Blue Mountains Youth Council

Blue Mountains City Council is interested in the needs and aspirations of young people in our community. If you are between 12 and 19 years old, live in the Blue Mountains and want to make a difference, why not join the Blue Mountains Youth Council?

Mayor, Cr Mark Greenhill said, “The Blue Mountains Youth Council plays an important role in advising Council on youth matters and our City’s future. It is an excellent opportunity to get together, be heard and make a difference.”

The Blue Mountains Youth Council is a committee of 20 local young people, who meet monthly to identify and discuss issues important to young people, plan and run events, and advise the Council. Successful applicants may remain members for two years and then reapply thereafter if they wish.

Anyone can apply if they live in the Blue Mountains and are between 12 and 19 years old. The Youth Council has young people from all kinds of backgrounds, nationalities and ages. Applicants don’t need any experience, just an interest in what’s happening around them. Nominations are open now until Friday 3 February 2017.

In 2016 the Blue Mountains Youth Council helped to organise an exciting youth congress ‘Project NOW’ that saw amazing youth-driven ideas turn into a reality. Some of the projects include the production of a radio show, a refugee support group, a community garden and an environmental awareness campaign called One Planet Week.

Blue Mountains Youth Councillor, Adam Tjoelker said, “Since joining the Blue Mountains Youth Council in early 2016, I have greatly expanded my opportunities to get involved and have a say in a wide range of community activities."

To apply or find out more, select the tab to apply on this website, or contact Council’s Youth Services Development Officer, Anita Kazis on akazis@bmcc.nsw.gov.au or 4780 5680.

Christmas is fast approaching and most young people are looking forward to the celebrations. However, not everyone is so fortunate. To help improve this situation, the Blue Mountains Youth Council is running the Community Christmas ‘Giving Tree’ again.

Blue Mountains Youth Councillor Delilah Scott said, “The Community Christmas ‘Giving Tree’ empowers our community to come together and give to those in need.”

“Everyone needs support at times,” added Youth Councillor Benjamin McGrory, “and we hope you can help by donating gifts to help lift the spirits of young people doing it tough.”

The Community Christmas ‘Giving Tree’ is located in Springwood Library. Residents, local businesses and organisations are invited to donate a gift by Friday 16 December. Those who donate may also like to add their names to a gift tag, which will be used to decorate the tree. Donations can also be delivered to Council’s headquarters in Katoomba.

All donations received will go to the Platform Youth Services organisation, who support young people between the ages of 12-25, and will distribute the gifts to vulnerable young people, in the Blue Mountains, Penrith and Hawkesbury areas.

Teenager-friendly Christmas gifts include music items such as iTunes vouchers or headphones; movie ticket vouchers; accessories like hair clips; or clothes such as t-shirts.

Mayor, Cr Mark Greenhill, said, “The Blue Mountains Youth Council’s ‘Giving Tree’ is a good reminder about the true spirit of Christmas. Ours is a generous and caring community and I encourage you to help young people in need to have a happier Christmas.”

For further information, please contact Anita Kazis, Council’s Youth Services Development Officer on 4780 5680 or akazis@bmcc.nsw.gov.au. Or visit www.facebook.com/bluemountainsyouthcouncil or www.bluemountainshaveyoursay.com.au/youthcouncil

Photo: Blue Mountains Youth Councillors (L-R) Maisy Costa, Adam Tjoelker, Caspar Zauner, Eden Conway, Meg Hill, Grace Faulder, Sasha Titovs and Paul Mukhin helping to decorate the Youth Council’s ‘Giving Tree’ at Springwood Library. The community is invited to donate gifts for young people in need in the Blue Mountains for Christmas.

Blue Mountains City Council hosted a successful gathering of 50 young people from across the City for the three-day Project NOW Youth Congress with a focus on environmental and social justice concerns.

Council, in partnership with OzGreen, Blue Mountains Youth Council and young people enjoyed a stimulating program of activities culminating with Congress participants pitching their own community development project ideas.

Mayor, Cr Mark Greenhill, said, “The Youth Congress was an outstanding success and the contribution of our young people inspirational.

Young people developed six projects and presented them to 26 community stakeholders, representing organisations ranging from educational and financial, to social services and environmental, and Council. The stakeholders assisted in determining how the available $6,000 funding would be distributed among the following worthy projects:

· Refugee Youth Connect – a project to connect young people with young refugees and asylum seekers coming to Australia, which aims to lend support via communications. The project earned 1^st place and $2,000 funding.

