Our work

In Canada young people’s positive social, environmental and economic impact is valued, amplified and supported, and intergenerational collaboration is prioritized and nurtured. 

The Youth and Innovation Project aims to understand and amplify the positive social, environmental and economic impact young people, 15 to 25 years old, have on organizations, communities and systems.  

• To conduct research on the positive social, environmental and economic impact young people, 15 to 25 years old, have on organizations, communities and systems as well as intergenerational collaboration. 

• To use these research findings to inform youth-focused public policy, funding, programs and practices, as well as intergenerational collaboration in business, civil society, academia and government.  

• Social and environmental impact research: This research measures the social and environmental impact young people have through youth-led organizations, youth-led movements, youth service and volunteerism programs and aims to determine how best to amplify young people’s impact. We also aim to better understand and amplify intergenerational collaboration within organizations, communities and systems. 
• Economic impact research: This research measures the economic, social and environmental impact of young prospective and current employees have on the organizations they work in and aims to determine how best to amplify young people’s impact. We also aim to better understand and amplify intergenerational collaboration in the workplace. 

• Knowledge dissemination: Using our evidence-based insights we advise civil society, academia, government and business on the design of policy, funding, programs and practices to ensure that young people can have a positive social, environmental and economic impact as well as encouraging intergenerational collaboration in business, civil society, academia and government. 

• We work to change systems, not just individuals.  

• We work towards the implementation the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.  

• We work towards the implementation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action. 

• We engage young people in our work as equal and active contributors. This means that young people benefit from our work, including being financially compensated a living wage for their work with us. 

• We ensure our research is rigorous and results in peer-reviewed outputs.  

• We ensure our research is accessible to those who can put our findings into practice. 

• We ensure a diversity of experiences and backgrounds are centred in our work. 

• We recognize the importance of lived experience.  

• We provide support, both financial and process-based, to enable full participation for those experiencing barriers. 

• We recognize our own biases and challenge them.  

• We acknowledge the ways in which power and privilege impact our work and spaces our work takes place in. We actively work to address power imbalances. 

• We ensure our workplace prioritizes the health and well-being of our team. 

• We are part of the University of Waterloo community and adhere to the values and policies of the university.   

In order to achieve our objectives, we use the following approach: 

1. ‘Nothing about us without us’: From the beginning of any project and throughout a project, we engage our Youth Advisory Council as well as other young stakeholders in designing and implementing our studies to ensure that a youth voice is embedded throughout our work. 

2. Gain a broad understanding: We conduct literature reviews or other scans that look at an issue or topic from a broad interdisciplinary perspective.  

3. Conduct research: We use a mix of quantitative and qualitative research methods to gather data, analyse data and write academic manuscripts and research reports.  

4. Test our findings: We test our findings again by conducting further research, as well as pressure testing our findings by sharing them with those with lived experience and academic expertise including our Youth Advisory Council, practitioners and other academics. 

5. Share our findings broadly with decision-makers: We aim to reach 16% of decision-makers in the Canadian government, civil society and business in order to create a tipping point in the system. 

6. Changing policy and resource flows: We work to institutionalize our findings by changing youth-focused public policy, funding, programs and practices.