The Wellspring

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.

Fight for the Future is a national conference for young workers (those aged under 30 working full-time or combining work and study) to be held in Adelaide from 26 - 27 July, 2007. The conference is run by SA Unions, and registration is now open (and it’s free!).

The organisers say: “Young people have been significantly disadvantaged by the changes to work laws and electoral enrolment procedures over the past year. Young workers from all over the country are invited to come together, share their experiences and hear first hand how the Federal Government’s Industrial Relations legislation is impacting on young people.”

There will be three workshop streams:

• High school and TAFE students (SA based students only)
• Workplace campaigning
• Community or grassroots activism

Participants will develop action plans that can be implemented upon their return to school, workplaces and local communities.

For further information and to download the registration form, see http://www.saunions.org.au/Youth%20Conference/conference%20page.html.

Registration closes 20 July, 2007.

The annual Students of Sustainability (SoS) conference is on again, to be held this year from 9 - 15 July, 2007 at Murdoch University in Perth.

Now in its 16th year, SoS is the largest meeting of the environmental movement in the country, attracting between 600 and 800 young participants each year.

SoS describes itself as “a convergence of communities, students, academics, and environment and Indigenous groups and autonomous activists from around Australia. It features inspiring speakers, practical workshops, community nights, bands, films, field trips, actions, reflection, dialogue, celebration.”

Registration (which includes camping accommodation and vegan meals) for students is $175. Early bird registration (which gives you a discount of $15) ends 1 June, 2007.

For further information and to register online, see http://www.studentsofsustainability.org/.