Describes an adventure program operated on the Qualla Boundary Cherokee reservation that serves Cherokee youth and outside groups interested in Cherokee culture. Aspects of Cherokee culture, such as talking circles and storytelling, are incorporated into the program. A sidebar recounts the story of a bear encounter that is used to begin many…

Describes the current situation of adventure education in Germany. Discusses sites in schools and youth clubs, important carriers of adventure education in Germany, popular methods and activities, the concept of "metaphorical learning" as a means of transferring learning to everyday life, publications, principles of experiential…

Presents results of a membership survey of the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). Highlights include the diversity of members; concern for access to information; interest in continuing education activities; and public relations needs. The survey instrument, with summary statistics, is appended. (LRW)

Habits and entrenched behavior patterns are difficult to change, particularly for problem children and adolescents. Youth programs in the Netherlands have had success with this population using outdoor adventure experiences. A model of facilitation of behavior change consists of assessment of basic needs, basic rules, experiential environment, the…

Describes the YouthBuild program in Fayette County, West Virginia, a federally funded program administered locally by the Southern Appalachian Labor School. Participants are unemployed youths aged 16-24, mostly school dropouts, who alternate between 1 week of training in repairing and building houses and 1 week studying for a GED or preparing for…

GoodSport is an after-school program for grades 3-6 that uses traditional and nontraditional sports, adventure activities, reading, writing, and group discussion to promote character development in the areas of teamwork, perseverance, responsibility, respect, and fair play. Two sample activities involving group discussion and problem solving are…

A Toronto (Canada) outdoor program enables disadvantaged urban youth to connect with nature locally. Incrementally, participants take on increasing responsibility and more challenging tasks. An annual canoe race takes place within the city. A planned leadership and environmental center will provide experiences to reconnect Canadians to their…

The Native American Fish & Wildlife Society helps over 200 tribes and Alaska Native villages implement best management practices, informs them about wildlife issues, provides hazardous materials training, trains game wardens, and conducts a summer practicum for Native youth on environmental issues and careers in natural resource fields.…

Summer Activities Initiatives is a U.K. program that uses outdoor adventure activities to prevent dropouts and help at-risk young people re-engage with services that offer them further education, training, or employment. This preliminary look at a program evaluation discusses the target group, recruitment, staffing, residential programming,…

Cognitive interventions have been shown to promote learning and confront behavioral challenges among youth. Many programs report to reduce violence and aggression among youth. Positive interventions with a solid evidence base offer the most promising strategies to address behavioral problems with youth. Six model evidence-based interventions…

Objective: To explore 2 major components of health behavior research, etiologic research and action research. To argue that action research is both an artistic as well as scientific process. Methods: Review of the development process of effective health behavior programs with youth. Review of literature on art as part of the scientific process,…

This article describes a bi-national project planned with Interreg (European) funding involving communities in Kent and Nord Pas-de-Calais. The focus is on "at risk" youth and training and supporting personnel, and action to address the needs of this client group. The differences in the two systems mean that the forms of the project are…

In this article, the author discusses the "Digital Underground Storytelling for Youth" (DUSTY), a collection of after-school, evening, and summer programs that is a university-community collaborative aimed at closing the "digital divide." At DUSTY the goal is to position participants to tell stories about self and community, and to use those…

Whether staff members are working in urban, rural, or suburban branches, for many years national organizations have been committed to preparing them to work effectively with young people. Over the past couple of decades, national organizations have sought and received strong funding to develop targeted, comprehensive professional development…

As a formal observer of youth development work for the last fifteen years, the author is pleased to say that the field in the United States has made great progress in creating and institutionalizing the basic elements of a mature professional development system and in becoming purpose-driven. Topics such as youth worker competencies, links to…