YouthSpeak: A Conversation for the Future

A report YouthSpeak: A Conversation for the Future, was launched by the Hon Kate Ellis MP, Minister for Youth, at the University of Western Australia on 25 July 2008. The report captures the experiences, challenges, aspirations and ideals of over thirteen thousand young Australian between the ages of twelve and twenty four, who participated in face-to-face or on-line consultations.

The report is the culmination of the YouthSpeak project, which was developed and conducted by the United Nations Youth Association, whose many members worked on the project as volunteers. The project was supported by funding from the Australian Government.

The YouthSpeak Report highlights that young people:

Care about the environment;
Want better access to health care services, especially youth specific services;
Want more public transport at a local level;
Want to be supported to educate peers about the harmful effects of drugs and alcohol;
Want the eligibility requirements for Youth Allowance to be reviewed; and
Want the inequality between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians to be addressed.

Minister Ellis congratulated UNYA on producing such a comprehensive report and emphasised the value of the report as a contribution of the youth voice in the development of Australian Government policy.

The report is just the beginning of the conversation the Australian Government plans to have with young people. The Australian Youth Forum (AYF) will be established to serve as a formal communication channel between the Australian Government and young people, youth policy specialists and the youth sector. Public consultations on the AYF closed on 31 May 2008 and their outcomes are now being considered.

View the "Summary of AYF Consultations" (PDF 72KB). The Minister's announcement of the AYF model is expected in the near future.

View more about YouthSpeak at the United Nations Youth Association of Australia website.

Check out the "YouthSpeak: A Conversation for the Future" (PDF 6.14MB)

"YouthSpeak: A Conversation for the Future" Media Release.

Disclaimer

The views expressed in the "YouthSpeak: A Conversation for the Future" report are those of the young people who were involved in the project and do not necessarily represent the views of the Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations.