Cosette and I attended our final camp this year for the YMCA NSW Youth Parliament, an apolitical program that aims to foster activism and advocacy within the next generation of leaders.

I attended the six-day residential camp with a group of 131 other school students, spending time in the NSW State parliament, debating the issues that are really important to the youth of today. These issues were identified during the year, where everyone was placed into committees to create a report or bill (respective to location: either legislative council or assembly). I was a member of the Housing and Homelessness committee, in which we collectively identified temporary youth homelessness as being a major issue. More specifically, how the removal of education within these youths lives causes a downwards spiral. Our recommendation was the creation of housing establishments in school districts, allowing youths to remain within their normal/comfortable environment so they can focus solely on their studies. Another recommendation that we proposed was the introduction of an awareness program within the PDHPE syllabus, which would provide better access to resources, if a youth does start to experience similar circumstances, de-stigmatising the issue in the creation of an open dialogue surrounding homelessness.

This piece of legislation passed within my chambers, which was an extremely rewarding experience, to see that all our hard work had paid off. In retrospect, this program has aided in my development in ways I could have never have imagined. Not only did it make me a more confident and eloquent public speaker but also fostered a love for advocacy within me. What I’m most thankful for is the creation of a more holistic perspective, which I hope will stay with me the rest of my life.

This experience really was life changing and I urge everyone to participate next year.

Miranda, Year 11

I spent a week at NSW State Parliament as the 2016 youth member for Ku-ring-gai. I was part of the Education committee, debating the bill that my committee created, which aimed to reshape the current reading recovery program. Our bill passed through both the Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council, which means it will now be under review by politicians who may choose to implement parts of the bill. We also debated many other bills, including ones which aimed to ban cars from the Sydney CBD and legalise euthanasia. The week spent at Youth Parliament allowed me to meet Members of Parliaments, experience debating in the chamber, and learn more about the parliamentary process. It was an incredible experience that has inspired me to become more involved in politics.

Cosette, Year 11