In an Access Sacramento office full of high-tech video equipment, timelines circulated Friday morning among representatives of local community organizations working toward Sacramento's first Youth Media Forum For Social Change. The project is aimed at showcasing and supporting the use of digital tools for advocacy and social change as well as establishing a regional network of youth and adults to share and create them.

The upcoming forum is supported by The Healthy Youth/Healthy Regions initiative, a partnership between the University of California at Davis Center for Regional Change, Sierra Health Foundation and The California Endowment. Research obtained through the initiative will dictate the Center for Regional Change's recommendations regarding youth engagement in the region.

Access Sacramento, a nonprofit community media source, is collaborating on the Youth Media Forum with representatives from the Center for Regional Change, the Sacramento City Unified School District, the Committee Addressing Racial Equity, and diverse media and community groups.

"We're lucky Sacramento is very community minded," said Ron Cooper, executive director of Access Sacramento. "It's our greatest asset. It's elusive, hard to quantify, but it's a great thing."

Kindra Montgomery-Block and bel Reyes, representatives of the UC Davis Center for Community School Partnerships, said they hope to make the event the first in a continuing series. They are supported by a number of local media organizations and community members in promoting forums and discussions of media issues.

This alliance focuses on the region's youth, middle and high-school students in particular.

"This realization of 'I didn't realize kids were doing this!' speaks to a lot of us," said Montgomery-Block. "There's a lot of potential in what's going on out there; maybe this forum is what it takes to realize some great things."

Cooper reiterated the importance of creating a space for youth to engage and network.

"If we do our work right, the good work will be with the kids," he said.

Students ages 10 to 21 are invited to participate in the forum by submitting media projects. For more information, contact Montgomery-Block or bel Reyes.

Sacramento's Youth Media Forum For Social Change will take place May 22 at 9 A.M. in the KCRA Channel 3 studios, 3 Television Circle.