Trainers become Leaders: Youth Leadership in Sexual Reproductive Health and Training of Trainers Program

The Public Health Institutes' Youth Leadership in Sexual and Reproductive Health Program (GOJoven) has trained 94 young professionals between the ages of 18-30 from Belize, Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico in the fields of leadership and adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH). GOJoven provides intensive training on a range of topics, including personal leadership, advocacy and policy change. A select cadre of these Fellows participates in the GOJoven Training of Trainers (TOT) program, developing their skills as trainers through participatory techniques to ensure that they are skilled and confident in their abilities to train not only their peers, but other educators and personnel in non-governmental and governmental agencies in their communities. From 2004-2010, 23 TOT graduates have positively impacted more than 2,000 people in Mesoamerica by providing comprehensive ASRH training and serving as informed resources in their communities. More than a peer education program, the TOT program builds the professional capacity of young leaders and their abilities to reach diverse populations, including indigenous, marginalized and rural youth, as well as civil society and government agencies. Applying their unique knowledge of the language and cultural norms of their communities to the design and implementation of the techniques and information they replicate, TOT graduates improve community health. Implementing a comprehensive approach to ASRH for government agencies, the civil society sector, and other decision-makers, GOJoven Fellows have the opportunity to influence priority areas in ASRH.