UNITY Youth Highlight
A Southwest Youth Meet Up became a starting point for conversations about forming youth groups in Santa Ana and Tesuque Pueblos. For Derek Capitan, the value of the October 2022 online gathering was in the relationships and follow-up it made possible.
Capitan served in the National UNITY Council Executive Committee cohort as Southwest Representative. The committee’s purpose is to represent Native youth councils and individual members, connect regional perspectives, and help young leaders work together on common concerns. Supporting communities interested in organizing youth groups directly reflects that role.
The meetup included new and familiar participants. Afterward, leaders from Santa Ana and Tesuque contacted Capitan by email seeking assistance. Those conversations moved regional outreach beyond a general invitation to participate and toward questions tied to each community’s needs.
Santa Ana leaders wanted information about the upcoming Midyear Conference. Tesuque expressed interest in leadership skills training. Capitan’s report described the training as an anticipated next step, while the immediate work centered on making connections and discussing how youth groups could develop.
“It means a lot!” he wrote. “I envision to connect and bring as many pueblos I can to unite to tackle and answer as many issues as we can.”
His vision connects council development with collective problem-solving. A youth group can give young people a place to discuss local priorities, share responsibilities, and practice bringing ideas into action. Regional representatives can help those groups find information and connections within the wider UNITY network.
The partnerships in this story began with people reaching out from their communities and a representative responding. Santa Ana and Tesuque brought their own interests; Capitan helped create a link to conference participation and potential leadership support.
That approach connects with UNITY’s emphasis on citizenship and social development. Leadership is practiced through listening, following up, and helping young people find a structure in which their voices can contribute. The relationships also matter beyond any one training or conference.
Capitan captured that part of his goal in another phrase: “To have fun and form life time relationships.” His report presents regional growth as both practical and personal—more opportunities for youth to organize, and stronger connections among the people doing the work.