· Youth Summit – a radio programme for and by young people, broadcasting via Radio Blue Mountains, earning 2^nd place and $2,000 funding.

· Food Forest – a community garden for the lower mountains and a place for young people to develop their skills, earning equal 3^rd place and $1,000 funding.

· One Planet Week – an initiative to educate and encourage the community to live equitably within the resources of one planet Earth. The project earned equal 3^rd place and $1,000 funding.

· Creative Arts Cooperative – to be supported by the Blue Mountains Economic Enterprise’s Creative Industries Cluster and Gallery ONE88 in Katoomba.

· Pathways to a Better Future – a youth mental health initiative to be supported by the Mountains Youth Services Team and Headspace Penrith.

“I congratulate the participants on their initiatives and leadership skills”, said the Mayor. “The Congress achieved its aim of encouraging young people to lead ecological and social innovation. I look forward to seeing the progress of these projects first hand in 2017.”

Blue Mountains Youth Councillor Aleksandrs (Sasha) Titovs added, “The Project NOW Youth Congress was very inspiring and social. As a result, I am working on the Refugee Youth Connect project which is very exciting.”

Project NOW is supported by a grant from the NSW Government Youth Opportunities program.

To follow the progress of Project NOW, visit www.bluemountainshaveyoursay.com.au/youthcouncil or like the Blue Mountains Youth Council’s Facebook page www.facebook.com/bluemountainsyouthcouncil/

DATE: Thursday 22 September - Saturday 24 September, 2016

LOCATION: Blue Mountains Theatre and Community Hub, Springwood

WHAT IS PROJECT NOW?

Blue Mountains City Council is hosting an event called the Project NOW Youth Congress. It will take place from Thursday 22 September to Saturday 24 September, 2016 at the Blue Mountains Theatre and Community Hub at Springwood.

Project NOW is an opportunity for young people to be empowered, to be leaders, and to help improve their community.

WHO IS INVOLVED?

Blue Mountains City Council received funding from the NSW Government’s Youth Opportunities program to conduct Project NOW. Anita Kazis is the Youth Congress Project Officer at Blue Mountains City Council who is coordinating Project NOW. For more information you can contact her at akazis@bmcc.nsw.gov.au or telephone: 02 4780 5680.

The following youth leaders, with the support of Council, will be facilitating the Project NOW Youth Congress:

• Eden Conway, Sophie Jansons and Xandy Whatmuff - Springwood High School
• Meg Hill - Korowal School
• Ruby Moria - La Salle Academy
• Kiralee Roscoe-Bynon and Leah Roscoe-Bynon - Winmalee High School
• Delilah Scott - Home School
• Jordan Taylor-Colless - Katoomba High School

WHAT IS THE AIM OF PROJECT NOW?

The aim of the three day Project NOW: Youth Congress is for groups of young people to develop projects that improve their community – either for sustainability or social justice.

This will take place during Days 1-2 on Thursday 22 September and Friday 23 September, from 9am to 5pm. They will be guided using OzGreen’s award-winning project development method. See www.ozgreen.org for details.

On Day 3, Saturday 24 September, the groups will finalise their projects and presentations from 1pm to 4:30pm. From 5pm, invited community stakeholders from organisations such as Council, schools, businesses, and community services will view the presentations and help choose three projects to receive a share in $6,000 funding. Young people, with the support of Council, will deliver Project NOW outcomes. Invited stakeholders may also choose other projects to support, which young people will be encouraged to deliver by early 2017.

HOW CAN I GET INVOLVED?

During the Project NOW Youth Congress, all food, drinks and entertainment will be provided. However, you will need to arrange for your own transport to and from the Youth Congress.

IMPORTANT INFOMRATION

• There is a limit of 100 places so registrations will be taken on a first come, first serve basis.
• You must be 12 to 17 years old and live in the Blue Mountains to be eligible.
• You also need permission from your school and parent or guardian.

DESIGN THE WINNING “PROJECT NOW - YOUTH CONGRESS” LOGO & WIN A $200 MUSIC VOUCHER!

Project NOW is the first Youth Congress of its kind to take place in the Blue Mountains.

