact extends further, and our ability to enact meaningful change is greatly enhanced. We also believe it is essential to ensure this collective is fully youth-led, a space where we feel safe to express our opinions freely and to explore our purpose fearlessly.  The strength of youth advocacy lies in the convergence of diverse perspectives, experiences, and talents, all united under a common cause.

[Our Approach 4] On issues shared across regions such as climate change, we help facilitate cross-region advocacy actions and we form working groups to talk to stakeholders and policymakers together.

Principle 5: 📖Open Knowledge Sharing

We firmly believe open knowledge sharing is the key in facilitating multilateral cooperation, individual advocacy and decentralized community self-organization.

When knowledge is freely shared and accessible, it becomes a powerful tool for connecting individuals, communities, and organizations. It enables communities to tap into collective intelligence, share local wisdom, and adapt strategies to suit their specific needs and contexts.

[Our Approach 5] We maintain the Wiki.ForYouPage.Org, a shared advocacy and community resources database where everyone can contribute. We encourage everyone to contribute by bringing your knowledge and we encourage everyone to utilize this platform and its curated resources to advocate.

Principle 6: 🌉Coalition as the Bridge 

We firmly believe that stakeholders have a genuine desire to support youth, while young people are driven to create changes but need support and guidance, and we need to bridge the gap between these two sides. 

While stakeholders possess resources, expertise, and connections, young people often require support, guidance, and opportunities to fully realize their potential as change-makers. We aim to bridge the gap and to create a powerful synergy where stakeholders can provide the necessary support, mentorship, and resources more efficiently and effectively to empower young people to effectively drive change.

[Our Approach 6] We coach our youth volunteers in communication and perspective taking skills and we organize youth led community meetings where stakeholders and youth can come together to have dialogue.

Principle 7: 🌊Self Organization as Empowerment

We believe that self-organization is a vital ingredient in empowering the youth and fostering community-level engagement.

Fostering community-level engagement, self-organization builds stronger social connections, nurtures a sense of belonging, and empowers young people to be catalysts for change within their own communities. By providing the necessary tools, support, and guidance, we aim to facilitate the process of self-organization on all levels.

[Our Approach 7] We facilitate self-organizing advocacy by curating knowledge, providing resources and assisting individuals to take the lead, identify their passions, and drive their own initiatives. We facilitate community self-organization by providing community group chats and organizing community meetings. 

Principle 8: 🤹Youth Advocacy as Fun  

We believe that youth advocacy can transcend the boundaries of seriousness and embrace an element of joy and fun. 

By infusing our efforts with positivity, creativity, and a sense of playfulness, we attract a broader audience, inspire greater participation, and foster a vibrant and inclusive advocacy community. Embracing a fun-filled approach enables us to break down barriers, ignite passion, and generate a lasting impact in a way that resonates with young people worldwide.

[Our Approach 8] We strive to actively infuse fun and humor in all our external messages. And we encourage everyone  to infuse humor when contributing knowledge to our database of resources.

Principle 9: 💸No Monetary Incentive Involved

We believe that maintaining a platform free of monetary incentives is of utmost importance. 

Our commitment to this principle ensures that all operations within our platform are driven solely by the genuine desire to create a  positive change. By eliminating financial motivations, we create an environment where individuals engage and contribute without any form of obligations. All members strive to promote authenticity, transparency, and integrity in all our endeavors, focusing on the collective goal of advocating for a better world rather than a world full of personal gain.

[Our Approach 9] The donations received will only go towards server costs, event hosting costs, and towards the stipend for our core operations team. All working groups, organizational initiatives, and wiki databases are maintained by volunteers. We make most of our work public through wiki and keep it open for anyone to  freely contribute. There are no strings attached to anyone who wishes to directly contribute to our platform.

Principle 10: 👁A Coalition for You

We firmly believe it is critical that this coalition doesn’t serve us, but serves you and your advocacy.

We strongly believe that by fighting for the justice you believe in, by exploring your life, and finding your purpose, you empower the rest of us. Every member of this coalition strives to listen to you, support you, and serve your advocacy. By acting on your dream to advocate for change, you directly help this coalition be more impactful by creating real change, connecting communities, and uncovering knowledge and opportunities.

[Our Approach 10] With ForYouPage.org, the best way to help us is to help yourself. What community project and mental health initiatives do you want to do? How can we, our volunteers and our community best help you to achieve your advocacy dream?

By empowering each of us to become advocates, ForYouPage.Org aims to cultivate a generation of socially conscious leaders and equip ourselves with the skills, resilience, and determination to shape a better future by our own hands.

Be together to change together.