To help you decide if the Youth Policy Program is right for you, we have answered our most frequently asked questions. And, if you have more questions not answered below, please do not hesitate to email us at ypp@vancouverfoundation.ca.
1. What is the age range for ‘youth’?
The LEVEL Youth Policy Program (YPP) is open to self-identified Indigenous and racialized immigrant and refugee youth and young adults between the ages of 19 to 29.
2. Do I need to have previous experience in policy or non-profit work?
No. Previous education, work or volunteer experience in policy is not required. The YPP is an opportunity to learn about the public policy process, gain new skills and deepen existing knowledge.
3. What is the time commitment required?
The full program duration will be from February to September. Depending on public health orders at the time, we hope to deliver a hybrid program, with both in-person and virtual gatherings.
- In-person modules will take place between 8:30am to 4:30pm, three days a month.
- Online modules will take place between 8:30am to 12:30pm, four days a month.
- Optional virtual socials to connect with your peers in the evenings.
Participants will also be matched with a faculty member/mentor to be guided throughout the development of their projects. These scheduled phone calls and/or meetings with mentors will be mandatory. Participants will also attend video calls with staff, facilitators and subject matter experts between Module 5 and 6 as they develop their policy ask.
4. I am interested in the program; however, I cannot attend all of the training modules. Should I still apply?
We will prioritize those applicants who can commit to attending all the training modules. The 2024 dates for the modules are:
- Welcome Social: Feb 1 | 2 hours – Online
- Meet the Elders: Feb 5-8 | 30mins – Online
- Module 1: Introduction to Public Policy and Each Other | Feb 14 & 15, and Feb 21 & 22 – Online
- Module 2: Public Policy in BC | Mar 13 & 14, and Mar 20 & 21 – Online
- Module 3: Stakeholder Analysis and Budget Cycles | Apr 11 & 12, and Apr 17 & 18 – Online
- Module 4: Canadian Government and Indigenous Governance | May 1, 2 & 3, – In Person (Victoria, BC)
- Module 5: Storytelling and New Narratives in Shaping Policy | Jun 12 & 13, and Jun 19 & 20 – Online
- Module 6 Prep | Sep 18 & 19 – Online
- Module 6: Reflecting and Moving Forward | Sep 25, 26 & 27 – In Person- (Vancouver, BC)
Please note that these dates are subject to change depending on public health orders.
5. How much travel is required in YPP?
Ensuring geographical representation is a priority for Vancouver Foundation. We are committed to supporting participants across “British Columbia” by covering all associated expenses to ensure your full engagement. This support includes travel, meals, and accommodation for our in-person modules held in both “Victoria” and “Vancouver.” While these modules provide valuable opportunities for peer bonding, it’s important to note that they might require some adjustment for certain individuals. Kindly consider your comfort level with commuting to and from these locations for your participation.
6. If I’m not comfortable meeting in person, is there an option to participate virtually?
Yes, if there are public health orders in effect, we can accommodate virtual participation for in-person gatherings if you do not feel comfortable attending. However, in the absence of public health orders, we ask that you participate in person.
7. I am currently going to school full-time/working full-time. Will you provide a letter to my instructors/professors or employers to support my request for time off to attend the YPP?
We can provide letters to confirm your participation as one of the selected applicants and share the purpose of the program and the unique leadership opportunity it presents. Everything else in regard to making up assignments and exams for your courses or approved time off from work will have to be negotiated between you and your school and/or employer. We hope this letter is helpful when you ask your employer and/or professor(s) for time off ahead of time.
8. Will you require proof of COVID-19 vaccination?
As we follow BC public health orders, we hope to deliver YPP through a blend of gathering in person and online. And to ensure the safety of everyone including other participants, staff, faculty, and elders, we encourage folks to have up to date COVID-19 vaccinations.
9. Can you provide a general overview of the activities, assignments and learning?
Participants of YPP will join a cohort of other young leaders from across B.C. to strengthen their understanding of public policy. This will include individual and group-based assignments and activities.
Examples include:
- Short readings
- Videos
- Hands-on activities such as meetings with mentors
- Interviewing members of the local community to better understand an issue, learning about different advocacy campaigns or documenting personal learning reflections.
Participants are expected to complete the assignments on time. Visit our Policy Project Library to see the previous cohort’s policy asks.
10. Will there be a final test or essay?
There is no test! Participants will each work on a policy project that supports their learning objectives. This includes producing a policy position paper or drafting a specific policy ask.
Participants will be given a $1,500 research stipend to support their projects. Vancouver Foundation will provide design, editing, high quality printing and other supports to produce a final project report that participants can be proud of. Participants will also be matched with a faculty member /mentor to get guidance and support throughout the development of their policy projects.
