Community YouthMapping (CYM) is a catalyst to mobilize youth and adults as they identify resources and opportunities that exist in their community. Through the CYM process, young people and adults canvass their neighborhoods in search of places to go and things to do. Using this data collection strategy, young people across the nation have identified a host of resources that may not be found in traditional directories.
The CYM strategy, instituted by the AED Center for Youth Development and Policy Research, is ideally coordinated by a local public/private/nonprofit partnership and led by a local community-based institution.
Since 1995, Community YouthMapping has been implemented in more than 100 sites across the United States with positive community outcomes. One example of a national outcome is this Community YouthMapping website, which helps provide accurate information to local communities on places to go, opportunities and things to do for young people, children and families.
Over the years, CYM has expanded in scope both geographically and in the types of information gathered and analyzed. CYM has been implemented in countries such as Haiti, Egypt, and parts of Sub-Saharan Africa and is being used to identify resources in the areas of disabilities, healthy living, and health literacy.
The CYM National Youth Advisory Board is made up of current and former YouthMappers, ages 14-19, from six sites across the nation. Advisory Board members are charged with establishing site-to-site and YouthMapper-to-YouthMapper communication, creating a newsletter written by YouthMappers for YouthMappers, and developing other avenues of communication for those involved or interested in Community YouthMapping. The members of the inaugural National Youth Advisory Board are:
Monica Beyrouti, Pinellas County, FL
Eboni Bowman, Harlem, NY
Justin Caesar, Orange County, NY
Keisa Carroll, Licking County, OH
Matt Drumm, Fairbanks, AK
Richard Kacsur, Fairbanks, AK
Corryne Robinson, Orange County, NY
Orlando Suazo, Harlem, NY
Tyler White, Fairbanks, AK
Minnesota – TBD
