Youth in Policy

Hi, my name is Desbah Begay. I am 15 years old and I am an upcoming sophomore at Newcomb High School. I have been a member of Evolvement for about a year now and I have also been involved with ENMLT for a few months. To be completely honest, I have never heard of “Evolvement” until there was a presentation about it in my 4th hour class. Right then and there, I knew it would be a great idea to give it a shot. Aside from that, I thought it would be an amazing opportunity to be able to learn something new.

Despite the fact that I have very little knowledge about Evolvement, I will use the best of my ability to explain why Youth Activism matters. Not only that, but how a difference can be made within empowering the Youth. Based off of what I have encountered, policy is often used to execute rules. Meaning ; guidelines, regulations, laws, principles, or directions that could be used in ; decision making, politics, economics, and business. Therefore, it is important to have strong policies in place because it authorizes reinforcement as well as clarifies what is tolerable and what is not. Overall, policies have numerous and different purposes.

An example of a policy in which we are trying to change with the No Minor Sale campaign is not marketing to Youth or minorities. If this policy is passed, Youth will not be allowed to purchase any type of tobacco use. That, of course, results in a trusting and more efficient community. I believe this policy has a huge impact on others. It has come to my understanding that it is also relevant for Youth to care about and acknowledge this policy because in many ways, it can be beneficial to their mental/physical health. If Youth were to disobey this policy, their very own health could be on the line. To prevent that from happening, this policy needs to be implemented wherever it may occur. To help reach this goal, it would be great to present more presentations to spread the word or even talk to the school board. In conclusion, polices are a part of Youth Activism and can make a difference within empowering the Youth in multiple ways!

1. Blog
2. Youth in Policy