The Wellspring

The Multifaith Future Leaders Program is a three-day leadership workshop to be run from 22-24 February, 2010 by the B’nai B’rith Anti-Defamation Commission, that includes activities designed to engage people of different backgrounds in learning new skills, exploring commonalities and making connections. These activities will help the young people build relationships so that they can support each other in future leadership endeavours.

The workshop, the second of what is intended to be an annual event, is open to young people aged between 18-26 who are ‘committed members of a faith community’ (this would seem, rather unfortunately, to rule out atheists). After an interview process, approximately 40-50 applicants will be selected to participate. All food, accommodation and activities will be free of charge.

For further information, see http://www.antidef.org.au/secure/downloadfile.asp?fileid=1011066. To register your interest, see http://www.antidef.org.au/www/309/1001127/displayarticle/1010655.html. Though there is no strict closing date for registration of interest, the Anti-Defamation Commission have requested that it be completed by September or October.

The 2009-10 Commonwealth Budget was released on 12 May.

As in previous years, the Youth Affairs Council of South Australia (YACSA) has prepared a summary of budget measures that have significant effect on young people. This is available at http://www.yacsa.com.au/cgi-bin/wf.pl?pid=195864619091495&mode=cd&file=../html/documents//Policy%20and%20Research. Jennifer Duncan, Executive Director of YACSA, has prepared a more extensive overview of relevant federal budget measures, available at http://www.yacsa.com.au/onlinedocs/Federal_budget_notes_2009.pdf.

The Australian Minister for Youth, the Hon Kate Ellis MP, has also released a ‘quick guide to youth budget’ (eh?) available via http://www.youth.gov.au/budget.html. It comes with an accompanying video.

In addition to significant investments in secondary and tertiary education infrastructure, the two main measures directed to young people include:

• A $277 million Compact with Young Australians, which will guarantee training places for every young person under 25 and require that young people under 17 participate full-time in study, training or employment. It will also bring forward – from 2020 to 2015 – the target that 90 per cent of young Australians attain Year 12 or equivalent qualifications.
• A reform of the student income support system: The Government will tighten the definition of ‘independence’ under the scheme – doubling the number of hours students must work to prove they are financially independent of their parents, to 30 hours per week for 18 months – to make it more difficult to qualify for Youth Allowance through independence prior to turning 22. Minister Ellis’s summary states that, “The savings from tightening the independence test will be reinvested to provide greater levels of support and more generous means testing arrangements for lower income students”, but the exact details of this increase have yet to be released. Currently, youth allowance rates max out at $371.40 a fortnight, well below the poverty line of $558 a fortnight.

Community organising website ActNow is looking for 20 young Australians aged 18-25 to join its next Incubator and help give ActNow a makeover.

The Incubator is a committee of young people that works in conjunction with staff to generate ideas, solve problems and build ActNow. The next Incubator will be focused on developing a new and improved website, working to:

• Examine the strengths and challenges of the current website
• Develop a vision for ActNow
• Research and discuss ideas for the new ActNow site
• Create a web brief to guide the development of the new ActNow site

The Incubator will start in May 2009 and run for 6 weeks, and include a two-day face-to-face workshop in Sydney at the start, followed by a structured online programme. Participants will be required to commit to two hours of weekly participation throughout the programme.

Incubators receive a small honorarium to cover their internet costs. Travel, accommodation and food costs associated with the weekend workshop in Sydney will be covered for all participants.

For further information and to apply online, see http://www.actnow.com.au/GetInvolved.aspx.

Applications close 27 April, 2009.

The Foundation for Young Australians is searching for 14 young Australians to participate in its inaugural Young Social Pioneers programme.

The programme has been run internationally by YouthActionNet (as its Fellowship programme) at the international level since 2002, and has already supported 140 young social pioneers from 55 countries. Previous Australian Fellows include Richard Lenn of YouthGAS and Anna Rose of the Australian Youth Climate Coalition. The one-year programme offers access to professional mentors, training, networks and opportunities for recognition. It consists of three core elements:

• Learn / Inquire: Bringing young social pioneers together with other successful leaders and social pioneers for a series of retreats and workshops focused on skill-building and information sharing.
• Connect: Multiple opportunities to access mentors and relevant networks to increase the impact and recognition of their work. These include facilitated network meetings, which allow for networking with peers and experts and developing personal profiles. Plus, one to one mentoring outside of the retreats and workshops.
• Do: Ensuring that the work of today’s young social pioneers is recognised and supported.

