When young people get involved in community activities it builds stronger relationships across cultural and age divides and promotes wider opportunities for education, training and employment.
The Victorian Government seeks to help young people to be active in their communities.
Here are a number of ways young people can get involved.
Scouts and Guides
The Victorian Government supports Scouts Victoria and Girl Guides Victoria by providing funds for a range of areas and initiatives.
For more information, see Scouts and Guides on our Services website.
Youth Parliament
Every year in the second week of July, YMCA Victoria Youth Parliament offers young Victorians an opportunity to stand up, talk hard and be heard. Any Victorian aged 16 to 25 who wants to have their voice heard is eligible to participate.
The program is supported by the Victorian Government.
For more information, see Youth Parliament on our Services website.
FReeZA
FReeZA provides opportunities for young Victorians to enjoy music and cultural events in their local area that are drug, alcohol and smoke free. Over 140,000 young people attend FReeZA events throughout the state, each year.
For more information, see FReeZA on our Services website.
Engage!
Engage! 2018–20 offers funding of between $90,000 to $150,000 over three years to local governments and community organisations to work with young people to develop and deliver activities that engage young people in their local community.
Engage! funds organisations that support young Victorians aged 12–25 years of age (especially diverse groups of young people) to:
- Have a greater connection to and active participation in their local community
- Build their skills and knowledge, and pathways to employment, training and education
- Improve their health and wellbeing and social connections to friends, family and the community.
Engage! 2018–20 program
More than $12.3 million is being provided for 107 programs delivered by local governments and community organisations over three years, supporting projects that help young people to actively participate in and connect with their local community.
National Youth Week
National Youth Week is a week-long celebration of young people held annually throughout Australia.
For more information, see National Youth Week on our Services website.
Supporting multicultural Victoria
The Centre for Multicultural Youth is the main agency working with multicultural young people in Victoria. It provides the Victorian Government and the wider community with research and policy advice on issues affecting young people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. This includes young people from refugee backgrounds.
For more information, see Supporting multicultural Victoria on our Services website.