Youth working to improve young lives through research and advocacy

The goal of community-based participatory research (CBPR) is to develop, implement and disseminate research WITH the community. CBPR projects focused on health disparities affecting minority youth are increasingly engaging youth as research partners, yet there remains a dearth in the literature of youth perspectives on this process. Youth Empowered Advocating for Health (YEAH) is a youth-driven program of Strengthening The Black Family, Inc., based in Raleigh, North Carolina (NC), which grew out of a community-academic research partnership testing an HIV prevention intervention in African American faith settings. YEAH's mission is to raise awareness about the experiences of minority youth and how to better support them in avoiding risks and protecting themselves against HIV. YEAH, which is led by three Peer Leaders with adult support, provides training to youth in research, advocacy and leadership development to achieve its goals. This session will describe the process and outcomes of a year-long capacity-building process for YEAH Peer Leaders. Peer Leaders will discuss the research process we engaged in, using photovoice to explore sexual health issues affecting minority youth in NC, such as teen pregnancy and HIV/STDs. We will highlight the advocacy strategies we developed to translate our photovoice findings into action, and we will reflect on how our engagement in the YEAH program helped to develop our leadership skills and capacities to effect change. Finally, we will discuss the importance of ensuring youth voice is at the table in developing research and advocacy initiatives to combat the health disparities facing minority youth.