HCHY List: Talking about definitions...

[Silbert, Diedra]

Hi Derek,

4 Assets that we might add to the dialogue around our economic times are:



Responsibility and Adult Role Models - I'd sure love to see people taking personal responsibility for their role in the current economic mess.  I don't mean the finger-pointing and blame-finding that seems pretty common, but rather seeing adults modeling true accountability and recognition of how their/our behaviors contributed to this mess.  And then also taking responsibility for how they/we can move us in more fiscally and socially responsible directions. What a difference this could make in the ways young people might understand responsibility and accountability.



Restraint - Could we look more deeply at how our model of "the one with the most toys wins" might be restrained for the greater good??  Consumerism without restraint is not, in my opinion, the way out.  (There might even be some connections between the above approach and the more literal definition of Restraint related to sex, drugs, and alcohol, but I'll leave that discussion to others for the moment!)



Positive view of personal future - If it's public confidence in the market that seems to have so much sway over what happens in the stock market, then perhaps we all could use a dose of optimism and belief in our personal futures being safe and stable, in spite of the economic woes and true suffering that many people feel.  Not easy when you're not sure where your next meal will come from or how you'll support your family.  Yet, having that strong belief is part of what makes people more resilient.

Diedra Silbert
Prevention and Mentoring Supervisor
Coconino County Juvenile Court Services
1001 E. Sawmill Rd.
Flagstaff, AZ  86001
(928) 226-5431
dsilbert at courts.az.gov



-----Original Message-----
From: hchylist-bounces at lists.search-institute.org [mailto:hchylist-bounces at lists.search-institute.org] On Behalf Of DEREK PETERSON
Sent: Tuesday, May 26, 2009 10:04 AM
To: Silbert, Diedra
Cc: Healthy Communities Healthy Youth
Subject: HCHY List: Talking about definitions...



In our current economic climate, the airwaves, newspapers,

periodicals, coffee shops, and front porches are full of conversations

about our changing world. They use terms like assets, 401K, net worth,

ROI (return on investment), interest, and others...



We all know the definitions of these words. But, as "asset builders"

we know that these words and concepts are "bigger and broader" than

most americans are aware.



For instance...

assets... We know that there are more to assets than the amount of

numbers our stuff is worth. We know that it is more than monetary

value. We know that there are at least 40 assets that youth need to

succeed. We know that real assets are both external and internal. And,

we know that these assets should be broadly available within a

community, but too often are hidden or never actualized. We know that

the developmental assets can be build and sustained without the

monetary assets. And, we know that the developmental assets are more

critical to the survival of our family and communities.



Compound Interest... This is the time and attention that we give to

children and youth. This time, spent during a child's early years,

compounds year after year, adding value to the child/youth's life and

our own.



Boink - the ball has been bounced to you... What youth development

definitions can you provide to the current national "economic" dialogue?



I look forward to playing...



Onward,



Derek Peterson

International Child/Youth Advocate

derek at icar-us.com

701-212-1214



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