Country of Residence
Nigeria
Age
18
Project title
The Civic Trust Lab
Project Summary: Describe your project in one sentence
Civic Trust Lab helps young people move from complaining about problems to actually fixing them. Using a cycle See, Understand, Map, Act, Follow Up, Reflect, Teach. Teams tackle real issues like bad roads, unsafe schools, or poor services, then pass on what they learn. We start small, document what works, and build a free toolkit others can use. The vision is that young people who don't just spot what's broken, but have the skill and confidence to fix it. From concern to civic action.
Website URL(s) or social media handles.
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100080938301217
Project Category
My project is a brand new / emerging idea
Project Stage
Idea (We’re hoping to get started in the future)
Founding Story: What was the spark that led you to start your project? What was the "Aha!" moment that led you to get started and see the potential for this to succeed?
My spark moment came from observing the communities around me and visiting different schools. I noticed problems that seemed small on their own but had real effects on everyday life broken windows in classrooms, uncontrolled refuse dumping, poorly maintained public spaces, and streetlights left broken long enough to make entire areas unsafe at night. What struck me wasn't just the problems, but how much untapped capacity was sitting right there among young people. I kept thinking about what could happen if young people with different skills came together to fix these issues instead of waiting for someone else to act. Someone who understands technology could help with digital reporting. Someone technical could assess a broken facility. Others could organize residents, gather information, or engage the right authorities. Everyone had something to contribute. That's when I realized youth inclusion has to mean more than being invited to talk about problems young people need real opportunities to identify, understand, and actually address them. That became the foundation for Civic Trust Lab: a grassroots initiative that equips young people to turn everyday community concerns into organized, constructive civic action. It started with broken windows and streetlights. But the real discovery was that our communities already have young people capable of fixing what's broken.
The Problem: What problem are you helping to solve? Why does it matter to you and your community?
Many communities have everyday problems that affect people's safety, wellbeing and quality of life, but these problems often stay unresolved. It's not that nobody notices them it's that there's a gap between noticing a problem and actually knowing what to do about it. From what I've seen in my own community and from visiting different schools, the problems are things like broken windows, refuse dumped everywhere, public spaces nobody maintains, and streetlights that stay broken for months. On their own these look small. But they add up. Poor waste management hurts the environment and people's health. Broken lighting makes streets feel unsafe, especially at night. Meanwhile, there are young people all around with real skills and ideas who could help fix exactly these kinds of problems. The issue is that young people are usually treated as people to talk to about community problems, not people who actually get to fix them. This matters to me because I think real civic participation starts at the grassroots, not in a conference room. Young people need the knowledge, the confidence, and the actual opportunity to work together, talk to the right people, and put practical solutions in place. Civic Trust Lab exists to close that gap turning young people's concerns into real, organized civic action.
Your Solution: How are you solving this problem? Share your specific solution.
Civic Trust Lab creates a practical, youth led system that helps young people move from just pointing out community problems to actually working together to fix them. We start with a small pilot group trained in something we call the Civic Action Cycle: See, Understand, Map, Act, Follow Up, Reflect, Teach. First, participants go out and document real problems in their own communities. Broken streetlights, refuse dumped everywhere, damaged school facilities, public spaces nobody's maintaining. They talk to the people actually affected and gather basic evidence so they understand what's really going on, not just what it looks like from outside. Next comes mapping the problem. Who's the right stakeholder here, which community leaders, which public institution, which organization or technical expert is connected to this issue. Instead of just complaining about it, the team builds an actual plan. Depending on the problem, that might mean submitting a documented request to the right authority, organizing a community clean up, bringing in a skilled volunteer, or getting the right people in a room together. After acting, they follow up and document what happened, what worked, what didn't, and what they learned. Those experiences become real examples other young people can learn from. Civic Trust Lab also brings together young people with different strengths, technology, communication, research, organizing, technical skills, so everyone contributes in the way they're best suited to. The goal isn't to replace government or existing institutions. It's to give young people the knowledge, structure and confidence to participate meaningfully, work with others, and engage the right institutions to actually solve problems.
Impact: How has your project created impact / made a difference so far? Or, if at an early stage, what will impact look like?
