Youth Program

Our Youth Program targets youth from across the province of BC to offer co-operative leadership education to youth. We do this through a number of programs.

We partner with The YES to offer week long co-operative leadership retreats for 14-18 year olds. Find out more at www.theyes.ca

We also partner with The New Practice Facilitators Co-operative to offer workshops in co-operative leadership education. These are available to a number of different groups including highschools, leadership conferences, student councils, youth groups, youth organizations, co-ops and credit unions, and the public. Workshops can be offered on a number of different topics including co-op education, leadership, self-awareness, communication skills, co-operation in groups, inclusion and teambuilding. for more information email the Youth Programs Director at youth@bcca.coop.

Our Youth Program links the principles of co-op education and support for the development of youth in BC with the broader co-operative movement of the province.

One of the principle challenges facing the co-op and credit union sector is attracting talented young people to the co-operative model, and to co-operative enterprises. This problem was highlighted in a recent Angus Reid survey done by BCCA, which found that young people between the ages of 18 - 25 had the lowest awareness and support of co-ops and credit unions among all segments of the population.

BCCA, working with its partner, the The Youth Excellence Society (RYES),is utilizing the success of the The YES Youth Camps as a foundation for the development of a full time youth co-op program to raise the profile of co-operatives and credit unions among BC youth.

Significantly, over 80% of BCCA members currently support activities and programs with a youth focus or component. The Youth Program capitalizes on that interest and provides specific projects to strengthen the sector's capacity to engage young people in the co-operative sector in meaningful ways.