The collaborative research project Non-Formal Education (NFE) for Youth-Led Change – a partnership between the University of Leeds and the British Council, funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council – explored the transformative potential of NFE in empowering young people to drive meaningful social change.
At the heart of this research is Youth Connect, our global youth leadership programme. This supports young people through skills development, practical application of those skills through community projects, and wider ecosystem development.
Operating in over 35 countries, Youth Connect collaborates with local civil society organisations, universities, NGOs, and youth-led initiatives to inspire youth to tackle local and global challenges such as climate change, conflict and alienation. Building on our Next Generation research programme, which highlights that young people often feel underprepared for life’s challenges and civic engagement, Youth Connect strengthens individual and community resilience. It empowers youth to contribute to a more inclusive and cohesive world.
The Non-Formal Education for Youth-Led Change research collaboration involved a global knowledge exchange workshop, bringing together insights and experiences on NFE projects and youth-led change, as well as feasibility studies in Bangladesh and Ethiopia. Through these studies, teams of researchers conducted in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with participants, facilitators and community members, focusing on two Youth Connect initiatives: Leadership for Advancing Development in Bangladesh (LEAD) and the Strengthening the Ethiopian National Voluntary Youth Service Programme
These studies were complemented by research on the broader role of NFE in Myanmar, conducted in the context of the 2021 military coup. The research assessed 54 NFE projects across the country, focusing on areas such as vocational training, civic education, and life skills development.
In addition to this research, the British Council’s Youth Connect programmes in Myanmar support young people and communities through initiatives that foster resilience, learning, and social cohesion.
Evidence for youth empowerment and societal impact
A recently published report by the University of Leeds brings together findings and recommendations from Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Myanmar and the global knowledge exchange workshop.
The report demonstrates that the inherent flexibility of NFE can create spaces for embodied and experiential learning. It argues that engaging in this learning can change the way young people understand themselves as individuals and as a collective, their perceptions of their society, and their place in society. This can empower young people to recognise themselves as important actors, who can enact change in their communities. Drawing on testimonies and detailed reflections from programme participants, the report highlights examples of real youth-led and community-driven change inspired by NFE programmes.
The report also underlines the importance within NFE of ensuring young people are enabled to actively participate in programmes. It calls for greater input from young people in programme design and highlights both challenges and successes in promoting inclusive participation. Gender equity and inclusion was noted as a specific challenge, with young women observed as often participating less actively even if there were high numbers engaged in the programme in question.
The importance of an enabling environment
The report argues that the sustainability of the positive impact of NFE programmes is hampered by the lack of an enabling environment for young people and their communities. As the report notes, NFE programmes do not operate in a vacuum, and as such are necessarily impacted by the systems in which they operate. It shows how critical it is for NFE programmes to gain widespread stakeholder buy-in, including from community leaders.
However, it also points to constraining factors, such as funding practices, gender norms, and community norms and values. These are all elements that can make it difficult for young people to implement what they have learnt once a programme has finished, the report argues. It calls for a pursual of an enabling environment to be embedded into the design and enactment of NFE programmes – and for further research and knowledge exchange to understand how sustainability in programming can be achieved.
Read the Non-Formal Education for Youth-Led Change report.
Additional country-focused reports and insight
A separate report focused on the feasibility study in Bangladesh highlights LEAD as a flexible and inclusive model of NFE that has equipped young people with the tools to address pressing societal issues and inspire positive change. According to the report, key features of the programme's success include:
- Needs-based design and contextualised training modules
- Emphasis on active citizenship, gender equity, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
- Participatory and engaging activities
- Social Action Projects (SAPs) that enhance leadership, confidence and practical skills while raising community awareness
The study also identified challenges, including youth engagement, sustainability, and resource mobilisation, highlighting areas for improvement.
A further separate report on Myanmar delves into the role of NFE in conflict-affected areas, where instability has disrupted access to formal education. It highlights how NFE programmes by local NGOs, civil society organisations and international donors have filled critical gaps in vocational training, civic education, alternative education and life skills development.
The study highlights the effectiveness of NFE programs in empowering youth through skills development, offering enhanced access to education and employment opportunities, and fostering active engagement in peacebuilding and social change initiatives.
The report also identifies significant challenges to NFE sustainability, including political instability, financial constraints, cultural barriers and technological limitations. Despite these obstacles, the initiatives studied demonstrate examples of resilience and adaptation to challenging conditions with innovative mitigation strategies.