• Set up youth for success: Related to the above point, a lack of responsiveness from power holders can cause youth to become frustrated and disengage from politics. Although this is not in the direct control of a program implementer, it is important to mitigate these risks by seeking to support youth engagement through an avenue that exhibits a greater chance of responsiveness and accountability.  This is particularly important for youth who have less experience in politics, and those from marginalized communities. This risk can also be mitigated by intentional discussions with youth to manage their expectations, describing the long-term nature of political change and highlighting success stories from local and international contexts.

• Place youth in front: In spaces with power holders, it is important for youth to take an active leadership role to avoid being overshadowed by elders in the room. This is an important first step for youth to demonstrate their competence. For example, if NDI assists youth in organizing a meeting with power holders as part of a campaign, NDI should prepare youth to lead the meeting by introducing the goals of their campaign, discussing the issue at hand, and making an ask, where appropriate.

• Promote constructive approaches: NDI has seen that it is important for youth to take a constructive approach when engaging political leaders, by seeking their partnership in achieving a mutually beneficial goal. When leaders feel as if youth are accusing them of not adequately fulfilling their responsibilities or being ignorant of public problems, they are less likely to respond positively and take the requested action. When youth have taken a constructive, solutions-oriented approach where they express a desire to partner with power holders to address a public issue, leadership has been more supportive. It can also be beneficial for youth to describe how a particular issue is important to the welfare of their broader community, beyond issues often associated with youth, such as education or recreational issues.

As youth develop their agency and repeatedly interact with power holders, they can demonstrate their competence and establish value among power holders for youth participation. Value for youth participation is typically established when power holders see that young people have positive intentions, are capable of understanding complex political issues and processes, and have particular assets or ideas that can make a positive contribution to society or to a particular political organization. Establishing and building this value among power holders is critical for practices of youth participation and inclusion to change. Achieving this change takes time, and can be difficult depending on the political and cultural context. It also depends on which youth are involved, as leaders may be more or less receptive to young women or other marginalized youth.

NDI’s study identified the following recommendations for approaches to building value for youth participation:

• Prioritize youth-led interactions: The most impactful way to build value among power holders for youth participation is to provide opportunities for youth to interact with them and demonstrate their competence, as described above. This should be seen as the center of any program approach to improving how youth are perceived as activists and leaders in politics and public life.

• Where appropriate, make the case for youth participation: In contexts where a program implementer has relationships of trust with power holders, it can be helpful and appropriate to supplement youth-led work with separate efforts to demonstrate to power holders why youth participation is beneficial and provide assistance for how to better include young people. For example, in many places, NDI shares public opinion research with political party leaders demonstrating young people’s policy interests and perceptions of political parties. This can encourage leaders to better reach out to youth and work with them to shape more responsive policy positions, particularly in contexts where youth make up a significant proportion of the voting population. It is important for political leaders to understand that meaningful youth inclusion does not mean only using youth to do ground work during election periods, such as going door to door to gain votes, but also requires providing young people with meaningful input into party policy.

Building on established intergenerational relationships and some level of value for youth participation, continued collaboration can provide more opportunities for youth to contribute to policy discussions and share decision making power. This collaboration also strengthens relationships by establishing mutual understanding, trust and respect. Over time, this can contribute to developing norms of greater openness and inclusion of young people.

NDI’s study revealed the following lessons about leveraging and strengthening intergenerational relationships and collaboration:

• Support collaboration toward common interests: A shared issue of interest between youth and power holders can serve as an opportunity for collaboration. Identifying issues of common interest between youth and power holders can therefore be a key element of program strategies for youth programs.

• Seek and engage mentors for youth: In addition to providing openings for meaningful youth political influence, power holders who value youth participation can serve as mentors for young activists and aspiring leaders. These mentors can help advise youth on political strategies, and provide inspiration and encouragement for youth to continue their involvement in politics. Mentors can be particularly impactful if they are young themselves or otherwise reflect the identities of the youth in the program. For example, young women may feel more confident about their work if they see and engage with women leaders.