At the CYPT, we believe that a strong sense of belonging is foundational to child and youth well-being.

When good things happen related to belonging, other good outcomes are experienced by young people.

The work of this collaborative is focused predominately in the area of Belonging for Children and Youth, which for us, includes three key areas of focus:  Equity, Attachment/ Relationships and Children and Youth Feeling Valued, Heard and Included.  But what is belonging?

UNICEF Canada defines belonging as “feeling loved and supported and having mutually caring and respectful relationships”

This love and support can come from many sources including friends, family, teachers, pets, and people in the community.

More On Belonging...

A Case for Child and Youth Belonging
To read about how the CYPT landed on belonging as a focus area for our collective impact work, please read Building a Case for Child and Youth Belonging: Insights from the Children and Youth Planning Table of Waterloo Region.   

This is a comprehensive document that will continue to evolve as our collective understanding of belonging evolves.

A conversation about Belonging with Kim DeGasperis from the Waterloo Catholic
District School Board and Alison Pearson from the CYPT Backbone Team.

What makes you feel like you belong? Insights from a youth in Waterloo Region.

CYPT Voting Member, Tammy Webster, on belonging.