The Wellspring

In a video with Minister for Youth Kate Ellis (transcript), the Prime Minister has launched his new youth blog and kicked off consultations for a new National Strategy for Young Australians. In his first blog post, the PM remarked that ‘The Government is developing a plan for young Australians – with young Australians – so that all young Australians are safe, healthy, confident and resilient, with the skills and supports they need to build their own futures’. The PM canvassed a variety of health challenges facing young Australians – mental health, obesity, and street violence – and asked young people how they would:

• help our young people grow up safe, happy and resililient (sic)?
• give young people the skills they need to learn, work and fully engage in community life
• reduce the physical and mental health risks facing young Australians, including negative body image, anxiety and depression, obesity and alcohol-fuelled violence?
• enable young people to accept responsibility for their actions and their behaviours?
• help young people to negotiate the challenges of today’s society?

So far, very little detail has been released regarding the scope or development process of the announced National Strategy for Young Australians. Many youth organisations, including the Australian Youth Affairs Coalition, the national youth affairs peak, have been taken by surprise by the announcement.

The PM’s new Youth Blog can be found at http://www.pm.gov.au/PM_Connect/PMs_Blog/Youth_Blog.

Update (14 Sep 2009): Apparently, the Youth Blog will only run for two weeks, until 25 September 2009.

Update (15 Sep 2009): Bella Counihan delivers a damning assessment of the new youth blog over at The Age’s National Times: http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/politics/why-rudd-gets-an-f-for-yoof-20090914-fnk8.html, remarking that it is both condescending and elitist.