ABSTRACT
In this chapter the authors present what they have learned through long-term community based critical youth research projects and how deep and engaged community participation is a hallmark of strong scholarship. They discuss community investment as the foundation for research rather than simply as a way to “access a research site.” They use their past research projects to illuminate practices of building trust, being present and useful, meaningful engagement for young people and communities, the importance of investing time, and questions of accountability, or rather, to whom researchers are responsible beyond institutional review boards.
