2018 Call for New Members: Youth Coalition for Sexual and Reproductive Rights (YCSRR)

Deadline: February 23, 2018

Youth Coalition has opened its 2018 call for applications for new members! They are looking for young people who are passionate about sexual and reproductive health and rights and are eager to further their experience through international advocacy work. The YCSRR relies on an active volunteer membership. Most of their work is done virtually and takes place via an interactive online platform called Podio, as well as through email and Skype.

The Youth Coalition for Sexual and Reproductive Rights (YCSRR) is an international organization of young people (ages 18-29 years) committed to promoting adolescent and youth sexual and reproductive health and rights at the national, regional, and international levels. They are students, researchers, lawyers, health care professionals, educators, development workers, and most importantly, we are all dedicated activists.

Together, they work to ensure that the sexual and reproductive rights of all young people are respected, guaranteed, and promoted, and strive to secure the meaningful participation of young people in decision-making that affects their lives. They do this through advocating, generating knowledge, sharing information, building partnerships, and training young activists.

On the whole, the work that they do is focused on advocacy at the international level. Specifically, their members attend international conferences and meetings where they advocate for youth sexual and reproductive rights. They also develop advocacy strategies, create publications and organize trainings on specific issues such as abortion rights and youth participation.

Eligibility

  • In order to be a member, you must be between the ages of 18 and 29
  • Members must support and promote their principles and values.
  • Members should have enough time to meaningfully contribute to the work that we do (members are required to devote a minimum of 7 hours per week to YC activities, which includes responding to emails, contributing to online discussions and taking part in our planned activities).
  • Youth Coalition for Sexual and Reproductive Rights recognizes the contributions and crucial perspectives that individuals from marginalized communities bring to our team. People including, but not limited to, those from the following groups are encouraged to apply: indigenous peoples; women; mothers; single parents; immigrants; protected persons/refugees; people of colour; lesbian, bisexual, gay, two spirit, transgender, gender non-conforming, gender fluid, non-binary, agender, gender queer, and questioning people; intersex people; people with disabilities; and those marginalized on the basis of class, caste and HIV and AIDS status.
  • They especially encourage applications from young people in the following countries and regions: Francophone Africa (young advocates from Benin are highly encouraged to apply), North Africa, the Middle East, and the Caribbean.
  • Previous knowledge of international-level advocacy and policy instruments (e.g. the International Conference on Population and Development Programme of Action, the Sustainable Development Goals, etc.) is considered an asset.
  • YCSRR accepts members from different backgrounds, with varying skills and experiences.
  • They accept up to two members per country.
  • As their working language is English, members must possess sufficient listening, speaking, reading, and writing English language skills.

Desirable skills and competencies include:

  • Demonstrated leadership experience;
  • Experience in fund development including proposal writing and stakeholder engagement;
  • Experience in organizational management, strategic planning, budgeting, and human resource management, designing reports;
  • Facilitation and public speaking skills;
  • Experience in information and communications technologies, graphic design.
  • A human rights background (knowledge of gender justice, feminist, and anti-oppression issues preferred);
  • Experience in organizing advocacy campaigns;
  • Experience advocating for indigenous communities; and
  • Experience with local/regional/international volunteer and/or youth organizations/networks.

Application

If you are interested in becoming a member of YCSRR, please follow these steps to apply:

  • Submit all documents to [email protected] by 23:59 EST/NYT February 23, 2018.
  • Once your application is submitted, the membership committee will review it. Applicants who move on to the next level will be invited to participate in a Skype interview. Please note that due to the high volume of applications only applicants invited to the next stage of the recruitment process will be notified.

Documents to be included:

  • A completed application form in English
  • Your resumé or curriculum vitae in English; and
  • One letter of reference from a teacher, colleague, friend, etc. (letter can be in English, French, Hindi, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog, Urdu, Polish, Nepali, Swahili or Turkish) describing your involvement in sexual and reproductive rights work, your work in youth advocacy, and your English proficiency (if applicable).

If you have any questions about YCSRR or the membership application process, feel free to contact us at [email protected].

Download the 2018 Membership Application Form

For more information, visit Youth Coalition.