Registration is now open for Changing the Way We See Youth in Conflict with the Law, an online workshop taking place on Wednesday, March 22nd, from 6PM to 8PM ET.

Join YouthREX to explore how youth workers can draw from a Critical Positive Youth Development framework to support youth in conflict with the law as partners and agents in their…

Read more

Jack.org is accepting applications for the first ever Central Jack Summit, which brings together the next generation of mental health leaders and advocates from across Ontario and Quebec to discuss the most pressing mental health issues youth face in their communities. This brand-new Summit focuses on the mental health landscape in Central…

Read more

Curious about how you can improve your evaluation processes? Interested in identifying what kinds of data can tell the story of your program’s impact and legacy?

YouthREX & ArtReach are excited to co-present Evaluation 101, an online workshop for Toronto youth aged 13-29, on Wednesday, November 2nd, from 6:00PM to 8:00PM.

This interactive…

Read more

If you’re looking for resources on cannabis to share with young folks in your life, check out the redesigned What’s With Weed webpage! YouthREX collaborated with a variety of partners — including young people! — to redesign a youth-friendly one-stop-shop on everything they might ask about cannabis and cannabis use.

Take a look through the …

Read more

The Jamaican Canadian Association and partners are hosting a COVID-19 vaccination information and pop-up clinic for African, Black & Caribbean communities on July 3-4 at the JCA Centre at 995 Arrow Road. Ages 12+, OHIP not required.

The Ontario Non-Profit Network (ONN) is hiring a Data Strategy Manager. The ideal candidate will bring policy skills, a collaborative style, project management experience, and a passion for leveraging data to support learning and decision-making.

The ONN looking for a leader with knowledge of the public policy process in Ontario, data…

Read more

So glad that you found the resources helpful, Erin!

I was not able to find much else, although I did discover that a resource by MENTOR, Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring, seems to be the source of the Ontario Mentoring Coalition benchmarks (see Standard 6: Closure on p. 70), and might provide some additional context. 😊

Mindfulness-Based Wellbeing for Black Women is a 5-week virtual mindfulness program for young Black women in their 20s, facilitated by Planned Parenthood Toronto, Elizabeth Fry Toronto, and The Centre for Mindfulness Studies. The program will take place on Tuesdays, June 1 to 29, from 3-5pm. To sign up, email MindfulnessForYoungBlackWomen@gmail.com.

Brighter Days: An Indigenous Wellness Program by Kids Help Phone was developed by Indigenous experts to empower First Nations, Inuit and Métis youth with skills, tools and resources to support their well-being. The program is offered to any group of Indigenous youth from eight to 29 years old in both audio and video format.

You can find out…

Read more

Laidlaw Foundation is granting up to $30,000 to Indigenous youth-led groups that are based in remote and urban territories spanning Ontario. Through the Indigenous Youth & Community Futures Fund (IYCFF), the Foundation invests in opportunities for Indigenous youth to connect with their land, languages and cultures, and strengthen and deepen…

Read more

Diversifying our feeds is so important; thanks for the recommendation, Emily!

This is beautiful, thank you for sharing! We (at YouthREX) recently hosted a (short) film screening and discussion centred on creating healing spaces for young Black men. It was a really engaging and inspiring event; I would recommend checking it out, if you have the time. (You can find a recording of the event and a link to the short film here.)

Yes!! Encouraging young people to evaluate their use is so important, and I think this is where harm reduction approaches are really helpful. If we think of cannabis use as a continuum or matrix, we can recognize that not all use is harmful, but that certain types of use are associated with greater risks. We need to provide young people with…

Read more

Thank you, Kathe! 👏 For anyone who is interested in sharing info from this factsheet, check out the Insta-friendly images I shared by clicking on the Photos or Albums tabs!

Great question, Chantal! I’m also curious to hear how folks are addressing stigma in their practice, especially as it pertains to intersecting identities. This piece about the Black Queer Youth initiative identifies stigma as a major challenge for Black youth who identify as LGBTQ2S, along with racism and exclusion.

Thank you, Mitch, for sharing your experiences. You’re absolutely right, change really does require ongoing reflection and work.

In order to move from research to practice, I think we also need to consider how to have difficult conversations about race and racial injustice. This toolkit outlines ten practices that may be helpful in pushing for organizational change (and getting others on board).

Such an important discussion! 👏

Thank you for sharing, Jae! I agree, it is so important to be critical of the information we consume, especially now that a number of different actors have a vested interest in promoting cannabis use. Young people should be aware of the risks and benefits of cannabis use, so that they are able to make their own (informed!) decisions.

This is a really interesting point, and may actually be supported by research! I listened to a podcast recently that discusses the idea of psychic numbing (when we feel indifferent to the suffering of large number of people). The guest, who is a psychologist, suggests that emotion (stories) may have a much bigger impact on our decision-making…

Read more

Absolutely, allyship is critical! This reminds me of a factsheet we developed a couple of years ago, which lays out four practices for effective allyship: (1) listen more than you speak, (2) be receptive to feedback and criticism, (3) commit to ongoing learning, and (4) help amplify voices. Simple, but powerful. ✨

Thank you for sharing, Kristina! It’s so interesting to hear about the different ways folks are integrating research into their work. I love the idea of thinking chronologically, and considering all the different sites of interaction.

That’s a great point, Anca. Race-based data is critical if we are to develop programming that better serves Black youth.

Planned Parenthood is looking for new board members!

Ideal candidates will have a commitment to equity, youth-positivity, sex-positivity and pro-choice philosophy in their work or life and any the following qualifications:

• Governance experience (policy board experience)
• Collaborative governance in health systems
• Anti-Oppression and…

Read more

Thank you for sharing your experiences, Zarina. I agree that there is a lot of work that needs to be done in the education system to confront anti-Black racism. Research has shown, again and again, that Black students are disproportionately suspended, expelled, and streamed into lower-level classes… and that the impacts of these…

Read more

I think Africentric programming might be a great place to start. I’m thinking, for example, of organizations such as The African Canadian Heritage Association, which has been doing this work since 1969. In 2016, their youth group worked with Sean Mauricette, aka SUBLIMINAL, to produce a really powerful track entitled “My History”.

If you’re…

Read more

Planned Parenthood Toronto, with the support of Toronto Urban Health Fund, is seeking volunteers for a Youth Advisory Committee that will help to develop, shape and deliver a new drop-in program for other young men and masculine youth. This volunteer opportunity is open to all young men and masculine identified youth between the ages of 16-26…

Read more

This YouthREX factsheet identifies six signs of risky or harmful cannabis use. I’m curious to hear if others have found these helpful in their work. How else can we support youth in evaluating their use?

So cool, thanks for sharing!

I think this guide might be helpful for youth workers and caregivers. It addresses common claims about cannabis (“It is commonly claimed…”) and provides a summary of the current scientific evidence (“But research suggests…”). It’s an accessible resource that takes a harm reduction approach.

One of the things that stood out to me is that it is illegal to have ‘open’ cannabis in a vehicle (i.e., the same logic as ‘open container’ liquor laws). If you’re transporting cannabis and it’s not in the trunk, it must be sealed AND in its original packaging. I found this especially interesting considering dried cannabis cannot be…

Read more