Jamaica Youth Advocacy Network - JYAN

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Jamaica Youth Advocacy Network - JYAN

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JYAN emerged out of an advocacy training workshop that was held in August 2006 at the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus.

The Jamaica Youth Advocacy Network (JYAN) is a voluntary youth-led advocacy programme and training organisation addressing a range of issues related to development. JYAN's mission is to develop, empower and sustain a cadre of youth advocates to lobby for change on behalf of young people by promoting positive behaviours; teaching techniques of positive advocacy; advising and guiding policies affecting them and building their capacity in Jamaica, the Caribbean and beyond. The Advocacy Training Workshop brought together approximately 40 young persons from youth serving organisation, youth clubs, church and community groups, including youths from some of the most volatile communities in Jamaica. At the end of the workshop the participants decided that they would move forward under the name - The Jamaica Youth Advocacy Network (JYAN). Since August 2006 the Network has developed two proposals for behaviour change communication projects addressing violence, and the need for comprehensive s*xuality education in Jamaican High Schools. The network has also collaborated with a number of organizations to advocate for the rights of young people in Jamaica, the Caribbean and the world. These include the UN High Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS (UNGASS 2006), International AIDS Conference in Toronto, and the Women Deliver Conference in 2007. Network members serve as youth educators, youth facilitators, youth advocates, and spokespeople on number of issues affecting young people.

30/10/2026

🚨 WE’RE HIRING! 🚨

The Jamaica Youth Advocacy Network (JYAN) is growing our team!

We currently have two opportunities available for individuals looking to develop their skills, contribute to meaningful work, and take the next step in their careers.

📌 Available Positions:
• Policy & Advocacy Coordinator (Full-time)
• Development of School Nutrition Policy Guidelines (Consultancy)

📩 How to Apply:
Send your updated resume and cover letter to [email protected]

🗓️ Application Deadline: Friday, November 13, 2026

⚠️ Please note: The email subject line MUST include your name and the position you are applying for.

📄 Full Terms of Reference (TORs) are available via our Linktree: linktr.ee/youthadvocate

We encourage you to read the full TOR before applying and share these opportunities with anyone who may be a great fit! 🤝🏾

Best of luck to all applicants! 💛
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21/10/2026

As we close out International Adolescent Health Week (IAHW) 2026, we’re sharing a few highlights from a busy, productive and meaningful week of connecting with young people and taking health conversations directly into our schools!

📍 Last Wednesday, we were at Tivoli Gardens High School, where, courtesy of Caribbean Women in Leadership (CIWiL) Jamaica Chapter, students received a donation of menstrual hygiene products, an iron, hygiene kits and stationery supplies to support their well-being and education. 📚🩸✏️

But we didn’t stop there! 👏🏽 We also engaged students in health chats and presentations on safe s*x and HIV awareness, creating space for important conversations and sharing information to help young people make informed decisions about their health.

📍 On Thursday, we took the conversations to Dunoon Park Technical High School, where we continued engaging students through health chats and presentations on safe s*x and HIV awareness. We also donated a UNICEF recreation kit to the school, promoting students’ well-being and showing how play can be part of a healthy, happy school experience. ⚽

From supporting students with essential supplies to sharing knowledge that can make a real difference, IAHW 2026 was about showing up for young people in meaningful ways. Young people deserve accurate, youth-friendly health information and spaces where they feel comfortable asking questions, learning and speaking up. And at JYAN, we’re committed to keeping those conversations going! 🙌🏽💛

16/10/2026

🌾 World Food Day falls during International Adolescent Health Week (IAHW), making it a timely opportunity to talk about something that affects young people every day: access to nutritious food.

Food security is about more than having something to eat. It’s about whether nutritious food is affordable, whether we understand what’s in the products we buy, and whether the people and resources behind our food are being protected. 🇯🇲🍎🥦🥕

Jamaica needs more than policies on paper. We need investment that puts the School Nutrition Policy into practice, makes food labels easier to understand, supports our farmers 👩🏽‍🌾👨🏽‍🌾 and creates real opportunities for young people in agriculture. 🌱

Healthy food should be accessible, not a privilege. And Jamaica’s food future depends on the choices we make and the systems we invest in today.

💬 Join the conversation: What should Jamaica prioritise to make nutritious food more accessible to young people and build a more sustainable food system? Share your thoughts below!
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15/10/2026

⚠️ Trigger warning: This video discusses body image, eating disorders and disordered eating.

💭 How often do we comment on someone’s body without thinking about how those words might stay with them?

Between social media, beauty standards and constant comparison, it can be hard to feel comfortable in your own skin. But body image concerns can go beyond insecurity, and struggles with food or appearance aren’t always visible to others.

