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The Decisive Contribution of Youth to Community Well-Being

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Handbook of Community Well-Being Research

Part of the book series: International Handbooks of Quality-of-Life ((IHQL))

Abstract

A common theme in the discourse on community well-being is the participation of the community in its development. Since external resources are often limited, community members need to take charge of their own development—a process which should assist them to engage in deliberate action to improve their quality of life. Some community members may be involved in this process as professionals; however, it is not sufficient for community participation to be reduced to their efforts alone. A great deal of time and energy from many volunteers are required. Although all members of a community can contribute in one way or another, one of the most important resources a community possesses is its young people. Recognizing the agency of young people and highlighting the importance of volunteering one’s time to the well-being of the community can substantially broaden the potential for greater participation in community development. To begin, we articulate some of our key terms—including ‘community’, ‘community well-being’, and ‘community development’—and the relationships among them. We then suggest a conceptualization of youth and community development that establishes a mutually reinforcing relationship between the two. We note that the capacity of youth to contribute to the well-being of their communities needs to be deliberately built through educational programs and thus examine the characteristics of programs that build capacity in youth to participate meaningfully in community development. We conclude by reviewing a few examples of Canadian programs that incorporate some of these characteristics.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Montreal, Montréal, Canada

    Ilya Shodjaee-Zrudlo

  2. Wordswell Association for Communtiy Learning, Canada, Canada

    Hoda Farahmandpour

Authors
  1. Ilya Shodjaee-Zrudlo
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  2. Hoda Farahmandpour
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Correspondence to Hoda Farahmandpour .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Honors College and Agricultural Economics, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA

    Rhonda Phillips

  2. School of Environment, Education and Development, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom

    Cecilia Wong

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Shodjaee-Zrudlo, I., Farahmandpour, H. (2017). The Decisive Contribution of Youth to Community Well-Being. In: Phillips, R., Wong, C. (eds) Handbook of Community Well-Being Research. International Handbooks of Quality-of-Life. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-0878-2_27

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-0878-2_27

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  • Online ISBN: 978-94-024-0878-2

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