11. What training materials will participants receive?
Each participant will receive a workbook that contains all the learning objectives for each module, readings, assignments, links to short videos and other resources as needed. The workbook materials and resources will also be available online on the LEVEL website for program participants. If any of the participants are facing barriers related to internet or computer access, we will explore ways to support program needs and ensure ongoing access to training and learning materials.
12. How is Indigenous knowledge woven into the development of the program and how will it manifest throughout the program?
YPP will work from and within Indigenous people’s worldviews, which can vary from person to person or nation to nation. Work to embed Indigenous knowledge has gone into developing this training and we continuously focus and center on that fact. The training itself will primarily take place in Vancouver or online on the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Tsleil-Waututh and Squamish peoples and seek to follow local protocols. Participants will be encouraged to reflect on what it means to do policy and advocacy work on unceded Indigenous territories and to weave these learnings throughout the development of their policy projects. For example, the faculty will be comprised of Indigenous and diverse leaders, speakers, and trainers who will help ground the policy conversations by introducing participants to concepts of Indigenous governance.
13. How does YPP prioritize Indigenous participants and their safety?
We acknowledge and value that Indigenous identity, culture, history, and lands are globalized. This shared indigeneity and history of harm and struggle strengthens the spirit of solidarity, collective responsibility, and liberation.
The LEVEL YPP program will prioritize applications from Indigenous youth from the hxʷəθkwəyəm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and Səlílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) nations.
We recognize that Indigenous Identity fraud is an increasingly emerging issue, and a dire impact of colonization. When applications rely on self-identification only, it can invite identity fraud in the following ways:
- Complete dishonesty (no Indigenous ancestor)
- Claiming identity based on distant archival ancestors
- The person involved has no ongoing extended familial connection to an Indigenous community, and no reason not to be connected (60’s scoop, foster care, crime, etc.)
Indigenous identity fraud causes harm to Indigenous people and communities.
We are committed to providing cultural safety for the Indigenous Peoples and communities we work with. Therefore, we encourage candidates to reflect and self-identify honestly, as this helps us ensure that these opportunities are accessible to those for whom they are intended.
14. Which identities does YPP prioritize?
The strength of YPP as a program is in the diversity of the participants who bring unique and intersecting identities and experiences. In addition to Indigenous applicants, YPP also prioritizes candidates who identify as Black/ of African descent, racialized immigrant and refugee young people that have had the experience of migration, including students that came to Canada through the WUSC refugee program, as live-in care givers or the temporary foreign workers program.
15. Is there a cost to participate in YPP?
No. There is no financial cost or registration fee to participate in the program. If public health orders allow us to meet in person and if you live outside of the Metro Vancouver region, you may be eligible to have travel and accommodation costs covered (please see the question below). We do ask for your commitment of time, energy and focus in attending all the training modules and actively participating with your peers, faculty and mentors.
16. Are travel, accommodation costs and meals provided?
For all our in-person gatherings, all travel, accommodation, and meals costs will be covered by Vancouver Foundation for participants who live outside of the Metro Vancouver region. For participants living within the Metro Vancouver region, transit tickets will be available. Refreshments and meals will be provided for all participants during the in-person modules. We will try to accommodate everyone’s dietary restrictions as much as possible.
17. How does YPP provide an environment for you to thrive?
We strive to listen to and accommodate the needs of participants. Previous cohorts have shared the importance of providing culturally safe support throughout the YPP journey to establish a brave and safe learning environment that promotes bold and courageous conversations within the YPP community.
In pursuit of this objective, we are firmly committed to offering culturally sensitive, trauma-informed, and trauma-responsive support throughout the program. Vancouver Foundation will cover the cost for youth to access Elders and trauma-informed therapists. Alternatively, if participants already have a relationship with a counsellor, they can choose to continue working with them. Additionally, we have a dedicated and supportive team of staff and faculty you can always lean on in your journey in YPP.
18. Do you provide multilingual support and translations?
Fluency in spoken English and at least basic proficiency in reading and writing English is a requirement to be part of this program as the program will be delivered in English. While we value language diversity and see this as an asset, the program currently does not have the capacity to provide multilingual translations or interpretation for each module or to translate the policy projects. We encourage participants who speak multiple languages to incorporate them into their policy projects.
19. Do you provide childcare/elderly caregiving support?
Yes. We do our best to accommodate childcare and caregiving support as necessary for participants who have young children and elderly dependents, when we have our meetings taking place in person.
20. Will this program offer post-secondary credits?
No. Vancouver Foundation is unable to provide credits because we are not an academic/post-secondary institution.
21. Will participants receive an honorarium for being part of this program?
We are not providing an honorarium for participation; however, a research/project stipend of $1,500 will be provided to participants to support the completion of their individual policy projects.
22. Is immigration status or Indigenous status required?
No, it is not required. You just need to self-identify as Indigenous or as a racialized immigrant or refugee young person, and currently residing in B.C.