United Nations Youth Australia

UN Youth Australia is a national youth-led organisation which seeks to educate and empower young Australians on global issues and foster an understanding of the work of the United Nations, human rights and International relations in young Australians.[1] The organisation is fully operated by volunteers who have left high school and are under the age of 24,[2] over 15,000 young people participate in UN Youth Australia’s programs, activities and events each year.

UN Youth Australia Ltd.
Founded1970
TypeCharity and Company limited by guarantee
FocusYouth empowerment
International Relations
United Nations
HeadquartersCanberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
Key people
National President: Michael Donaghue-Evans
Board Chair: Gideon Daley
AffiliationsWorld Federation of United Nations Associations
via United Nations Association of Australia
Websitewww.unyouth.org.au
Formerly called
United Nations Youth Association of Australia / United Nations Association of Australia Youth

UN Youth Australia is affiliated with, but is not a division of or run by, the United Nations Association of Australia[3] which has a consultative status with ECOSOC as a member of the World Federation of United Nations Associations. UN Youth also works closely with The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade on the annual Australian Youth Representative to the United Nations program.[4]

UN Youth is a federated organisation overseen by the Board of Directors which appoint a National Executive, with divisions in each state and territory overseen by independent executives.[5] Each division is run independently and collaborate to organise national events and programs.

Activities

UN Youth Australia is run entirely by a team of over 1,000 volunteers aged under 25.

National Activities

UN Youth Australia holds three annual national events: the UN Youth National Conference, the National Finals of the Evatt Competition, a UN Security Council Competition named after Dr H.V. Evatt, and the National Finals of the Voice Competition, a public speaking competition. Participants in these conferences are students from secondary schools across Australia. The conferences are held in Australian capital cities designated on a rotational system.[6]

National Conference

National Conference is a week-long educational conference for students in year 9 to 12, held in a different capital city each year. Each State and Territory division of UN Youth Australia, UN Youth New Zealand and some international organisations send delegates to National Conference.

Evatt Competition

UN Youth Australia and its State and Territory divisions organises one of the largest high school tournaments in Australia: the National Evatt Competition which is a UN Security Council Model United Nations competition named after the distinguished Australian politician, diplomat and jurist Dr H.V. Evatt.

Voice Competition

Voice is a public speaking competition for students in years 7 to 10. Student are asked to pitch a solution to a social, economic or political problem, and then answer impromptu questions from the judges.

International Activities

In addition to domestic conferences, UN Youth Australia also operates six international tours.

American Political Tour

Each year in January, a delegation of secondary school students tours the United States, meeting US and UN officials in Washington, D.C. and New York.

Young Diplomats Tour

Also in January, UN Youth Australia sends a delegation of 16 secondary school students to visit the United Nations Office in Vienna as part of a European tour focusing on international relations, modern history, and organisations in Europe relevant to global politics.

Timor-Leste Project

In July UN Youth Australia runs the Pacific Project which, in partnership with Destination Dreaming, arranges for secondary school students to visit development projects, meet diplomats, see NGO operations first hand, and have a chance to experience life in East Timor.

Aotearoa Leadership Tour

Also in July, the organisation sends a delegation of secondary school students on the Aotearoa Leadership Tour which promotes interculturalism and engagement between indigenous and non-indigenous young Australians through a tour of New Zealand focusing on Māori culture and Maori-Pākehā relations, organised in close collaboration with UN Youth New Zealand.

Middle East Experience

In 2015, UN Youth Australia began the Middle East Experience program, in which secondary school delegates tour 2 countries in the region.

Emerging Leaders Program

In 2019, UN Youth Australia launched the Emerging Leaders Program, in which 16 secondary students from all over Australia tour Japan, South Korea and China.

Divisional Activities

Divisions of UN Youth Australia also coordinate events in their State or Territory, such as annual State Conferences and divisional rounds of the Evatt Competition, Voice Competition, educative school visits and speakers forums.

Australian Youth Representative to the United Nations

Each year since 1999, UN Youth Australia works with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to select and support a Youth Representative to the United Nations General Assembly. The Youth Representative holds an extensive, nationwide consultation tour to engage with and discover the issues that are most important to young Australians, and travels to New York as an accredited member of the Australian Mission to represent Australian youth at the United Nations.

Office holders
NameYearUNGA Statement
Andrew Hudson1999
Carrie McDougall2000
Kirsten Hagon2001[7]
Rebecca Jenkin2002
Adam Smith2003[8]
Cat Thao Nguyen2004
Ben Whitehouse2005
Elise Klein2006[9]
Ben Groom2007[10]
Elizabeth Shaw and Melanie Poole2008[11]
Chris Varney2009[12]
Samah Hadid2010[13]
Benson Saulo2011[14][15]
Dan Ryan2012[16]
Adam Pulford2013[17]
Laura John2014[18]
Shea Spierings2015[19]
Chris Eigeland2016[20]
Paige Burton2017[21]
Amos Washington2018[22]
Kareem El-Ansary2019
Lucy Stronach2020/21

References
  1. "Who We Are". UN Youth Australia. Retrieved 2020-08-31.
  2. "Our Volunteers". UN Youth Australia. Retrieved 2020-08-31.
  3. "UN Youth Australia". UNAA. Retrieved 2020-08-31.
  4. "The Youth Representative". UN Youth Australia. Retrieved 2020-08-31.
  5. "Constitution of UN Youth Australia" (PDF).
  6. "The Evatt Competition". UN Youth Australia. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
  7. Statement by Ms Kirsten Hagon, Youth Representative, for the Australian Delegation, 9 October 2001. Australian Mission to the United Nations
  8. Statement by Mr Adam Smith, Australian Youth Representative, 6 October 2003. Australian Mission to the United Nations
  9. Statement by Elise Klein, Youth Representative, 3 October 2006. Australian Mission to the United Nations
  10. Statement by Mr Ben Groom, Youth Representative, 9 October 2007. Australian Mission to the United Nations
  11. Statement by Ms Elizabeth Shaw and Ms Melanie Poole, Australian Youth Representatives to the United Nations, 7 October 2008. Australian Mission to the United Nations
  12. Statement by Mr Christopher Varney, Australian Youth Representative to the United Nations, 6 October 2009. Australian Mission to the United Nations
  13. Statement by Samah Hadid, Australian Youth Representative, 4 October 2010. Australian Mission to the United Nations
  14. Mr. Benson Saulo, 2011 High-level Meeting on Youth, 111th Plenary Meeting 26 July 2011
  15. Statement by Benson Saulo, Australian Youth Representative, 4 October 2011. Australian Mission to the United Nations
  16. Statement by Mr Dan Ryan, Australian Youth Delegate, 8 October 2012. Australian Mission to the United Nations
  17. Statement by Mr Adam Pulford, Australian Youth Representative, 7 October 2012. Australia Mission to the United Nations
  18. Statement of Laura John, Australian Youth Representative, 7 October 2014
  19. Statement of Shea Spierings, Australian Youth Delegate, 7 October 2015
  20. , Statement of Chris Eigleland, Australian Youth Representative, 5 October 2016. Australian Mission to the United Nations
  21. Third Committee of the United Nations General Assembly 72nd Session National Statement by Paige Burton
  22. Statement of Amos Washington, Australian Youth Representative to the United Nations, 3 October 2018
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