in learning about their rights and active citizenship girls can bring fresh perspectives to family and school issues and even to the development of their communities unicef school speaking or debate clubs community forums with space reserved for girls to voice their ideas and youth parliaments that include younger age cohorts are among the options processes to foster participation need to be carefully managed however since many end up dominated by adults and even among young adolescents girls are already likely to be more reticent than boys one essential protection from these risks is as simple as a birth certificate