In a city where bullets too often hit kids, a program calls on young people to shoot cameras, not guns

To prevent youth from participating in dangerous activities after school, the Crystal Innovation Center holds programs that provide secondary school students with soft and hard skills training to prepare them for future employment. The program runs three times a week and teaches skills like goal-setting, overcoming peer pressure, fashion designing, computer literacy, and cooking.

Juvenile Hearing Boards in Rhode Island divert first-time youth offenders from traditional detention to community-based volunteers who assign restorative sanctions like community service and counseling, resulting in a recidivism rate of less than 10% compared to the state's overall 33% three-year recidivism rate.

In Washington, D.C., where only 27% of Black students read at grade level, the nonprofit Everybody Wins DC launched Power Readers, a program that pairs elementary students with volunteer mentors for weekly one-on-one reading sessions. Operating in six schools, the program allows students to choose their own books, receive personalized attention during lunchtime sessions, and access free, culturally relevant reading materials. J.O. Wilson Elementary recorded more than a 10% increase in literacy rates between 2022 and 2024 after implementing the program.

Adventure playgrounds such as Berlin’s Kolle 37 put kids in charge of play, giving them the space, tools, and freedom to solve conflicts, learn new skills, and even build their own play structures as adults monitor for hazards from a distance. Research shows that this type of “risky play” can help children mature and learn to navigate complex psychosocial situations.

The violence prevention program Choose to Change pairs cognitive behavioral therapy with intensive mentoring for high-risk Chicago teens, resulting in participants being 31% less likely to be arrested than their peers who did not participate in the program.

The GreenHouse provides after-school programming for children living in one of Sacramento’s most densely-populated affordable housing communities. Over the past 20 years, roughly 1,000 children have participated in the organization’s programs, including homework help, social events, internship and leadership opportunities, and more.

Through Project Elimu, children in the Kibera neighborhood of Nairobi can take free dance classes that help them develop confidence, teamwork, self-expression, and physical fitness. The organization provides free meals to participants and also offers programming around sexual health, a crucial resource in an area where rates of teen pregnancy are high.

Talabi Diabetes Centre provides support and education to children living with diabetes in Nigeria, including through an annual camp weekend where participants learn about healthy foods, exercise techniques, and self-injection of insulin. Roughly 60 kids have participated in the camps since 2015.

At the Kiishi Readers Club, students in Oyo state can borrow books and attend lectures and discussions to help develop their reading, writing, and leadership skills. Students who have participated in the club say the experience has helped them improve their academic performance and given them more confidence in their public speaking abilities.

The Coalition of Ogoni Women is working to foster peace in their communities and reduce youth participation in crime through open communication with youth and government officials while also advocating for women to have more authority in the communities.