Community Dialogues are an opportunity for people of all ages in our community to talk and for youth to provide true leadership around community wide issues and projects.   Community Dialogues are a structured process through which important issues can be raised, discussed and create action plans by teams of youth and adults. Through carefully designed questions, active listening, facilitator reflection and reframing, and whole group sharing, groups often are surprised to recognize the overlapping concerns and values by people across ages and walks of life. Trained youth facilitators are respected in the community and have been used in settings beyond Community Dialogues. Topics taken on have included the effects of substance abuse on communities, what would an ideal community look like? Dialogues on one night were held in five towns on the same night, drawing one percent of the population of the towns. 

The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) data analysis project spawned an independent group of 8 young people who held a 6 hour youth retreat to discuss the results of the YRBS. These youth from the Windsor Central Supervisory Union towns were one of five groups of students trained through a UVM/VT Department of Education training. The results of this were then discussed in adult/youth partnership in a Community Dialogue and resulted in the following four work groups:

1.Youth Matters- this group is currently conducting a campaign in Woodstock Union High School to create discussion around the statistic from the YRBS saying only "52% of youth feel they matter in the community."

2.Early Adolescent Sexual Behavior-  this group led by WISE outreach coordinator and Woodstock Healthy Teens leader Kate Rohdenberg has youth and adults looking at healthy relationship issues.

3. Availability of illegal substances on campus is being addressed initially through school policy in a group being led by a school board member/parent. Many youth expressed hope that, when supported by clearly stated policy, teachers will feel more comfortable in confronting substance use on campus.

4.  Only 72% of youth feel that having 1-2 alcoholic drinks daily is ok. The workgroup participated in a Town Hall meeting led by two youth in which they discussed how they have navigated the many healthy and unhealthy choices available in school.