Civic Trust Lab is still at an early stage, so I'm not claiming beneficiaries or outcomes that haven't happened yet. My initial impact will be measured through a small pilot with young people in a community and school setting. I plan to start by engaging 20 to 30 young people, helping them build practical civic action skills and work in teams to identify and address real problems around them. Each team will document the problem, the people affected, the stakeholders responsible, the action taken, and the response they got back. I'll measure impact through numbers and through experience. Numbers like how many young people were trained, problems documented, actions taken, community members engaged, stakeholders contacted, responses received, and issues that actually improved. I'll also compare how confident participants feel about civic participation before and after the pilot. The deeper impact I'm after is a shift in how young people see their own role. Instead of thinking community problems are someone else's job, I want them to know they can organize, work with others, engage institutions, and actually contribute solutions. If the pilot shows young people can move from spotting problems to acting on them, I'll turn what we learn into a simple toolkit other youth groups and schools can use. My goal is to start small, measure honestly, and build from there.
Your Innovation: What is different about your project compared to other programs or solutions already out there? How is your project new or innovative?
Civic Trust Lab is different because it doesn't treat young people as beneficiaries of civic education or as participants in a one off awareness campaign. It treats them as problem solvers and collaborators who can actually improve their communities themselves. Most civic programs focus on teaching young people about citizenship, rights or leadership in the abstract. Civic Trust Lab goes a step further by connecting that knowledge to actual action through a repeatable process, the Civic Action Cycle: See, Understand, Map, Act, Follow Up, Reflect, Teach. The other part of the innovation is how young people get brought together based on what they're actually good at. Someone with research skills gathers evidence. Someone good with technology helps document or map the problem. A strong communicator engages the stakeholders. Someone technical contributes to the actual solution. Others organize the community around the issue. Instead of expecting one young person to somehow solve a problem on their own, the Lab builds a structure where people solve it together. It's also different because Civic Trust Lab isn't promising to replace public institutions or fix everything itself. It teaches young people how to figure out who's responsible, who can help, what action actually makes sense, and how to follow up until something happens. And every action becomes something to learn from. Participants document what they tried, what response they got, and what they learned from it. Those experiences turn into simple guides other young people can adapt for similar problems in their own communities. In the end, Civic Trust Lab moves civic participation from "I see a problem" to "I understand the problem, I know who can help, and I know how to actually do something about it.
How many people are on your team?
20
Your team: What role(s) do your team members play? How do you share leadership with them?
Civic Trust Lab is founder-led at this early stage. I'll coordinate the pilot while building a small team with complementary skills in research, tech, communication and organizing. Leadership will be shared based on strengths, decisions made collaboratively, with real input from young participants
What’s Next: What are the next steps you plan to take to grow or strengthen your project over the next year? If your project is still in the idea stage, describe the steps you will take over the next three months to launch or begin developing it.
Over the next three months, I'll focus on turning Civic Trust Lab from an idea into a small, measurable pilot. First, I'll build the founding team by bringing together young people with skills in research, technology, communication, community organizing and technical problem solving. Second, I'll develop the Civic Trust Lab toolkit, including the Civic Action Cycle, simple guides for identifying and documenting community problems, stakeholder mapping, responsible civic engagement, and follow up. Third, I'll recruit 20 to 30 young people for the pilot and work with them to identify practical problems in their own communities and schools. Teams will pick problems they can realistically take on and build action plans involving the right stakeholders and institutions. Fourth, I'll build partnerships with schools, community leaders, youth organizations and professionals who can offer guidance, technical knowledge or opportunities to collaborate. Finally, I'll document every pilot activity and measure the results, what problems were identified, what actions were taken, who was engaged, what changed, and what participants learned. I'll use those findings to improve the model and build a version other youth groups can replicate. My immediate goal is simple: start small, learn from real action, and build a model that can grow.
How do you encourage other people to join your project or learn about the problem you’re working on? If you have a new idea, tell us how you will do this in the future.
Civic Trust Lab is still at the idea stage, so I haven't claimed participants or engagement numbers yet. My first approach will be to make civic participation practical, visible and accessible, rather than relying on awareness campaigns alone. I'll recruit young people through schools, youth networks, community groups and personal contacts, inviting them to work on problems they genuinely experience themselves. During the pilot, participants will work in small teams based on their interests and skills, research, technology, communication, organizing and technical problem solving. We'll also use simple digital platforms and social media to share real stories from the pilot, the problem identified, what young people found, who they engaged, what action they took, and what happened afterward. This shows others that civic action can start with something as ordinary as a broken streetlight, uncontrolled waste, or a damaged school facility. I also plan to involve community members, professionals and relevant institutions where it makes sense, so young people learn that civic leadership is about collaboration, not working alone. The first goal is to engage 20 to 30 young people directly, while reaching a wider audience through the stories and resources the project produces. As the model develops, individuals with experience will be encouraged to bring in others
