National Youth Service Capacity Building
Investing in capacity building and technical
assistance to other countries in developing
National Youth Service policies and programs
Read ICP's White Paper: "Youth Civic Engagement as a Strategy for US Foreign Aid and Policy"
PROPOSAL:
As our own country’s experience with AmeriCorps demonstrates, service can be a powerful tool to with which to address social issues, particularly when the approaches are generated by communities rather than imposed on them. Supporting these nascent efforts should be part of our foreign policy. ICP believes that lasting change must come through the efforts of countries to solve their own problems. Young people can be mobilized through well-designed high quality national youth service programs to help address many of the most important development challenges facing their communities.
Benefits would accrue both to foreign countries, and the United States, if the US supported the capacity of other countries to employ national youth service as a strategy to provide young people with constructive opportunities that benefit themselves and their communities. Youth service programs empower young people to play an active role in their communities’ development, while gaining the experience, knowledge, values and life skills necessary for employment and full citizenship. They can also contribute to achieving national priorities such as nation-building and improving governance.
ICP is convinced that the Administration and Secretary of State should craft a program to be housed in the State Department, USAID or Peace Corps to support the efforts of other countries, with technical assistance, so that they can use service and service-learning to increase their own capacity to address their own pressing development needs. This proposal is consistent with the new Administration’s “smart power” approach and interest in developing new tools to support its foreign policy objectives. Assistance to other countries to build the necessary infrastructure and policy environment for national and community service is an appropriate and timely new tool for these new public diplomacy efforts. This proposal is also consistent with the objectives President Obama outlined in his recent speeches in Ghana and Cairo.
IMPLEMENTATION
1.) The US government will provide new funds ($50 million a year) that are specifically designated to the State Department, USAID or Peace Corps to provide technical assistance to build the capacity of other countries to design, implement, and support national youth service programs and service-learning programs in non-governmental organizations, schools and universities. The US agency overseeing this initiative will work with qualified nonprofits with extensive domestic and international experience in these areas to assist with assessing, designing and implementing technical assistance projects.
The US government will provide enough financial support to help countries design and implement high quality programs and to evaluate them for effectiveness. To be eligible and to ensure successful programs, foreign countries must:
3.) The US government will provide new funds ($10 million a year) to support the development and maintenance of a virtual clearinghouse that provides a centralized place for practitioners, policymakers, researchers and others interested in youth service and service learning to access the relevant literature as well as a listserv or other electronic mechanism so that interested parties around the world can converse in real time. These funds would also be used to develop and disseminate other materials useful to the development of national service and service-learning programs, and provide a space using digital technology for exchange of ideas and experience and to promote the development of an international community of practice related to national service and service-learning. Participants of the exchange programs mentioned above will be engaged in this virtual community of practice, which will track their progress in designing and implementing programs with knowledge gained from the exchange program. A qualified nonprofit will be contracted to design, house and maintain this clearinghouse and virtual community of practice.
4.) The US government would provide funds ($2 million a year) to the International Association for National Youth Service (IANYS) for the planning and implementation of an international conference held biennially in different regions of the world, as well as ongoing communication, research and networking support. The conference supports the development of an international community of practice for professionals working in national service and service-learning programs, policymakers, thought leaders and young people around the world. IANYS has organized 8 such international conferences over the past 20 years. Previous conferences have been held in Ghana, Argentina, Israel, the UK, Papua New Guinea, Nigeria, and the US. The 8th Global conference in 2008 was held in Paris, France and involved participants from 42 countries. The 9th Global conference is scheduled to be held in Alexandria, Egypt in October 2010.
Read ICP's White Paper: "Youth Civic Engagement as a Strategy for US Foreign Aid and Policy"
PROPOSAL:
As our own country’s experience with AmeriCorps demonstrates, service can be a powerful tool to with which to address social issues, particularly when the approaches are generated by communities rather than imposed on them. Supporting these nascent efforts should be part of our foreign policy. ICP believes that lasting change must come through the efforts of countries to solve their own problems. Young people can be mobilized through well-designed high quality national youth service programs to help address many of the most important development challenges facing their communities.
Benefits would accrue both to foreign countries, and the United States, if the US supported the capacity of other countries to employ national youth service as a strategy to provide young people with constructive opportunities that benefit themselves and their communities. Youth service programs empower young people to play an active role in their communities’ development, while gaining the experience, knowledge, values and life skills necessary for employment and full citizenship. They can also contribute to achieving national priorities such as nation-building and improving governance.
ICP is convinced that the Administration and Secretary of State should craft a program to be housed in the State Department, USAID or Peace Corps to support the efforts of other countries, with technical assistance, so that they can use service and service-learning to increase their own capacity to address their own pressing development needs. This proposal is consistent with the new Administration’s “smart power” approach and interest in developing new tools to support its foreign policy objectives. Assistance to other countries to build the necessary infrastructure and policy environment for national and community service is an appropriate and timely new tool for these new public diplomacy efforts. This proposal is also consistent with the objectives President Obama outlined in his recent speeches in Ghana and Cairo.
IMPLEMENTATION
1.) The US government will provide new funds ($50 million a year) that are specifically designated to the State Department, USAID or Peace Corps to provide technical assistance to build the capacity of other countries to design, implement, and support national youth service programs and service-learning programs in non-governmental organizations, schools and universities. The US agency overseeing this initiative will work with qualified nonprofits with extensive domestic and international experience in these areas to assist with assessing, designing and implementing technical assistance projects.
The US government will provide enough financial support to help countries design and implement high quality programs and to evaluate them for effectiveness. To be eligible and to ensure successful programs, foreign countries must:
- develop well-designed, high quality national youth service programs to help address many of the most important development challenges facing their communities.
- provide training for young people that would enhance the employment prospects for those participants without skills.
- contract with nonprofit organizations with demonstrated records of accomplishment to provide them with necessary training and technical assistance, including curricular and other materials, that are culturally appropriate and sensitive.
- agree to develop a set of
measurable outcomes based on the provision of
technical
assistance.
3.) The US government will provide new funds ($10 million a year) to support the development and maintenance of a virtual clearinghouse that provides a centralized place for practitioners, policymakers, researchers and others interested in youth service and service learning to access the relevant literature as well as a listserv or other electronic mechanism so that interested parties around the world can converse in real time. These funds would also be used to develop and disseminate other materials useful to the development of national service and service-learning programs, and provide a space using digital technology for exchange of ideas and experience and to promote the development of an international community of practice related to national service and service-learning. Participants of the exchange programs mentioned above will be engaged in this virtual community of practice, which will track their progress in designing and implementing programs with knowledge gained from the exchange program. A qualified nonprofit will be contracted to design, house and maintain this clearinghouse and virtual community of practice.
4.) The US government would provide funds ($2 million a year) to the International Association for National Youth Service (IANYS) for the planning and implementation of an international conference held biennially in different regions of the world, as well as ongoing communication, research and networking support. The conference supports the development of an international community of practice for professionals working in national service and service-learning programs, policymakers, thought leaders and young people around the world. IANYS has organized 8 such international conferences over the past 20 years. Previous conferences have been held in Ghana, Argentina, Israel, the UK, Papua New Guinea, Nigeria, and the US. The 8th Global conference in 2008 was held in Paris, France and involved participants from 42 countries. The 9th Global conference is scheduled to be held in Alexandria, Egypt in October 2010.