Advocacy at Every Level: How Teens Can Engage Local, State & Federal Government

Opening the door for young changemakers starts with advocacy. This means empowering youth to speak up for their needs by engaging with government leaders to create positive change where they live. At Boys & Girls Clubs, youth advocacy programs offer young people opportunities to do just that through policy engagement, from local to federal levels.

Down in Florida, Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota and DeSoto Counties is just one example of a Club whose teen advocacy has reached every government tier with support from Boys & Girls Clubs of America partners like Dollar Tree. Read more about how these teens engaged in a year of advocacy to fight food insecurity in their community.

Changing Communities through Backyard Advocacy

At the center of Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s youth advocacy programming is the Think, Learn, Create Change (TLC) model. TLC enables young people to make a difference where they live by thinking through issues they’ve noticed, learning what it would take to change them, and leading a local project to make that change happen.

For teens at Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota and DeSoto Counties, the TLC model helped them realize a growing issue impacting youth in their community: food insecurity.

“We noticed that many areas in Sarasota County lack access to affordable, fresh, and healthy food, so we created a community garden to help families facing food insecurity,” said Club kid Maria.

Through their Garden for Good project, local advocacy quickly blossomed into community impact.

“After focusing on food insecurity, we worked with community partners to learn what it would take to start a community garden and distribute the food we grew through those partners,” said teen advocate Lauren.

Using their community garden as a solution for fighting food insecurity in Sarasota, teens went on to advocate for long-term policy changes that prioritize equal access to healthy food for everyone in the area.

Getting in Front of City & State Leaders

From there, Boys & Girls Clubs empower teens to take their community advocacy to the next level by engaging with city and state officials. In 2025, Dollar Tree helped Boys & Girls Clubs of America expand State Legislative Days in Florida and Ohio, supporting 25 town halls where teens spoke directly with local policymakers about their TLC projects.

Teens at the Sarasota Club presented Garden for Good at their own two-day, teen-led town hall to Vice Mayor Debbie Trice from their City Commission and state Rep. Fiona McFarland. They also participated in Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s Florida State Legislative Day — engaging state legislators on issues they care about and Clubs’ positive impact on youth.

“At the town hall, we asked elected officials our burning questions about education, natural disasters and infrastructure — things that impact our everyday lives,” said Club member Devdaan.

Advocating to Legislators on Capitol Hill

After advocating for change in their communities and to city and state leaders, teens at Boys & Girls Clubs are offered the chance to make their case on Capitol Hill. This happens at Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s Summit for America’s Youth (SAY) — an annual event where hundreds of teens across the country gather in Washington, D.C. There, Club teens pitch their local advocacy projects, participate in advocacy trainings and meet their representatives on Capitol Hill.

“At the Summit for America’s Youth, we got to present our Think, Learn, Create Change project that we’ve been working on all year. Seeing so many passionate young people in one space was very powerful,” said Lauren.

Teens leave SAY feeling more confident in their abilities to advocate for their causes to anyone — even the highest levels of government.

During SAY, Sarasota teens presented their Garden for Good project during the TLC project fair before meeting with Congressman Greg Steube and other key representatives. In these legislative meetings, teens shared their Boys & Girls Club experiences and discussed their project’s community impact.

“Events like the Summit for America’s Youth are really important because they give teens the chance to interact with our legislators and show the positive change we’re creating in our communities by using our voices and the tools our Boys & Girls Club provides,” said Devdaan.

From local community advocacy to legislative meetings with members of Congress, Boys & Girls Clubs open the door for youth to become true changemakers.

“I’ve been able to do amazing things in our community both at the local, state and national level,” shared Devdaan. “All the opportunities I’ve been provided with at my Boys & Girls Club have been truly life changing.”

Together, Dollar Tree and Boys & Girls Clubs of America are giving youth the resources, opportunities and support to create positive change and become the leaders we need.

Boys & Girls Clubs of America believes in the power of youth voice, providing life-shaping opportunities that help teens become thoughtful, skilled advocates ready to create change at any level of government. Find a Club near you to explore teen advocacy opportunities.

Learn More About Youth Advocacy at Boys & Girls Clubs

Dollar Tree and Boys & Girls Clubs of America partner to empower Club kids to create positive change in their communities by giving them the resources, opportunities and support to become the next generation of leaders and changemakers. This support allows Club kids to participate in the Think, Learn, Create Change (TLC) model, empowering them to act on critical issues and become changemakers in their communities. With Dollar Tree’s support, Club kids and their advisors also have the opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C., to present their advocacy projects to their peers while participating in BGCA’s Summit for America’s Youth.