Over the past year, the Weitzman Institute, with support from the Aetna Foundation, has led a community-based policy and research project, Addressing the Health and Health-Related Social Needs of Homeless Youth, to examine the web of individual, familial, communal, and systemic factors contributing to youth homelessness in New Britain, Connecticut.
Using a technique known as Photovoice, youth participants used photography to illustrate the factors contributing to youth homelessness. Key outcomes from this initiative include youth-driven recommendations for effectively addressing the health and health-related social needs of homeless youth, which are being disseminated through a variety of youth-led multimedia advocacy efforts, including photo narratives, a policy brief, and podcast.