A local government guide to youth participation, face the challenge, take the risk, enjoy the ride.

Glenorchy City Council, 2003, 38pp.

Unlike the material on youth participation produced in recent years by researchers and academics, this publication is based on local government experience of establishing and fostering youth participation. The guide, a joint initiative of the Tasmanian Government and the Glenorchy City Council, outlines the general principles of youth participation including depictions and explanations of models of youth participation, a list of key ingredients for effective youth participation and an expanded list of ideas, suggestions and options for setting up or further developing youth participation.

The guide also describes the specific response of this suburban council to the challenge of youth participation in a municipality that has high rates of unemployment and school retention rates below the State average.

The final section of the guide provides other councils with a checklist to enable them to gauge their current level of youth participation. It then provides a step by step guide to thinking about, designing and implementing measures to increase youth participation at the local government level. Resource and contact lists are included.

Australian local governments will find this publication a valuable resource when establishing or refining youth participation programs. The guide is available free of charge from the Glenorchy City Council, ph: [phone] and the Office of Youth Affairs Tasmania, ph: [phone], email: [e-mail]