The largest generation of youth in history is now making the transition from childhood to adulthood. Concerned about how global forces are altering young people’s passage to adulthood, the U.S. National Academies’ National Research Council and Institute of Medicine convened experts to review the available research and develop youth policy and program recommendations. The result of these efforts was a 700 plus-page report, Growing Up Global: the Changing Transitions to Adulthood in Developing Countries, which was published in May 2005.

To facilitate use of the data in Growing Up Global by adult and youth activists working on youth reproductive and sexual health issues, Advocates for Youth and Population Reference Bureau have developed this advocacy kit. The advocacy kit provides a series of fact sheets on the data and policy recommendations drawn from the publication, as well as calls to action and advocacy tips. Fact sheet topics include youth sexual and reproductive health; youth and marriage; youth and parenting; and youth and education. An executive summary of the publication is also included in the kit.

The material can be used by advocates to inform and enhance their existing advocacy strategy on youth reproductive and sexual health; to educate and influence decision-makers and funders; as hand-outs for leaders during lobby visits, meetings and conferences; and other advocacy activities.

We hope that the material will be of use to advocates in their efforts to promote evidence-based policies and programs for youth.

• Executive Summary from the book, Growing Up Global: the Changing Transitions to Adulthood in Developing Countries 
• Youth Sexual and Reproductive Health
  • The health of young people in developing countries is improving. They are making the transition to adulthood with better chances of surviving into old age. At the same time, HIV/AIDS and maternal mortality and morbidity continue to threaten young people’s sexual and reproductive health.
• Youth and Marriage
  • Marriage patterns are changing throughout much of the developing world. Young men and women are waiting until they are older to marry, they are marrying someone closer to their own age, and they have more say about whom they marry. However long they wait, almost everyone marries or enters into a marriage-like relationship. For many, the transition into marriage is a key component of the transition to adulthood. However, such is not the case for a still-significant number of young women who enter unions before age 18.
• Youth and Parenting
  • Becoming a parent for the first time is a major transition at any age, especially for an adolescent or young adult. While age is one important indicator of readiness for parenthood, other factors such as family circumstances and social support systems are also important and can influence young parents’ chances of success.
• Youth and Education
  • Education helps young people prepare for adulthood. Learning occurs more intensely during childhood and adolescence than during any other phases of the life cycle. Education involves the development of physical or cognitive skills, the acquisition of knowledge, and the shaping of values, attitudes, and beliefs.
• Advocacy Tips for Getting the Support of Opinion Leaders and Policymakers
  • Advocacy takes place any time opinions are shared. The most effective advocacy efforts determine which policymakers or opinion leaders should be convinced to support the issue and offers exactly what they should do to show their support.
• The World's Youth 2006 Data Sheet  (a publication of PRB), a wall chart produced by PRB of health and well-being indicators for every country.
• Youth in a Global World (a publication of PRB), an eight-page policy brief that summarizes the findings of both Growing Up Global and The World's Youth 2006 Data Sheet.

The Summit Foundation provided funding for the preparation and dissemination of the "Growing Up Global" Advocacy Kit.