Advocating for pregnancy prevention can benefit teens in several important ways. First, advocacy allows young people to see they can make a difference in the world. Second, their voice has the potential to change sexual norms and behavior in their school and community. Third advocating for an issue not only helps young people better understand the issue itself, but helps them clarify their personal values and beliefs. In this section of Skills for Youth, we're going to focus on advocating with friends to prevent teen pregnancies.
Pregnancy prevention is a large, complex issue.
It affects many different parts of society. There are financial implications and social costs. Components of effective pregnancy prevention efforts include abstinence, comprehensive sexuality education, contraception, increased condom use among sexually active teens, access to clinical services, funding, and implementing specific prevention programs like Be Proud, Be Responsible, or Reducing the Risk. From an advocacy perspective, each of these is a distinct issue. Students can choose to advocate for one of the above issues, or brainstorm one of their own.