Youth Advisory Group (YAG)

1. Overview

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The Youth Advisory Group (YAG) are a group of diverse young people from across the Yarra Ranges who work with Council and within the community to ensure young people’s voices are heard. Our fifteen wonderful members have a vast range of experiences and outlooks. We want to support and advocate for people from all walks of life, to make sure feel they have someone representing them and their interests in projects, policies and planning.

We have an advisory role, bringing young voices into decision making spaces. We advocate for and promote positive change in the community.

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Image description: Thirteen of the Youth Advisory Group members stand side-by-side in front of trees

Contact

Phone: (03) 9294 6716

Email: youth@yarraranges.vic.gov.au

Louise Grant, Youth Development Officer

Ben Schatz, Youth Worker

2. Our Values

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Trust: Giving the young people of our community a group that they can trust and rely on.

Acceptance: Ensuring that everyone we interact with and involve in our projects feel accepted.

Respect: Maintaining respect for all regardless of opinions or identity.

Empathy: Keeping kindness at the forefront of everything we say and do.

Communication: Being clear and maintaining a strong line of communication with our community and each other.

3. Meet our members

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Meet the incredible fifteen young people who make up the Youth Advisory Group, appointed in June 2021.Click on an image to read more

Kelsey

Kelsey Haigh (she/her) My favourite thing about the Yarra Ranges is the nature and environment. Its my favourite place to clear my head and focus after I've had a bad day. My passions include my environment, my beautiful dogs, Mazey and Lola, my friends, music (specifically making my Spotify playlists look amazing and organised!), and trying to build networks and communities. My biggest achievement is my central tour with my high school. We spent two weeks driving from Melbourne to Darwin. This was a huge achievement because I pushed my physical limits on a hike through Kings Canyon and made memories I would never forget. My weirdest party trick is being able to rap super bass by Nicki Minaj.

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Cat

Cat Kanicky (she/they) My favourite thing about the Yarra Ranges is the natural environment! My passions include my two cats and every dog I have ever seen. I believe in making every decision with kindness and empathy. My party track is I can make any bone in my body crack!

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Jessy

Jessy While (she/they) My favourite thing about the Yarra Ranges is the beautiful walking trails and wildlife.My passions are focused around mental health, homelessness, LGBTQIA+ community, destigmatising AID's/HIV and AOD. My greatest achievement so far is my Diploma of Community Services, which has sparked my passion to continue my education and get my Masters in Social Work. My one and only party trick is licking my elbow, which I am incredibly proud of.

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Raz

Razz I have lots of qualification across a range of different industries, including media, fashion, business. I always enjoy taking on new challenges and upgrading my skills. I have a huge passion for youth work, supporting people to achieve goals big and small. My aim is to run a community centre that will provide a safe and inclusive environment for people of all walks of life and fostering teenagers who need just a bit of understanding.

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Em

Em Peel (she/they) My favourite thing about the Yarra Ranges is the natural diversity of such a large and varying area. My passions include advocating for LGBTQIA+ people, tabletop RPG's like Dungeons and Dragons, and theatre. My biggest achievement to this day, is coming to terms with my personal, sexual and gender identity, and taking the first steps to truly love who I am. My party trick is that I can talk for hours on almost any subject given half the chance.

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Amy

Amy Wahrenberger My favourite thing about the Yarra Ranges is the beautiful environment and the people. I am extremely passionate about mental health, the LGBTIQ+ community, music, politics, history, and law. I play the guitar and sing and I am currently learning the drums, and my greatest achievement so far is my Certificate III in Music Performance.

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Matt

Matt Kearsley (he/him) My favourite part of the Yarra ranges is all the nature that you can find. My passions are reading, anime, games and my family. My biggest achievement is my getting my Diploma in Early Childhood education. My weirdest party trick is freaking people out with how flexible my arms are.

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Joel

Joel Makk (he/him) My favourite thing about the Yara Ranges is that I'm a part of it! Kidding, my favourite thing is its diverse landscape and the strong presence of nature within its urban areas. My passions include educating myself, mixed martial arts, reading, watching anime and reading manga. My biggest achievement is yet to be achieved but my proudest party trick is being a good listener.

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Ari

Ari Smith (she/her) While I love the wonderful, rich, natural landscape of the Yarra Ranges, my favourite thing about the Shire is their efforts towards climate action. I feel proud that I live and work in a council area which is implementing solutions to safeguard the future of our planet. I am passionate about history, but particularly material, cultural, and social histories. I like to see the conservation and preservation of important artefacts, sites, and stories of different cultures and time periods around the globe. I'm studying to be a curator, so I hope to put this passion into practice! I am passionate about art and design, listening to good tunes, writing bad poetry, and singing in the shower. My greatest achievement is my awesome (and plentiful!) collection of vintage typewriters and cameras. Though I don’t often attend parties, my best trick is toasting the perfect marshmallow.

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Bee

Bee Elderhurst (they/them) My favourite thing about the Yarra Ranges is the variety in nature. I find the native trees to be calming, especially when the wind blows through them. My passions include reading, hiking, hunting and fishing. My biggest achievement is buying and owning my first suit. I don't often attend parties because I have anxiety, however I can dance a mean Nutbush!

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Mitchell

Mitchell Edwards (he/him) To me the Yarra Ranges is a beautiful pocket of the world, where I feel most at home and in peace. I love getting amongst nature and taking the time out of my day to take in all the beautiful views and sounds. My passions include, art, outdoor activities and education, playing video games, Dungeons and Dragons, listening to audio books, and creating healthy positive physical and mental health. My biggest achievement is getting my Diploma in Community Service, and being proud of the person I am and what I have done do far My party trick is being able to do the dance to Rasputin in Just Dance (the game) perfectly and multiple times without getting tired.

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Elise

Elise Riley (she/her) One of my favourite things about the Yarra Ranges is the way urban meets nature. In places such as Mount Evelyn, the trees and land are just as much a part of the town as the shops and homes. Another favourite of mine is the wildlife, my friends and I love to simply drive around looking at all the wonderful animals the area has to offer, it's so simple yet brings us so much joy. My greatest achievement is easily becoming a member of the YAG, I've always had a passion for my community. Being an advocate for positive change and joining YAG has been the perfect place for me to do that.

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Fin

Fin Upham (he/him) My favourite thing about the Yarra Ranges is the nature, it's so lovely to live in. I'm passionate about politics - seeing the insights of our Government and what can be done to lobby for positive change. I'm interested in technology, and where that will take us into the future. I got my first-aid certificate, which I'm pretty proud of. My best party trick is that I seem to have endless facts about trains and the politics of our public transport network... I have to take the train a lot for school!

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4. Have your voice heard! Get in touch

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Have any concerns, comments or places you’d like to see us? Contact us through our social or media or email to speak to us directly!

Phone: (03) 9294 6716

Email: youth@yarraranges.vic.gov.au

Louise Grant, Youth Development Officer
Ben Schatz, Youth Worker

5. Current projects

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September 2021

We are currently planning an online Youth Consultation Tour to help understand what it’s like to be a young person in the Yarra Ranges region. Keep your eyes out for updates soon!

August 2021

We provided consultation to the Bushlands Team at the Yarra Ranges Council about how to reach young people and encourage environmental volunteering.

We’ve been working with the Victorian Department of Jobs, Precincts, and Regions and the Lilydale Urban Revitalisation Board to help them understand what it’s like to be a young person. This included developing project proposals that injected youth voice into infrastructure planning? in Lilydale.

July 2021

Meeting different teams within the Yarra Ranges Council which has allowed us to get to know the work Council does, while also starting to give feedback on their current projects, ensuring youth voice is embedded in their approach.

June 2021

We had our first couple of meetings in June, where we got to know each other and start putting some comms together, including writing up this page and creating a logo – check it out below!

6. The story behind our logo

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We created a logo that allows the background artwork to change. We are hoping to have young people contribute to our work and tell their stories through the artwork. We are still developing this process, so watch this space!

In the meantime, the artwork was created by one of our YAG members, Jessy, to reflect an aspect of the Yarra Ranges region that we love the most – the beautiful natural environment.

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