The ‘Impact’ of YPAR: In their own words

Abstract

ABSTRACT The purpose of this paper is to present a conversation about how impact has been seen and felt by youth and adult co-researchers in a long-term, school-based youth participatory action research (YPAR) project, Courageous Conversations. To stay true to the epistemological commitments of YPAR, and in an effort to speak back to neocolonial and neoliberal definitions of impact, we have intentionally chosen to center the words of the school-based co-researchers (Emily, Katelyn, Mrwa, Ashleigh, and LeAnne) as they have conceptualized, identified, and discussed the impact of YPAR. Through non-traditional formatting, we seek to disrupt conventional, academic modes of conveying knowledge, which often have the result of silencing many voices and amplifying only a select few. We use various devices like text boxes and tables to reflect the messiness and fluidity of participatory knowledge creation and to connect the reflective conversation of members of our YPAR collective to broader and ongoing debates around the impact of YPAR.