The Wellspring

Applications are again about to open for four vacancies on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation Advisory Council. The Council, composed of 12 members selected from across Australia, meets three times annually and provides advice and feedback to the ABC Board on ABC program policy.

Council members are selected by the ABC Board for their ability to provide broad representation of the community. Members serve for a term of four years and are drawn from diverse age groups, backgrounds and locations.

For further information, see http://abc.net.au/corp/nac/. Public announcements will begin on ABC Radio and Television on 24 September, at which time you’ll also be able to download an application form from the website.

The application form is quite involving, asking numerous questions about applicants’ viewing habits and interests in ABC programming and across other media, involvement in community groups and experience representing community views, so if you’re thinking of applying, you might want to start thinking about these issues now.

Of particular interest to young applicants may be the fact that my term will be ending; this means that there will be one less young, metropolitan-based person on the Council. I’m not involved in the selection process at all, but those who are may well be looking for applicants who have the capacity to fill the gap in community representation created by my departure. (There is also a noticeable absence of members from ethnic backgrounds, and the chronic lack of representation from indigenous communities.) You may want to explicitly address this in your application.

If you have any questions about my experiences with the Council, feel free to leave a comment to this post.

Applications must be received by 26 October, 2007.

Applications for the National Youth Roundtable 2008 are now open.

The Roundtable, which has had its legitimacy and efficacy called into question a number of times (see here, here, here and here), is the ‘Australian Government’s youth consultation mechanism. It brings together young people aged 15 to 24 years from all areas around Australia and various cultural backgrounds. The Roundtable provides young Australians with the opportunity to meet with the Australian Government to discuss and explore issues that impact on young people.’

The website has no word on the exact number for this intake, but if it is the same as last (current) one we can expect about 44 positions, of which 12 will be reserved for young Indigenous Australians. This is well down on the previous practice, which lasted until 2004, where 50 young Australians were appointed to the National Youth Roundtable, and 15 to a separate National Indigenous Youth Leadership Group. (NIYLG was folded into the Roundtable in its 2007 session).

Where possible, members will reflect the diversity of young Australians in their experiences, education, occupations and backgrounds.

Assessment is also based on an applicants’:

• experience and interest in a range of issues affecting young people;
• life experience; and
• ability to effectively consult with other young people.

(The previous criteria of Community involvement and Achievements have been dropped, which might indicate that the Government is more interested in hearing from young people who haven’t traditionally been involved with these types of consultations.)

Perhaps in response to previous criticism, this intake is expected to enjoy longer meetings than previous years, including a 7-day introductory workshop, two 3-day meetings throughout the year, and a final 5-day workshop at the end of their terms. Also new this year is the introduction of a degree of independence into the selection process, with ‘an independent panel made up of young people, such as, previous Roundtable members [and] Young Australian of the Year State winners’ assessing a shortlist prepared by the Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs‘ Youth Bureau and making final membership recommendations to the Minister.

At the National Youth Affairs Conference earlier this year, Ms Tanya Plibersek MP, Shadow Minister for Women and Youth announced an Australian Labor Party commitment to overhauling the Roundtable. The Shadow Minister said:

“Young Australians will be given a formal, funded mechanism to advise a new Labor Government on how policies affect them which will be independent, more representative and have a broader role than current youth advisory bodies.

“This mechanism will be called the Australian Youth Forum, and will bring together young people and advocates to discuss problems affecting youth, and how the federal government can be part of a solution.

“The Australian Youth Forum will be a formal communication channel between outstanding youth representatives and service-providers and the Federal Government.”

For further information, see Ms Plibersek’s media statement.

For further information on the Roundtable and to download an application form, see http://www.thesource.gov.au/involve/NYR/.

Applications close 18 October, 2007.

The 20-member Queensland Youth Council provides a forum for the exchange of information and views between young people and the Queensland Government in order to assist the development of policies, programs and services that impact on the lives of Queensland’s young people. The council reports directly to the Minister for Communities, Seniors and Youth.

The Queensland Department of Communities is currently seeking applications from young Queenslanders aged 15 - 25 for a term from Feb 2008 - Feb 2010.

Young members will be selected from a range of backgrounds and life experiences. Each member will bring knowledge and expertise regarding young people’s issues in their region as well as their own unique perspectives. Collectively the council will reflect a range of perspectives of young people across Queensland.

