Belonging doesn't happen by accident. It can be designed.
As youth development professionals, we spend countless hours planning activities, managing logistics, and supporting young people. But one of the most important questions we can ask ourselves is this:
What are we intentionally designing people to feel?
At Mizzen, we believe that belonging is the foundation of positive youth development. When young people and adults feel seen, valued, connected, and able to contribute as their full selves, they are more likely to engage, take healthy risks, develop confidence, and thrive.
Inspired by the work of Susie Wise and the Design for Belonging framework, we've learned that while we can't design a feeling itself, we can design the conditions that allow belonging to emerge.
Here are twelve practical ways to start.
1. Begin with Relationships
Program quality work is relational work. Before expectations, procedures, or outcomes, prioritize helping young people know one another and feel known. Build in moments for storytelling, shared discovery, and joyful interactions.
Ask yourself: How am I helping young people truly see one another?
2. Listen for Experiences of Othering
To design for belonging, we must first recognize moments when belonging is absent.
Take time to reflect:
Sometimes exclusion is obvious, but more often, it's subtle. Gaining awareness can lead to the first step toward sparking change.
3. Design Invitations, Not Just Activities
Every experience begins with an invitation. Whether spoken or unspoken, invitations communicate who belongs, what is possible, and what kinds of participation are valued.
Consider:
Young people are more likely to engage when invitations honor their identities, interests, and strengths.
4. Create Opportunities for Meaningful Contribution
One of the most powerful moments of belonging is contribution. The more people feel they belong, the more they contribute. The more they contribute, the deeper their sense of belonging becomes.
Ask:
Every young person and adult deserves to hear: "We would love your contribution because we value what you bring."
5. Design Spaces That Send Signals of Welcome
Physical environments communicate powerful messages. Who is your space designed for? Who might feel out of place?
Small adjustments can have an enormous impact:
6. Give Young People Real Roles
Belonging grows when people are needed. Consider creating rotating or permanent roles that allow young people to contribute their unique strengths:
Roles communicate: "You matter here, and this community is better because of you."
7. Build Rituals That Bring People Together
Rituals create meaning and help communities celebrate, grieve, reflect, welcome, and grow together.
Simple rituals might include:
The best rituals are often co-created with young people themselves.
Ask: What traditions, routines, and rituals help our community feel like us?
8. Make Room for Joy, Movement, and Play
Belonging is embodied. People connect differently when they move, laugh, create, and experience joy together. Joy is a powerful design tool!
Play isn't an extra, nice-to-have element of programming: it's essential.
Movement-based activities, collaborative challenges, and hands-on experiences allow young people to connect beyond words and discover common ground in unexpected ways.
9. Design for Dissent and Repair
Healthy communities don't avoid conflict; rather, they learn how to navigate it.
Belonging doesn't mean everyone agrees. It means people know they can disagree, raise concerns, and still remain valued members of the group.
Consider:
The way a community handles conflict often reveals its deepest commitments to belonging.
10. Belonging Through Communication
Craft communications so that they help a wide range of people to see themselves invited in, participating fully, achieving flow, and moving through all the moments of belonging that matter.
From flyers and emails to announcements and social media, ask:
Real stories of contribution, growth, and connection powerfully communicate belonging.
11. Reimagine Your Schedules and Rhythms
Schedules help set up days and times for connecting, sharing, and learning – all of which support belonging.
Ensuring everyone has a regular opportunity to participate is key. We can also use schedules and rhythms to disrupt routine and switch things up, which can spark excitement and creativity!
Think about:
Even small shifts—a community circle, a reflection pause, or a weekly celebration ritual—can strengthen belonging over time.
12. Start Small and Prototype Often
Designing for belonging is not about perfection - it's about experimentation.
Try one small change:
Then ask, "How did people feel?"
Because ultimately, belonging is measured less by what we create and more by what people experience.