Home > Starting a YAC

			A YAC is a youth advisory committee or council made up of young people from a diverse range of backgrounds who want to be actively involved in supporting their community's vibrancy. Each YAC is part of its local community foundation, locally-run public foundations that build and manage endowment funds to support charitable activities in their area. Canada has more than 150 community foundations, and more than 45 YACs. Real youth who are making it happen... To read about how some YACs got started, click here. To find out about other youth grantmakers, click here. Find out about former Canadian YACers who have grown up and moved on...Where are they now?

To get in touch with your local community foundation and YAC (if one already exists), visit the YAC Finder. There will be lots of ways that you can get involved.

If your community foundation doesn't already have a YAC, you can be sure they'd like to know about your interest!

Young people are the engine behind YACs, and your energy and ideas should be welcome at your local community foundation.

What next? Before you get in touch with your local community foundation, you will probably want to take some of these steps:

1. Read more about youth philanthropy and YACs...
   you can do this by:
   
   1. spending more time on this website, including the "getting started" resources that you'll find on the YIP Resources page
   2. checking out other youth engagement and youth philanthropy websites
2. Share what you've found and talk with other young people in your community - get some ideas together about what your YAC might look like and what you want to achieve
3. Get in touch with Barbara McMillan, National Consultant on Youth in Philanthropy for Community Foundations of Canada, tel. +1.604.986.3084. In addition to providing information and guidance, Barbara may be able to put you in touch with other YACs, who can provide information and help.