Applicants must be:

• 18-29 years old
• Actively working on an idea that has existed for a minimum of six months, in the area of:
• Education
• Environment
• Health
• Human rights
• Performing & visual arts
• Politics
• Science & technology
• Social justice
• Wellbeing
• Available for the finalist weekend 25-26 July 2009 and the first retreat 27
  August – 4 September 2009

For further information and to apply online, see http://www.youngsocialpioneers.org.au/.

Applications close 26 June, 2009.

The Australian Youth Affairs Coalition (AYAC) is Australia’s national youth affairs peak, representing the rights and interests of young people and the sector that supports them. Following the announcement of new funding for the organisation, AYAC is now seeking an Establishment Director to establish it as a fully-operational organisation.

The Establishment Director is a 12-month position, with flexible conditions and negotiable executive-level remuneration.

Expressions of interests for the position should comprise a cover letter highlighting relevant experience and CV. Applications should be sent to jennifer@yacsa.com.au.

Any queries regarding this position can be directed to Jennifer Duncan, AYAC Secretary and Executive Director of the Youth Affairs Council of South Australia, via e-mail at jennifer@yacsa.com.au or via telephone on 0417 863 089. For further information about AYAC and the position, including a full position description, see http://www.ayac.org.au/.

Applications close at 5 pm AEDST, 1 April 2009.

A-PAC (which was originally named Au-SPAN when floated as an idea at the Australia 2020 Summit, and then A-SPAN when its launch was announced) is a public affairs channel broadcast on Foxtel and Austar. A-PAC broadcasts live coverage of the Australian House of Representatives and the Senate, as well as industry and peak-body meetings, and think-tank discussions. It also covers the United States Congress, the New Zealand Parliament and the House of Commons and House of Lords in the UK.

A-PAC has introduced a new mini-segment to the channel called ‘Your Shout‘, consisting of YouTube videos from the audience commenting upon or posing a question about a current political issue.

The video should be 60 to 90 seconds in length and the person should state their name and their city and suburb. The best questions and comments will be broadcast on the channel in between its parliamentary coverage.

To submit a video clip, post a YouTube video response to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-sv0f8ksoo.

For further information, see http://www.a-pac.tv/yourshout/.

The libertarian think-tank, the Centre for Independent Studies, is calling for applications from university students and recent graduates to attend its next Liberty & Society seminar, to be held from 1 – 3 May, 2009 in Sydney.

It starts with a dinner on Friday 1 May, with sessions over the next two days on liberal political philosophy, liberal economics, liberal law and a final policy-oriented session.

The seminar is aimed at those interested in classical liberal ideas, though ‘a few conservatives and social democrats [are always selected] to keep the debate lively’.

The CIS will cover all the costs of the weekend for successful applicants. There are also airfare subsidies available for those who need help getting to Sydney.

For further information and to download an application form (the online form seems not to be working at the moment), see http://www.cis.org.au/L&S/HTML/home.htm.

Applications close 3 April, 2009.

The Centre for Sustainability Leadership is currently looking for 25 young people from each of Victoria and New South Wales to join its 2009 Fellowship Program. Participants, selected on their demonstrated potential to lead efforts for the creation of a more sustainable world, will complete a seven-month leadership development programme of weekly workshops, group project activities, a mentorship programme and residential retreats.

In 2009 the program will be run in Melbourne and Sydney and applications are open to all students currently enrolled at university and young professionals. The is no age limit for applicants.

The Fellowship Program is scholarship based, though each participant will be required to contribute $2,500. Additionally, full scholarships are available to a select number of fellows who cannot afford the $2,500 contribution – no worthy applicant will miss out due to genuinely not being able to pay.

For further information and to apply online, see http://csl.org.au/index.php?page_id=17.

The Centre for Sustainability Leadership will also be hosting information sessions:

• Sydney: 6:30 – 7:30pm, 12 March 2009: Location: check website for details.
• Melbourne: 6:30 – 7:30pm, 18 March 2009: EPA offices, HWT Tower, Ground Floor, 40 City Road, Southbank Victoria

Applications close 30 March, 2009.