When you facilitate co-design sessions with young people, you are seeking to unlock candid feedback you can learn from and apply to research and project goals. So, we asked our Youth Partners what makes them feel truly heard, valued, and excited to contribute.
Their feedback centered on four ingredients:
In the video below, hear what Youth Partners have to say about listening.
Turn Listening into Better Insights
Active listening means showing teens that their input is steering the conversation in real time. When you allow teens to show that their ideas are reshaping the discussion, the dynamic will shift. Your visible attentiveness, appreciation, and respect for what’s happening, will ensure the time spent together leads to meaningful insights.
By giving Youth Partners the space to challenge assumptions and guide the conversation, you will move beyond a standard Q&A. You will build a genuine partnership that leads to clear, actionable takeaways for your work.
In partnership with Character Lab, The Center for Digital Thriving, and Hopelab, we created the Youth Voice Playbook, which can be used as a starting guide or an ongoing resource when trying to maximize your time together!
Key sections of the Playbook to reference: