Community Projects

Territorial Youth Strategy

The Territorial Youth Strategy (TYS) is a shared framework to guide decision-making and action across the Yukon. It identifies six categories for improving the lives and futures of Yukon youth:

Basic Needs
Community Safety & Harm Reduction
Mental Wellness & Connections
Access to Learning & Education
Employment & Career Opportunities
Land & Stewardship

Where did it come from?

The TYS grew out of work already underway by local youth organizations. It became clear that greater collaboration was needed to tackle the complex challenges facing youth. The Communities Building Youth Futures (CBYF) initiative provided seed funding and a collective impact framework to bring organizations, governments, and community partners together around shared goals. Through ongoing collaboration, youth engagement, and community conversations, the TYS was created. The CBYF collective has evolved into the Territorial Youth Collective who continue the work of empowering youth voice and updating the Strategy.

How does it work?

The TYS is a living document that continues to evolve through:

Youth-led engagement and conversations with young people and communities
Collaboration among youth, community organizations, governments, and other partners
Ongoing action to advance the Strategy's priorities
Annual Accountability Forums to review progress and identify areas for continued action

The YCAO was an original member of the Territorial Youth Collective and became a signatory to the TYS in 2024.

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Global Child

Through a partnership with the UN GlobalChild initiative, the YCAO engaged 53 students from six Yukon schools in focus groups about children’s rights under the UNCRC.

Their insights helped shape a global tool used to monitor how well countries uphold these rights.

Read the Report

Yukon Rookie League

An Act of Reconciliation

Youth Leadership

Youth advisors played a central role in shaping the project by:

Contributing their ideas
Working collaboratively as a team
Meeting with government and sport organization representatives

The project was designed and led by First Nations youth aged 11-13.

YCAO partnered with the Jays Care Foundation, the charitable arm of the Toronto Blue Jays, to plan and deliver a reconciliation-focused initiative that brought together culture and baseball.

Youth Engagement

With support from YCAO, youth advisors:

Attended 2017 CYFN General Assembly to hand deliver information about Yukon Rookie League to Yukon Chiefs.
Attended information sharing sessions with: Kwanlin Dun First Nation, Sport Yukon, Softball Yukon, MP Larry Bagnell, Honourable Minister Streiker, Honourable Minister McPhee, and CYFN Grand Chief Peter Johnston.
Presented at the National Aboriginal Sport Circle banquet in October 2017.

Project Implementation

Once the project was developed, YCAO invited all Yukon First Nations to participate in youth leadership training in 2017. Elementary schools were then engaged to identify youth leaders for a youth coach training held in February 2018.

Upholding Children's Rights

This project supported key rights outlined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), particularly youth voice, cultural connection, and the right to play.