RESEARCH AND RESOURCES
This section provides you with access to our training course series both for mentors and community program managers, as well as the key research, articles, and practical tools that shape and support our work. Whether you're a youth mentor, church leader, or simply passionate about positive youth development, you'll find evidence-based insights and accessible resources to deepen your understanding and enhance your impact. We’re committed to sharing knowledge that empowers—grounded in real-world practice and informed by current research.
Why Mentoring
RESEARCH
Below you’ll find a selection of research articles and theses that explore key themes related to mentoring and empowerment for youth facing the transition into adulthood. These include studies on the role of trust in mentoring relationships, the impact of mentoring in school settings, the unique dynamics of mentoring street-involved youth, and approaches to mentoring within child residential homes. Together, this body of work provides valuable insights into how mentoring can support personal growth, resilience, and long-term transformation in young people from diverse backgrounds.
Youth in Guatemala: Can disempowerment be reversed among marginalised young people entering adulthood? (2012)
The influence of trust on formally assigned youth mentoring relationships. (2020)
QUOTE
“Virtually every aspect of human development is fundamentally shaped by interpersonal relationships. So it stands to reason that when close and caring relationships are placed at the center of a youth intervention, as is the case in mentoring programs, the conditions for healthy development are ripe.”
Dr Jean Rhodes
Director of MENTOR & University of Massachusetts Boston Center for Evidence-Based Mentoring.
RESOURCES AND COURSES
Below you’ll find a range of resources and courses—both free and paid—to support your work in youth mentoring. These include specialist mentoring and community program management training series courses, and participant guides designed to accompany mentors and mentees through structured sessions, with practical exercises focused on identity, emotional regulation, goal setting, self-care, and mental health. In addition, we offer resources for program managers to help design and implement effective community-based mentoring initiatives, using our proven community analysis and consultation framework. Whether you're working one-on-one with a young person or overseeing a wider mentoring program, these tools are created to strengthen impact and foster meaningful growth.
7 free downloadable resources focused on identity, emotional regulation, goal setting, self-care, and more.
Community Consultation Framework: A guide to reviewing your communities' needs, your mission, your team and their giftings, means to collaborate with other community programmes, and your desired outcomes and results.
Young People and Street Safety: A resource for parents and mentors regarding the issues of grooming, gangs, and their associated risks.
Specialist Mentoring Training Series: Equipping you to cultivate trusting mentoring relationships with marginalised and at-risk young people.
Program Management Training Series: Equipping you to plan, implement and monitor your community mentoring program.