This International Adolescent Health Week, we’re talking about YOUth and Body Image because nobody should feel they have to look a certain way to deserve confidence, care or support. 💜

🗣️ Let’s talk: What’s one thing you wish more people understood about body image, eating disorders or the comments we make about other people’s bodies? Share your thoughts in the comments. Let’s make this a space for understanding, not judgement.
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YouthHealth

15/10/2026

🇯🇲 Healthier food environments require more than individual choices. They require policies that protect our health and make healthier choices easier to access.

JYAN engaged members of the National Youth Parliament of Jamaica (National Youth Parliament Ja.) in a Healthy Food Policies Workshop, exploring Jamaica’s NCD burden, the National School Nutrition Policy (SNP), and Front-of-Package Warning Labels. 🥗 Participants also brainstormed ways to strengthen advocacy for healthier food policies and took part in a special presentation on writing position papers to strengthen their advocacy and communication as an organisation. 📢

Young people have a role to play in shaping the policies that affect our health, and we’re committed to ensuring their voices are part of the conversation!

❤️ Special thanks to the Heart Foundation of Jamaica (Heart Foundation of Jamaica) for supporting this workshop and advancing the conversation on healthier food policies.
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14/10/2026

💡Knowledge is power, and when young people know better, they do better!

This International Adolescent Health Week (IAHW), we’re highlighting the tools young people need to prevent HIV/AIDS and make informed decisions about their s*xual and reproductive health and rights. 🩺❤️

Comprehensive s*xuality education goes beyond sharing information. It equips young people with practical skills to navigate relationships, negotiate condom and contraceptive use, understand consent, and make responsible decisions about their health.

Every young person deserves access to accurate information, the confidence to protect their health, and youth-friendly services without stigma or shame. 🫶🏽

A special thank you to for helping make our work possible and for your continued support of youth-led advocacy to prevent HIV and challenge the stigma and discrimination surrounding it. Together, we can help create a future where young people are informed, empowered, and supported.

13/10/2026

🥤 Is Jamaica’s sugary drink tax making a difference?

With NCDs accounting for approximately 80% of deaths in Jamaica, creating healthier food environments has never been more important. 🇯🇲

Join JYAN for a commemorative World Food Day webinar exploring the public health and economic implications of Jamaica’s sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) tax, early trends since its implementation, evidence from across the Caribbean, and what needs to happen next.

💻 Register now: bit.ly/SSBTaxWebinar

Let’s move beyond the debate and look at the evidence. What should Jamaica be doing to make healthier choices easier for everyone?
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13/10/2026

🧠 Ever come across a mental health term and wonder what it actually means? We’re making it easier to understand the words we use to talk about our mental health with JYAN’s Mental Health Dictionary. 💚

This International Adolescent Health Week, we’re standing by the theme “Nothing About Us Without Us: Power, Voice and Health Equity for All Adolescents.” Young people deserve access to information that helps us understand ourselves, make informed decisions, and speak up for our well-being.

📖 Swipe through, learn something new, and tell us in the comments: What other mental health words or concepts would you like us to define? We want to hear from you!

10/10/2026

🧠💚 This World Mental Health Day, we’re asking a simple question: are we really listening to young people when they talk about their mental health?

Too often, young people share their experiences and concerns, but their voices don’t make it into the decisions that affect them. Listening should mean more than hearing someone out. It should mean taking them seriously and using what they share to improve the support and services available to them.

This year’s theme, “Lived experiences heard: real voices, real change,” reminds us that the people living these experiences deserve a say in what changes.

So, we want to hear from you! 👇🏽 What is ONE thing you wish adults, schools or policymakers understood better about young people’s mental health?

Drop your thoughts in the comments. Your perspective matters. 💚
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02/10/2026

As we end the 2026 Caribbean Week of Agriculture (CWA), JYAN wants to explain and recommend ways Jamaica’s National Youth in Agriculture Policy can better work with and for young people. 🌾🇯🇲

Young people are already shaping the future of food, farming and food security. But if we want more youth to see agriculture as a viable pathway, policy has to meet them where they are, from rural communities to the realities of climate risks, access to resources and opportunities to participate.

So, what would meaningful youth inclusion actually look like? 👀

In this video, our team breaks down the policy, highlights what we welcome, and shares three areas where we believe it can go further.

Young people have a role to play in deciding what the future of agriculture looks like. Let’s make sure we’re part of the conversation. 🚜🌱

💬 What would make agriculture a more attractive and sustainable pathway for young people in Jamaica? Share your thoughts below and join the conversation.

Let’s farm our future! 👩🏾‍🌾🧑🏾‍🌾
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Address

Kingston
KINGSTON6

Website

http://www.youthadvocateja.org/

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