Youth Fund 2016 recipients announced

Youth Minister Nikki Kaye today announced that 50 successful applicants will receive a total of around $217,000 to fund community projects led by young people, as part of Youth Fund 2016.

“Youth Fund is about supporting projects designed and led by young people themselves, either working alone or in partnership with youth organisations,” says Ms Kaye.

“Once again, the applications showed there are countless young people out there brimming with ideas on ways to create opportunities for youth to serve their communities.

“The great thing about this fund is it supports young people to get involved in projects that can develop their skills, such as decision-making and leadership, while at the same time building connections and contributing to their community.

“The projects supported this year range from an event that introduces participants to computer science, code and programming, then gets them to apply these to solve civic issues, to an art auction, a stock market challenge that promotes financial literacy, an adventure camp for young people with disabilities, a cultural festival and a programme that enables participants to devise and organise their own community music event.

“A unique aspect of Youth Fund is that young people make up the panels which assess applications and decide where funding goes, making this a completely youth-led initiative.

“The fund supports youth-driven projects, so it’s appropriate that young people are the ones who recommend which projects should get funding.

“Since the Youth Fund was launched in 2010, 237 youth-led projects have received funding.

“It’s important we invest in our young leaders, especially through projects that allow them to lead the way in solving problems in their communities, and give other young people opportunities to serve. This is what Youth Fund is all about.”

Details of successful applications are available here.