Cayden: I’ve been part of several In Tandem projects now, and I’m curious, what made you realize that organizations weren’t doing youth engagement right in the first place? Was there a moment you thought, ‘we need to fix this’?

Dave: There wasn’t necessarily a single moment where I realized this was a problem that needed to be fixed. I spent the majority of my first 20+ working years trying to improve outcomes for young people. I always fell short. While each failed effort to create transformational change—whether my own or those of others that I witnessed—was very different, they all had one thing in common: we weren’t engaging the people experiencing the problem we were trying to solve. Over time, this became increasingly obvious until it became impossible to ignore. I gradually became convinced that authentic engagement with young people was the missing piece of the transformational change puzzle.

Dave: When you first joined one of our projects, what were you expecting? And how did the reality compare to what you thought youth engagement or co-design would look like?

When I first joined, I was expecting a unique experience that would allow me to improve some of my fundamental communication skills while also providing feedback to organizations. My expectations were exceeded when it came to reality. I felt that In Tandem was very polite, organized, and goal-oriented, spreading the youth voice effectively. The engagement with In Tandem has been excellent and super welcoming. (Cayden, 12th-grader, In Tandem Youth Partner)

When I first joined, I wasn’t sure how helpful I could be. I doubted how much I knew about the material. As I went through it, I realized that I was able to give what I thought was helpful feedback in my own way. (Izzy, 9th-grader, In Tandem Youth Partner)

Dave: What advice would you give to organizations that are hesitant about involving young people in their design process? What would you want them to know about what you and other young people can bring to the table?

Don’t hesitate. Young people like me love having the chance to be involved in things that concern us. We have diverse viewpoints and ways of thinking that are harder for adults to understand since they aren’t experiencing what it’s like to be a teenager in this time period. (Izzy, 9th-grader, In Tandem Youth Partner)

Do it!! Youth appreciate it more than you know to hear that people actually care. I know it surprised me, and I know a lot of other people who wouldn’t believe it either. Also, most youth are barely even heard or taken seriously in their home lives, so the fact that big organizations would care to listen and then actively make changes based on what we say is not only inspiring but insane. Young people have so many opinions that they would love to voice, and also experiences that most people ignore. (Herbert, 12th-grader, In Tandem Youth Partner)

Izzy: I’ve been in situations where adults say they want our input, but then don’t really listen or change anything. How do you make sure the organizations you work with aren’t just using In Tandem to say they consulted young people without actually caring what we think?

Dave: This is such a critical question. The systems we have in place at In Tandem are designed to ensure that the engagements we enable between organizations and young people are authentic. This process begins with our initial discussions with potential partners. We ask them to clearly define the impact they are seeking by engaging In Tandem Youth Partners. It’s actually, usually very obvious when the impact they seek is not genuine. We’re not here to support organizations looking to sell more things to young folks – that’s why we generally don’t engage in traditional marketing partnerships. We work with organizations that want to engage Youth Partners to learn how to make their product or service work better for young people. There are instances when we’re unsure about the authenticity of a partnership. In those situations, we go directly to our Youth Partners and ask for their input.

Once a partnership is signed, there are feedback loops in place to ensure we remain attentive to the authenticity of the engagement. In Tandem has a proctor in every live session, and we collect immediate feedback from Youth Partners on every activity. If an organization’s activities result in poor experiences for Youth Partners, we engage with that organization to help them make their activities more impactful. Ultimately, we want to ensure that young people have agency in these experiences with organizations. They can choose to participate or not, and they know that their feedback is valued and used to improve future experiences.

Dave: What’s one thing you wish more adults understood about young people’s perspectives or experiences? Something that would help them be better partners in co-design work?

I wish adults would understand that, even though we are young, we have already had important experiences and have educated opinions on important issues. Especially in issues that we are a part of, like how trans kids like me have important experiences and perspectives on transphobia in the world and in schools. (Izzy, 9th grader, In Tandem Youth Partner)

I wish more adults understood that young people want to be heard and that the things they have to say are worthy of being heard. Adults who are more open to opinions that young people have, or questions they ask, end up not only helping the young person but also can end up making something great happen by trying to understand and help one another. (Herbert, 12th-grader, In Tandem Youth Partner)