Blue Mountains City Council and the Youth Council will present a Blue Mountains Youth, Environmental and Social Congress: For Young People by Young People, in September 2016 at the Blue Mountains Theatre in The Hub at Springwood. All young people aged 12 to 18 living in the Blue Mountains are invited to the congress (but numbers are limited). You will have the chance to brainstorm solutions (with funding) to local social and environmental issues.

See here for terms and conditions of entry and details on how to enter the logo design competition.

ENTRIES CLOSE FRIDAY, 22 JULY 2016. More information and entry forms can also be found at www.facebook.com/bluemountainsyouthcouncil/

TO SUBMIT YOUR ENTRY:

• Online HERE

• Email your completed entry form and design to council@bmcc.nsw.gov.au

• Post your completed entry form and design to - Youth Services Development Officer, Locked Bag 1005, Katoomba NSW 2780.

Are you 19-35 and live in the Upper Mountains? Or are you a parent of a 19-35 year old who lives in the Upper Mountains?

Francesca Sidoti is a Masters of Research student at Western Sydney University. She is about to conduct some research on the experiences of young adults of growing up and living in the Upper Mountains. The research is mostly focusing on ideas of choice and ‘unlimited opportunity’ and how young people feel about that in the context of living in the Mountains. To research this, Francesca is going to bring together a group of young people planning to leave the Mountains and a group of young people who have returned to the Mountains and compare how they talk about their experiences.

Participants should be:

- Upper Mountains-based, with a significant proportion of childhood having been spent in the Upper Mountains

- Aged between 19 and 35

- Planning to move somewhere else OR

- Permanently returned from living somewhere else

Involvement in this study would include participation in a focus group at the Katoomba Cultural Centre and a possible follow-up interview. The data collected through this process will be used for the Master of Research thesis and, possibly, for further PhD research.

Any participant's decision to be involved in this study will have no bearing on their relationship with Western Sydney University. Ask for the participant information sheet for more information.

If you are interested in participating in this study (or know anyone who is), please contact Francesca - 18471061@student.westernsydney.edu.au or on 0437 976 238.

Blue Mountains City Council is pleased to be joining with local schools and community organisations to support Youth Week 2016, taking place during April.

Mayor, Cr Mark Greenhill, said, “Youth Week provides an opportunity to celebrate and encourage our young people’s contribution and approach to life. I look forward to Youth Week in the Blue Mountains.”

Upcoming Youth Week events include the free-of-charge Goodomabah Aboriginal Film Festival from Thursday 7 to Saturday 9 April, screening in various venues in Katoomba. Everyone in the community is invited and audiences can expect short and feature films boasting a diverse range of compelling and entertaining stories. In addition, a Youth Week Mini Fete & Graffiti workshop developed by the Mountains Youth Services Team (MYST) will take place Thursday 14 & Friday 15 April.

Youth Week events began on Saturday 2 April with a Youth Week Creative Showcase. Young people from schools across the lower Blue Mountains treated the community to an eclectic series of artistic performances.

The event is unique in that that the young people themselves were responsible for all facets of the show’s production. Nikki Tunica, Principal of Blaxland High School said, “We are stepping away from this one. Youth Week is about showcasing the talent, abilities and enthusiasm of young people and they really are in charge of this event.”

Along with music, dance and comedy, the program includes an inspiring question and answer session with special guest Coen Ashton, a young cystic fibrosis survivor who, at the age of 13, became the youngest person to jet-ski the 2,000 kilometre length of the Murray River, and did so while requiring a double lung transplant. He signed 100 new names to the Organ Donor Register along the way.

The Creative Showcase is a partnership project between Blue Mountains City Council, Lower Mountains Neighbourhood Centre, Blue Mountains City Church, Mountains Youth Services Team (MYST) and Blaxland High School.

To stay updated with Blue Mountains Youth Week events, like the Blue Mountains Youth Council’s Facebook page on www.facebook.com/bluemountainsyouthcouncil/

Applications CLOSE TODAY (Wednesday, 2 March 2016) to be a Blue Mountains Youth Councillor!
If you are 12-17 years old, live in the Blue Mountains, care about what's happening for young people, the environment, your town and your future, then you are perfect for Youth Council.

For more information, see this website or contact Council's Youth Services Development Officer, Anita Kazis on 4780 5680. To apply, please select the 'Application' tab on the homepage of this website.