Council membership is conditional on the member living and / or working in the region they represent for the term of the council. Should a member relocate to a different region during the term they may be required to resign their position.

For further information and to download an application form, see http://www.communities.qld.gov.au/department/ministerial-advisory-councils/qld-youth-council.html. (Strangely, no word of the application process appears on the Queensland Government’s generate website for young people, or on the front page of http://www.youth.qld.gov.au/.) Innovatively, responses can be written or provided in an alternative format (video or audio tape recording, or multimedia presentation).

Applications close 28 September, 2007.

ABC Heywire (now in its tenth year!) is on again and inviting young people aged 16 - 22 from regional and rural Australia to have a say about the things that are important to them. Unlike in previous years, where submissions had to be in text, this year they are also after submissions in audio, pictures or moving images.

Winning stories will be selected from each of the 41 ABC regions across Australia, and produced by the ABC for broadcast on either national ABC Radio (which includes national youth radio station Triple J), ABC Online, ABC Television or ABC 2. Each winner will also be invited to take part in the all-expenses-paid Heywire Youth Issues Forum, held at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra in February 2008.

For further information, see http://www.abc.net.au/heywire/ (which includes previous stories and an online entry form) or freecall 1800 26 26 46.

Entires close 7 September, 2007.

The Qantas Spirit of Youth Awards is on again this year, and is currently inviting young Australian artists, designers, musicians and other creatives aged 25 and under to submit music, fashion design, industrial and object design, moving images, visual art and photography for the opportunity to win $5,000 in cash and $5,000 in flights from Qantas. Prizes also include “career guidance that money just can’t buy” - mentorship with creative leaders including world-renowned designer Marc Newson, fashion icon Peter Morrissey, Elizabeth Ann Macgregor, director of Sydney’s Museum of Contemporary Art, and Alasdair Foster, director of the Australian Centre for Photography.

For further information, see http://www.soya.com.au/.

Submissions close 31 August, 2007.

Community-based aid and development organisation Oxfam Australia is offering 16 “young, vibrant, creative types” (2 from each state and territory) aged 18-30 the opportunity to participate in its one-year Youth Engagement Internship program.

This internship opportunity will commence with a 10 day event in Sydney at the beginning of October (volunteering at Kaleidoscope, an event that kicks off Oxfam’s International Youth Partnerships, which was previously called the International Youth Parliament) and will be followed by a one year, one-day-a-week commitment to develop and implement a social-justice related action plan developed by the interns, to be completed anywhere across the nation.

Positions will be supported (so that participants will have their costs covered), but not paid.

For further information and to download an application form, see http://www.oxfam.org.au/youth/engagement/.

Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander people are strongly encouraged to apply.

Applications close 30 August, 2007.

Applications for young Australians aged 16 - 23 to sail the tall ship Young Endeavour for its youth training program are again open. The 11-day voyages throughout January - July, 2008 depart from Hobart, Sydney, Melbourne, Southport, Bundaberg, Mackay, Townsville and Cairns. Fees will increase slightly from this year’s to $1650, with financial assistance available to low-income applicants and travel assistance available to residents of WA and NT.

Other details remain the same as this year.

For more information and to apply online, see http://www.youngendeavour.gov.au/.

Applications close 30 September, 2007.

Oh, my. It’s been over two months since the last meaningful post. Oops; the Geneva trip really did some chaotic things to my schedule… (and we completely missed the ambitiously-named but otherwise unexceptional International Youth Day on 12 August), and now there’s a significant backlog of posts. Here goes:

The Dunlop Fellowships aim to promote Sir Edward Weary Dunlop’s vision for peace and prosperity in the region through interpersonal exchange and interaction.

Fellowships provide a grant of up to $15,000 (which can be used to cover airfares, insurance, and a contribution to a living allowance) for an individually-devised work placement, project, academic study or research program in an Asian country in fields including social service, local community development, public health and child, youth and family welfare and justice. The Fellowships must be carried out under the supervision of a host-country government body, university, non-profit community organisation or private sector enterprise.

Candidates must be Australian citizens between 21-40 years of age.

For further information and to download an application form, see http://www.asialink.unimelb.edu.au/our_work/corporate__and__public/dunlop_fellowships.

Applications close 5 September, 2007.