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Ricardo Funari / BrazilPhotos.com

With IDRC support, a pioneering approach to doing research helps Brazil’s government guide its young people toward more active citizenship.

"Kids aren’t born with the techniques of democratic problem solving, but they are born with one of its key components — the desire to speak out...And that’s where the struggle for democracy begins." — Patrick Watson, Canadian broadcaster and author

The Development Challenge: Connecting with youth

During the 1980s and 1990s, the world’s news media and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) headlined the plight of Brazil’s street children. Thousands of homeless youth suffered poverty, degradation, and often, violence.

The appalling circumstances of these children, however, were only the most visible manifestation of a much broader problem. Among the young people still living with their families, millions lacked sufficient income, education, and security to safeguard them from becoming street children.

Today, the picture has changed little. Despite recent achievements, Brazil remains plagued by daunting economic and social inequalities. Beyond economic consequences, inequality may affect the political participation of Brazilian youth. Many of the 34 million Brazilians aged 15 to 24 are said to feel vulnerable, insecure, and uncertain about their future, alienated from mainstream public life, and reluctant to engage in political action.

But that is just one view. Another assessment holds that many of Brazil’s youth are keenly interested in public affairs and are ready to take positive action.For example, thousands of enthusiastic young Brazilians have attended political meetings during which both domestic and international concerns are discussed, notably at the World Social Forum.

In 2003, Brazil’s newly elected government recognized that the country’s outlook would remain bleak should those citizens just reaching maturity fail to join in the political process. A presidential decree established several high-level institutions — including a National Council for Youth — and instructed them to deepen democracy, to encourage more inclusive policy-making, and especially, to increase the public engagement of young people.

Before any of those initiatives could happen, however, solid research was needed to answer the question: Is it really true that Brazil’s youth feel excluded from full citizenship and, if so, what is the extent and nature of their alienation?

The Idea: Reflection and dialogue

With the support of IDRC, two respected NGOs set out to address the question. The Brazilian Institute of Social and Economic Analyses (Ibase), headquartered in Rio de Janeiro, had been founded in 1981 by the late social activist Herbert de Souza (known as Betinho). Its mission is to build democracy by fighting inequalities and stimulating public participation. The Pólis Institute, launched in São Paulo in 1987, focuses on issues related to cities, in particular “the exercise of citizens’ rights as a democratic achievement.”

These organizations stressed the importance of simply listening to young people. Their twostage research plan called, first, for a standard quantitative poll to survey the views of large numbers of youth. The second stage gathered smaller numbers in “dialogue groups” for discussion and deliberation. The goal was to provoke collective reflection, the exchange of opinions, and dialogue about policy options, implications, and shared responsibilities, leading toward common ground on identifying barriers and ways of overcoming them.

With technical support from a third partner, the Canadian Policy Research Networks (CPRN), these dialogues employed a methodology called ChoiceWork. In this collective approach to civic action, people work through value conflicts and practical tradeoffs and together set priorities and direction. CPRN adapted this methodology to the realities and needs of Brazil and to the unique circumstances of this dialogue project.

The Research: Choosing the best paths

In the opinion poll, conducted in late 2004, researchers interviewed 8 000 young residents in eight large cities. Respondents were chosen by rigorous sampling that achieved gender balance and wide representation across the 15-to-24 age group and among social classes, races, and faiths — a selection process that reached categories of youth whose voices were seldom heard. The questionnaire probed their thoughts about education, family, work, media, and culture, as well as political perceptions and practice.

The dialogue groups were staged early in 2005. They convened volunteers from among those who had responded to the questionnaire, while ensuring broad representation of income levels and backgrounds. The 913 young men and women were organized in 39 groups from different cities across Brazil. These people were invited to state “what concerns you most” and then to reflect — collectively — on the best “participative paths” toward achieving their goals in education, work, and culture or leisure.

On the Ground: Working together

Early on, the researchers concluded that young Brazilians are both more aware and more worried about public issues than had been thought. It seems, in fact, that they are keenly attentive to the conditions suffered by Brazil’s whole population, but have not yet found the right path toward action.

The dialogues zeroed in on a number of serious concerns.

Because these metropolitan youth are at high risk from murder and traffic accidents, personal security is a source of intense anxiety. Said the study’s report: “The time of youth, far from being a period free from practical concerns, finds itself deeply compromised by issues linked to the preservation of life itself.”

Youth see violence and criminality as being interwoven with a host of other problems such as poverty and social inequality, poor educational opportunities, unemployment, inadequate health care, racial discrimination, corruption, and drug use.

