We can learn a lot from youth-led organizations. With so many youth taking on leadership roles within pressing social movements, it is clear just how determined young people are to build a world that is equitable and fair. The future is bright for Canadian youth.

Young people know that above individual actions, the actions of large corporations and powerful organizations speak loud and should lead the way of impact, and they want to see the institutions around them invest in the issues they care about.

Because it’s not always visible and shows in more subtle ways than physical conditions, mental health is often less of a priority. By implementing a tangible mental health strategy, your organization is providing concrete steps on dealing with these issues and destigmatizing mental health.

The narrative of hustle culture ignores systemic determinants of the world we live in. A person’s race, economic class, or the family they were born into all contribute to their ability to achieve their idea of success. Someone who was born into a position of privilege is already starting ahead of someone who was not. Working-class people are often people stuck working in labour-intensive jobs for more hours and less money.

Youth are also mobilizing the vaccine movement on social media, by posting to Instagram, TikTok and Twitter to alert others once they’ve been inoculated. Young people are the largest demographic on social media, and with the popularization of vaccine posts, youth have increased online vaccine visibility by making it a celebratory event, and in turn, contributing to less vaccine hesitancy.

“It's so important to first recognize and understand the respects of an Indigenous community. For example, if there was a project proposed to go into an area that has previously only been known by Indigenous lifeways and is a pristine landscape that hasn't been altered by any projects, it's important to respect that there is wildlife and the land is living. The land is very respected by us because it has always been taught that land is sacred by our elders.”

Organizations and institutions often say they care about an issue, but without action to prove it, it comes off as performative - and young Canadians pay attention to that. As one of the demographics most affected by climate change, young people are concerned about the environment, and we want to see that your organization is too.

Gatekeeping is nothing new, in fact, it is somewhat of a cultural tradition. When a newcomer — specifically a young person — joins an organization, they are often relegated to the bottom of the social and professional hierarchy until they work their way up. Gatekeeping intentionally keeps someone uninformed and therefore, keeps them in a powerless position.

We all know the archetype of the unpaid intern. They spend their days getting coffee and doing the work no one wants to do, while receiving little to no recognition from full-time staff. This is justified as a means of ‘getting a foot in the door’ and gaining industry experience that will hopefully lead to a successful career. But in critically thinking about unpaid internships, we can see that they are out of date and exploitative.