Youth Bulletin
Issue 12, August 2007
Welcome to the August edition of the source Youth Bulletin.
This month's edition contains the following articles:
- A fresh new look for National Youth Week 2008
- Cadets journey to Middle Earth
- APEC motion part of this year's Youth Parliament sessions,
- JobJuice.gov.au-Helping young people piece together their future
- National Young Farmers Forum 2007
- Help protect yourself from cervical cancer
- Passport (check), Credit Card (check), Quarantine (?)
- Youth Pathways
A fresh new look for National Youth Week 2008 (NYW 2008)
Emily Harris from Donvale, Victoria created the winning design which will feature as the new look for National Youth Week, Australia’s biggest youth celebration.
Emily’s creation was selected from 165 entries as the winning design and will be used in the promotion of NYW 2008. Elements of her work will be seen on the full range of print products such as posters as well as on the website promoting the event. Emily will also receive $2,000 for her design.
Katherine Ryder from Olinda, Victoria, was chosen as the runner up in the competition. She will receive $1,000. The three finalists were:
Shaiful Azrin Zakaria – Glandore, SA
Rick Marks - South Yarra, VIC
Bianca Voigt – Brighton, VIC
You can check out the winning entry and runner-up at thesource.gov.au
Stay tuned for NYW 2008 – it will be held from 5-13 April. We’re busy planning a bigger and better NYW for 2008… so keep your eyes on www.youthweek.com for more info towards the end of the year.
Cadets journey to Middle Earth
It was billed as the Land of the Lord of the Rings tour when six 322 Squadron Australian Air Force Cadets and 44 James Ruse Agricultural High School Australian Army Cadets recently visited New Zealand to….walk.
The tour was sponsored by the Department of Defence’s Cadet Initiated Activity program that allows cadets to identify and bid for funding for activities.
After a day in Christchurch, half of our contingent headed north, the other half south for a 67 kilometre hike. We soon learnt that New Zealand terrain, bushland and climate were very different to that of Australia. Everything was green and cool.
Our second day saw us climbing the steep Anne Saddle – an exhausting incline. Day three saw our section travelling north where we encountered the other half travelling south. Our fourth day of walking involved a steady uphill incline, leading to our destination Cannibal Gorge Hut (yes, you read that right).
The fifth day’s scenery was overwhelmingly breathtaking and the terrain was outrageously steep to the Lewis Pass entrance of the walk. After 30 minutes of solid uphill walking we finally achieved what seemed to be an impossible task five days earlier. After arriving at Hammer Springs, we proceeded to clean our tents, boots and packs. Once everything was clean we went into the township for a walk (just because we hadn’t walked enough!) and dinner.
We found this to be a fantastic experience. We developed teamwork and the valuable skill of trust, which will be an asset later in life.
The Australian Defence Force Cadets is a youth development organisation where 12 and a half to 20 year olds take part in adventurous, military-like activities, while learning about leadership, team building and themselves.
If you want to join in the fun of the Australian Defence Force Cadets visit the CadetNet website.
APEC motion part of this year's Youth Parliament sessions
At this year’s recently concluded Youth Parliament sessions, young Australians took the lead on addressing some of the top issues for the 2007 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum ahead of the APEC Leaders Meeting, which will be held in Sydney on 3-9 September.
Through the Youth Parliament APEC motion, the Youth Parliaments from New South Wales (NSW) and Queensland (QLD) discussed how free trade affects Australia, how to support a cooperative regional climate change policy and many of the other key issues that are on the table for discussion by world leaders at the upcoming APEC Summit.
Click on the following links if you want to want to learn more about APEC Australia 2007™, the APEC Australia 2007™ Leaders Week or the NSW and QLD Youth Parliament.
JobJuice.gov.au-Helping young people piece together their future
The Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) premier youth website, jobjuice.gov.au, has been given a face-lift to feature a new look homepage with more streamlined navigation, updated content and an even brighter and more vibrant look.
Key features of the new design include:
- An At Work section, with handy tips and information for young people about starting work, including a list of workplace terms and definitions.
