Youth advocates drive tangible change

THEY’RE the local pathways to broader leadership that are creating friendships, nurturing professional networking, and even offering barista training.

Open to passionate and dedicated young people between 12 and 25, the Youth Council and Sonika committee both exist to be advocates for the ideas and needs of Ballarat’s young people, and to coordinate events to engage them.

Learning practical, employable life skills, the two groups experience project management, develop a sense of cultural competency and strengthen their media and communication strategies.

This personal development comes from the council and committee’s opportunity to fully plan public events from the ground up, like pop culture convention, PopCon, Youth Week’s environment and mental health event, Thrive, music concerts, and an upcoming Clothes Swap.

Madeline Browney, 21, got involved with Sonika a few years ago to keep busy outside of work during her gap year. She said she’s gained so much from the group.

“You get to do things like CPR and first aid, which is really good on your resume, but I’m just a completely different person to who I was before I started Sonika,” she said. “I’ve got a lot more confidence in myself and my abilities, and a stronger sense of self.”

Eloise Amirtharajan, 17, joined Youth Council to experience the organisation and planning of events, and hone a personal skill.

“I wanted to prepare things that would actually make a difference in the community,” she said. “But one of the main reasons I came to Youth Council was because I wanted to improve my public speaking and I’ve been given so many opportunities to speak in front of other people.

“Meeting with councillors was really important. They’re the official people in our community who have such a great place in our society, and we felt distant from them, but now we feel like we can trust them and they can make a difference in the lives of young people,” Eloise said.

For Cr Des Hudson, Sonika and Youth Council provide a social context much the same as sport and other structured leisure activities.

“Seeing that sense of belonging, that sense of team, being able to grow your ideas, be a part of something and to see the passion and smile of people saying, ‘I got to be part of it…’ It’s just fantastic,” he said.

“There are so many opportunities engaging young people, the future leaders of tomorrow.”

Every week, Youth Council meets on Tuesday, 4pm to 6pm, and Sonika on Thursday, 4pm to 6pm. Interested people can be involved with both. Visit bit.ly/BallaratYouth2020 for applications.