YouThrive is a free, bilingual web-based resource that was developed in a partnership involving the Canadian Mental Health Association, Ontario (CMHA Ontario), the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), the Ontario Lung Association (OLA) and Ophea.
YouThrive is for leaders in communities and schools across Ontario who work with youth aged 12 to 19 years. It is a dynamic resource designed for people who want to create communities in which young people can thrive and develop capacity to realize their own abilities, make a contribution to society and learn how to take control of their own lives. Three key areas are addressed: mental health, tobacco use and substance misuse. YouThrive shows how using a health promotion approach supports positive mental health and prevents risk-taking behaviour among young people.
YouThrive may be used to build a deeper understanding of key issues, or simply used as a quick reference guide. It contains ideas on how to take action and make a difference. There are multiple sections to navigate, including statistics, resources, a glossary of terms, action steps and a tool box filled with activities and approaches to fostering resiliency amongst youth.
The resource has tools intended to strengthen protective factors and resiliency among youth and build young people’s health literacy. Also included is information about health inequities that exist among groups of youth in Ontario.
A section with community success stories illustrates the different ways that groups across Ontario are promoting young people’s mental health and reducing the use of tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs. These stories also share some of the lessons and best practices groups have learned through their work.
An illustrative video is provided that can be utilized with leaders or shared with youth in your community to explain and address protective factors related to mental health.
Understanding the factors that affect young people’s health can help you take action, so that young people in your community grow up healthy and realize their full potential.
Please visit the YouThrive website at www.youthrive.ca.