Youth Culture Camps are intended to be a transformative experience for youth by fostering positive outlooks, increasing awareness of strengths, improving young people’s internal resource toolkits for overcoming challenges and adversity, and increasing ties and knowledge with their communities. These camps are founded on principles of self-determination and cultural reclamation for urban Indigenous youth. Youth Culture Camps will create spaces for young people to explore cultural identity, relationships, and well-being as the foundations for positive change. Youth Culture Camps provide group-based activities that connect youth with both water and land-based activities year-round; incorporating traditional knowledge and teachings into these activities.
Another core aspect of Youth Culture Camps involves facilitating access to and knowledge exchanges with Elders and traditional knowledge keepers. These knowledges and ways of being are inherently active and will blend learning with being on the land.
This service can be found at the following Friendship Centres