Youth are more talked about than listened to or understood. Black youth, in particular, have become a modern South African bogey, presented as an uncontrollable and unpredictable factor that might destroy the process of transition and reconstruction.

Since the 1980s youth have been alternately presented as the 'Young Lions' or the 'Lost Generation'. In neither case were they merely people - emerging adults, still beset by the self-consciousness and awkwardness of teenagers, while also citizens of a society in transition, aware of and buffeted by the waves of political change sweeping the country.

Creating a Future sets out the parameters of youth development and its guiding principles and strategic recommendations, which were adopted by the second National Conference on Marginalised Youth and the National Youth Development Forum.

The key issues dealt with are: AIDS, education and its relationship to the world of work, employment creation, and violence and the broad social context. Two continental comparative chapters analyse the brigades of Botswana and youth development initiatives in Kenya and Uganda. Creating a Future is part of a multi-faceted youth research project undertaken by the Community Agency for Social Enquiry (CASE), and commissioned by the Joint Enrichment Project (JEP).

Creating a Future is essential reading for young people themselves, people concerned about youth, and those interested in the broader issues of development.