Adolescents & Youth

WHY WE FOCUS ON ADOLESCENT AND YOUTH SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH 

More than half of the world’s population is under 25. Most live in the poorest countries, where the leading cause of death for girls 15-19 globally is complication in pregnancy and childbirth. 23 million adolescents need contraception but don’t have it. Over 1 billion young people need accurate, unbiased information and healthcare free from judgment. Pathfinder is making sure they get it.  

• Adolescents and youth are our future. Offering them sexual and reproductive health care without judgement or bias allows them to make healthy decisions about their bodies and their futures and contributes to a healthier world.  
• Young people drive progress and change. Connecting young advocates and policymakers is essential to fostering supportive policies that promote young people’s health and rights.  
• Young women and girls who are forced to marry and bear children before they are ready face numerous challenges to living the lives they choose and have healthy families. Supporting young women and first-time mothers to delay their first pregnancy and space their births leads to healthier mothers and children and contributes to gender equality.  
• Young people often know intuitively what will help them to succeed. Partnering with young people to develop new and creative approaches to adolescent and youth sexual and reproductive health and behavior change strategies can help them to develop healthy habits and behaviors.   
• Healthy gender norms shape healthy societies. We engage boys and young men to support the autonomy and well-being of girls and women through transformation of harmful gender norms and behaviors that hold women and girls back and detract from gender equality.  

Pathfinder recognizes that reaching people when they are young can help them to adopt healthy attitudes, values, and behaviors, practiced throughout their lifetimes. Because there is great diversity in the young people we serve, Pathfinder applies a variety of age- and life-stage-tailored approaches that consider factors influencing young people’s lives. These factors include the knowledge and skills they possess; relationships with their peers, partners, and parents; their social environment; the services available to them; and the laws and policies that govern their lives.  

• Mainstream youth programming: Pathfinder ensures young people can access sexual and reproductive health information and care without judgement and bias. Our programs are designed based on the age and gender of the youth we serve and are developmentally and culturally responsive.
• Building an enabling environment with youth at the center: A range of social, cultural, political, and economic factors impact young peoples’ sexual and reproductive health outcomes. Pathfinder works to lift barriers to the advancement of young people’s sexual and reproductive health and rights through integrated, multisectoral programming that addresses young people’s holistic needs. 
• Meaningfully engaging adolescents and youth: The adolescents and youth themselves inform Pathfinder’s program design, implementation, monitoring, and accountability. We cultivate young people’s leadership and programmatic skills, recognizing that programs must see young people not simply as stakeholders but as shapers of their own priorities. 
• Shifting policies and strengthening health systems: Pathfinder supports policies, procedures, and programs that respond to the diverse needs and preferences of young people. We strengthen the capacity of health systems and providers to serve youth with quality care, enhancing the delivery of quality, responsive services.