Youth Champions Program

FAQ

Eligibility

  • The youth cannot be a current staff-person of the Canadian SMO.
  • The youth can be a former staff-person of the Canadian SMO.
  • The youth can be a current staff-person of the Southern Partner of a Canadian SMO.
  • The youth can be a former staff-person of the Southern Partner of a Canadian SMO.

The Canadian youth can be someone who is here under a Temporary Resident visa for the duration of the Youth program.

  • Yes. The program has limited time, human and financial resources to creatively support coherent and meaningful engagement from non-English or French speakers. 
  • We are conscious that this may exclude many participants from the Global South and are further reflecting on how we can best include them in the program in the future. 
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  • No. The youth do not need to have a prior affiliation with an SMO to apply; however, the youth in collaboration with Spur Change will need to find an SMO that would be willing to participate in the program, commit to the 3 hours/week and collaborate and work with the youth throughout. 
  • The program is meant to be collaborative for both the youth and the SMO. 
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Youth need to be between 18 to 35 years of age at the beginning of the program, January 2023. If you turn 36 later on, then you can still apply. 

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  • No. An SMO does not have to be a member of a provincial or regional Council for international cooperation in order to participate in any Spur Change programming.
  • We do encourage SMOs to pursue membership with the provincial or regional Councils for international cooperation as it would provide them with many benefits and opportunities. 
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  • Yes, ideally the SMO will need to find a youth that would be willing to participate in the program, commit to the 5 hours/week and collaborate and work with the them throughout. If unable to apply with a youth, your organization may still be considered if a suitable youth (location, interests, etc.) happens to apply. 
  • The program is meant to be a collaborative for the SMO and youth. 
  • No. The SMO doesn’t need to have a prior affiliation with a youth to apply.

Nomination / Application Process

  • SMOs can nominate more than one youth, they can nominate more than one Canadian youth, and more than one international youth, and they can nominate an international and a Canadian youth, but that does not mean that they will be able to work with multiple youth. See below:
  • SMOs will be able to work with a maximum of one national and one international youth (one SMO with two youth).
  • If other SMOs apply, we will certainly favour diversity than concentration, so we would pick a two SMO scenario, over a one-SMO scenario.

Yes. As most of the activities will be online, there wouldn’t be an issue. 

Selection

  • The program will select a total of 16 to 20 youth per year, anticipating equal numbers of those youth will be international and Canadian. This assumes that one international youth and one Canadian youth will be nominated by an SMO headquartered or working in one of the 8 provinces / regions of Canada. (The 8 provinces/regions correspond to the geographic jurisdictions of the provincial and regional Councils for international cooperation)
  • If there are no applicants or candidates from one region, the program will allow flexibility to accommodate multiple youth/SMO pairings from other regions, with preference for regional representation and diversity.

Training

These will be determined based on a) the availability of program participants which will be gauged through a questionnaire sent out to selected candidates, and b) the opportunity to leverage pre-planned training events that could be of benefit to program participants. 

The workshops will be online and most collaboration will occur virtually. 

  • Spur Change will do its utmost to accommodate the availability and realities of as many participants as possible when scheduling workshops and meetings. Recognizing youth will be joining from across the world, accommodation can be available to ensure proper internet access for their online participation. 
  • If a program participant is unable to attend a workshop or occasionally meet any of the training program expectations they are required to communicate this ahead of time to Spur Change program staff, so that appropriate alternatives are found. For example, in the case of a missed workshop, it would be likely that they would be required to view the recording and send substantial feedback to the Spur Change program staff.
  • If a program participant is regularly unable to meet training program expectations they are also required to communicate this ahead of time to Spur Change program staff to identify whether there is a possibility to work on a modified program, that would be agreed upon in writing, or whether there would need to be consideration of termination.
  • Workshops: Unfortunately no, the online workshops will be quite participatory and the space and content will be tailored to program participants. 
  • Resources: Participants in the YCP program are welcome to share resources and tools outside of the program. Spur Change distributing these materials more widely isn’t currently our practice as they are quite specific generally speaking. 

Financial Matters

In short, no. The participating SMO will not be fully compensated financially for the time allotted to the YCP program however, a $250 CAD stipend will be offered to the participating organization to help offset the staff time. We encourage you to take a look at our Becoming a Mentor document which briefly outlines the benefits for participating organizations. Alternatively, if you missed our info session, the recording is available on the YCP main page

 

Still have questions regarding the value of the program after that? Don’t hesitate to contact Marie-Catherine (mariecatherine.thouin@acgc.ca) who will be more than happy to have a chat and explain any details further.   

Selected candidates will be sent a letter of agreement, which will include guidelines on eligible expenses. This will be at the onset of the program, well before any public engagement planning gets underway. 

Inter-Council Network-Réseau de coordination des conseils