On education, the young people called for a far-reaching set of reforms: the expansion of secondary schooling; more and better-qualified teachers; improved curriculum, methodologies, and materials; and increased extracurricular activities. Many see a better educational system as key to improving other areas of life, for example, by helping youth learn how to cope with conflict. As one Rio resident put it, “We believe that education is the main thing, the base of everything.”

The dialogues confirmed the precarious and frustrating work situation for Brazilian youth. Participants worried about the restricted employment market, recognized the importance of “getting the first job,” and complained about facing prejudice for being young and inexperienced.

Culture or leisure occupies a significant place in their lives. Again, they emphasized the close relationship between this issue and employment or education. One Recife resident said it well: “If you don’t have a job, you can’t have leisure.” Many complained about the shortage of sports facilities, cinemas, museums, parks, and cultural centres, and about the need for vigilance to ensure their personal safety in parks, public squares, streets, and beaches.

The youth were invited to state how they were willing to participate to make the changes they want a reality, and were asked to choose among three “participative paths” or to suggest one of their own.

Three participative paths

Path 1 means involvement with established “adult” institutions such as political parties, trade unions, or NGOs. Some saw this “path of politics” as being the best route to effective action, but others felt that politics was the realm of bureaucracy and corruption. A comment from Recife was typical: “I really think the first path is the right one, but I don’t see myself doing that.”

Path 2 is individual volunteerism, for example at schools and hospitals, or in food donation or literacy campaigns. Some regarded this option as “letting government off the hook,” but others viewed it as a chance to take concrete action.

Path 3 means involvement with institutions run exclusively by youth, for example, sporting or cultural organizations, or newspapers, websites, or fanzines.Some participants regarded this path as being “weak,” lacking political force, and less promising for making change. Others saw it as being inherently democratic, or having more impact than individual volunteerism, or a way of gaining visibility and respect.

At the end of the day, the groups found virtues in all three paths. No single style of participation would be sufficient to address Brazil’s many complex problems. Thus they proposed the fusion of the complementary paths into a new “Path 4.”

After the discussions, all participants were invited to “send a message” to Brazil’s politicians. One young São Paulo man drew from his own experience:

The Impact: Stereotypes smashed

One immediate benefit of the project was the new knowledge gained by everyone involved. Many of the young people had never before shared their experiences, and learned from their peers about Brazil’s extraordinary diversity and about new ways to mobilize for public action. The researchers, meanwhile, increased their professional capacity by applying, for the first time in Brazil, ChoiceWork’s participative and deliberative method of interactive group dynamics.

The dialogues also helped inform the public when the media publicized widely the research findings. In turn, this publicity helped pressure government, particularly during the 2006 election campaigns when NGOs distributed thousands of information booklets setting out the key issues. These same booklets later were used to train municipal government policymakers in formulating measures for the benefit of youth.

These awareness-raising efforts shattered the stereotype of young people as being apathetic, and set the stage for further action. During 2007, for example, the National Council for Youth organized public meetings throughout Brazil to discuss new policies to engage youth even more deeply, consultations that drew heavily on the Ibase and Pólis findings.

Future Challenges: Democracy without borders

Youth and Democracy: a New Dialogue in Brazil, to be co-published by IDRC and I.B. Tauris in 2008, will document the lessons learned from the project. Meanwhile, Ibase, Pólis, and other partners have been working with IDRC on similar youth studies in five other Latin American countries.

In Canada, too, the project has had an impact. CPRN embarked on its own initiative: the National Dialogue and Summit on Engaging Young Canadians. In a process of cross-cultural collaboration, lessons learned during the Brazil dialogue were applied to the Canadian experience. This working partnership culminated in a joint Brazil-Canada seminar, held in Ottawa in 2006 — and funded by IDRC — on the theme of strengthening democracies and engaging youth.

Related:

Involving Youth in Politics
Education. Employment. Health. The environment. These are the issues often identified by young people, no matter where they live, as key issues of today, according to two national dialogues held in Brazil and Canada.

Video: Youth and Democracy in Brazil
A unique research initiative supported by IDRC is inspiring Brazilian youth to rise to the challenge of helping to shape their future.

Finding Soul: Voice and Visibility for Youth
Cândido Grzybowski, Director General of the Institute for Social and Economic Analysis, speaks with IDRC about a groundbreaking study of youth and democracy in Brazil.

2008-05

News 2 of 16