- An Extra Assistance section, with a brief description of the range of employment programmes available to young people, including young Indigenous Australians, people with a disability, Green Corps, and people facing serious barriers to employment.
- An improved Career Quiz, now displaying the results using an interactive pie chart that lists occupations in one easy–to-print screen.
Check out the new look jobjuice.gov.au for yourself today.
For inquiries about the website, email jobjuice@dewr.gov.au
National Young Farmers Forum 2007
The National Young Farmers Forum, held in Griffith on 23–24 July, was an opportunity for young Australians aged from 18 to 35 involved in agriculture, fisheries and forestry industries to share their experiences and ideas with other young rural Australians, and to work together for the future of their industries.
The theme of the 2007 National Young Farmers Forum was ‘Innovations in water use and management of agricultural, fisheries and forestry industries’.
The Forum was an initiative of the Advancing Agricultural Industries Programme which looks to develop the leadership capability of young people in rural industries. It provided a practical and tangible way for young farmers to develop and strengthen networks with other young people from a range of industries, while developing their professional and personal skills. Delegates had the chance to talk to leaders from industry, business, government and the local community who were present as topical speakers and mentors.
The event was attended by the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, the Hon Peter McGauran MP and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister, the Hon Sussan Ley MP.
For more information visit the YARN website.
Help protect yourself from cervical cancer
Imagine if you could receive a potentially life-saving vaccine against cervical cancer. Sound too good to be true? From July, the Australian Government is making available the new cervical cancer vaccine free of charge for women aged 26 and under.
The vaccine, developed by Australian of the Year Professor Ian Frazer, protects women against certain strains of the human papillomavirus (HPV) that are known to cause 7 out of 10 cases of cervical cancer and 9 out of 10 cases of genital warts.
It might surprise you that the HPV virus is quite common. Four out of five women contract a genital HPV infection at some point in their life and you can get it even if you have protected sex. The body usually clears the virus naturally, but it can sometimes persist and cause cervical cancer.
The vaccine is given as a series of three injections, usually within a six-month period. A consultation fee may be charged by your GP, but the vaccine itself is free from July 2007 to June 2009.
So, if you’re a woman under 27, talk to your local GP or immunisation centre about receiving the vaccine. For more information, see www.australia.gov.au/cervicalcancer or call the Immunise Australia National Infoline on 1800 671 811.
Remember, the vaccine doesn’t guard against all the strains of HPV that can cause cervical cancer. Regardless of whether or not you have been vaccinated, it’s important to keep up to date with regular Pap smears!
Passport (check), Credit Card (check), Quarantine (?)
If you’re thinking of travelling the world, you’ll have a checklist of things to do before you get on the plane. But are you aware of what you have to do before you return to Australia?
Food, plant material and animal products from overseas - including many common souvenirs – could introduce some of the world's most serious bugs, pests and diseases into Australia.
The Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) requires all travellers to complete an Incoming Passenger Card, which is a checklist of items that could be a quarantine risk to Australia.
If you do not declare the risky quarantine items on your Card, you could get caught and have to pay a big fine.
Declare the items and chances are you’ll get to keep them or have them treated.
Before you catch the travel bug visit www.aqis.gov.au, to find out what you can and can’t bring back into Australia.
Youth Pathways
Young people are Australia's future. We want to give you every chance we can to achieve your potential and contribute to your community. That's what Youth Pathways is all about.
Youth Pathways has been set up to help young people who are most at risk of not making it through school to the end of Year 12 (or its equivalent). Youth Pathways helps participants complete Year 12 and make a successful transition to further education, training or employment, and engage in an active community life. This can be either within school or in non-school-based education.
So if you are thinking about leaving school or have recently left school and don't know what to do with yourself, Youth Pathways may be the right option for you.
Take the time to check out the Youth Pathways website and read about real life young people who have benefited from participating in Youth Pathways.
If you think it is time to get back on track with Youth Pathways, speak to a Centrelink Customer Service Adviser about your options.
For more information visit the Centrelink website or phone 13 24 90.
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