The ForYouPage.Org Manifesto
ForYouPage.org is a youth-led NGO and a global coalition of youth advocates 🧑🏼🤝🧑🏼👫👫🏾on a mission to 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, 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.
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 passion 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.
When we take on advocacy and challenge the status quo, we step out of comfort zones and embark on a transformative journey of personal growth. Advocacy provides a platform for us to channel our passions into meaningful action and to exercise our own power to contribute to causes we care about. By empowering each of us to become advocates, we 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.
Principle 2. Youth Advocacy is for Everyone
We believe youth advocacy encompasses any grassroots action that involves giving back to and exercising kindness in our communities.
We firmly believe that youth advocacy are not grand actions or only be 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 for kindness is youth advocacy. Embracing the idea that youth advocacy can come from anyone and any forms, we aim to empower all youth to make a meaningful difference. 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.
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 and work towards a common goal, they form connections that go beyond mere acquaintanceship. By enhancing the collaborative nature of advocacy projects, we foster genuine bonds between participants and build relationships 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.
Principle 4: Fully Youth Led Collective
We firmly believe youth advocacy should not be solitary battles fought by individuals. We strive to be a fully youth led collective.
When young people join forces, our voices resonate louder, our impact extends further, and our ability to enact meaningful change is greatly enhanced. The strength of youth advocacy lies in the convergence of diverse perspectives, experiences, and talents, all united under a common cause. 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. By establishing an environment that embraces our unique voices and experiences, we cultivate a sense of safety, belonging, and empowerment.
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.
We encourage everyone to contribute to this organization by bringing their knowledge and connections. And we encourage everyone to utilize this platform and its curated resources to advocate. 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. The power of collective wisdom and shared learning paves the way for transformative change.
Principle 6: Coalition as the bridge between the Youth and the relevant Stakeholders
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 networks, 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 and young individuals collaborate and work together towards common goals. It is through this coalition that stakeholders can provide the necessary support, mentorship, and resources more efficiently and effectively to empower young people to effectively drive change.
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. We strive to enable young advocates to take the lead, identify their passions, and drive their own initiatives.
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 can 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.
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 make positive changes. By eliminating financial motivations, we create an environment where individuals engage and contribute without any form of obligations. This approach promotes authenticity, transparency, and integrity in all our endeavors, allowing us to focus on the collective goal of advocating for a better world rather than personal gain.
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.
By acting on your dream to advocate for change, you directly help this coalition be more impactful by creating real change, connecting communities, uncovering knowledge and opportunities. 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.
Be together to change together.
Marx Wang
Muskan Gupta
Connor Farrell
Joanna Fang
Madison Alexander