Now, more than ever, the complexity and interconnectedness of the world’s challenges demand that we embolden young, capable, and inspired service leaders to conceive of novel ways to address them. Many young people express an interest in social issues, yet while thousands enter college each year hungry to serve the greater good, competitive pressures and stark economic realities have pushed many to abandon these aspirations and choose careers more remunerative, if less civically impactful.
So why do some youth persist and still live with a public service mindset? This is where this project, this book, comes in. In communities across the country, students and young professionals are committing their talents and passions to produce sustainable social good. Each of them has come to this work for a reason, and each cherishes a powerful story.
This is why Project YouthPact, which was started by a group of students, collected stories from young individuals who have resisted the self-interested path in order to act on ideals larger than themselves. "Project YouthPact: Youth Perspectives of Public Service" contains the perspectives from 30 young individuals from around the world. These stories range from the extraordinary student-turned-social entrepreneur to the high school student volunteering for a club. They are written in a variety of styles, from narrative to expository. All are followed by discussion questions to help young adults interact with the text and truly reflect on what a life acting on public service ideals might entail.
In this way, this book is different from all other products currently on the market. By embodying a variety of stories, themes, and styles, this is a book written specifically with the wide and diverse young adult population in-mind; it is hoped that at least one story will speak to each reader. That the initiative was supported by over two dozen organizations as well as prominent leaders in public service speaks to its unique and important mission.
Project YouthPact was conceptualized to empower the next generation of students to discover the value of public service, and the collaborative effort resulted in this book that equips readers with the wisdom, the tools, and the courage to choose to act on public service ideals.
