Youth in Canada are being given the opportunity to have their voices heard as the federal government develops a youth policy, and Golden has been chosen as one of the communities to begin discussion about how youth want to see their country.
At the end of February, three youth from Lady Grey Elementary School had the opportunity to participate in a conference held in Toronto to define a youth policy for Canada. They discussed topics that were important to them, and other youth from coast to coast, and the policy will continue to make a committment to listening to young people. The policy worked on core frameworks of children’s rights, addressing structural racism, truth and reconcilliation, and reaching rural, remote, and northern communities.
“Golden is one of 21 places across Canada that have been chosen to host two workshops, providing feedback to the federal government on how they would like Canada’s youth policy to look,” said LGES teacher and workshop facilitator Kristine Divall, who also attended the Canada We Want conference in February.
Golden was chosen alongside 21 other communities across Canada to continue working with the summit workshops this summer, giving young people aged 12 to 21 the ability to provide their input for the youth policy. The two-day series was held at the youth centre on June 18 and 19. LGES teacher Kristine Divall facilitated the discussions that were hosted by The Students Commission of Canada.
“The day is lots of fun with different team-building activities,” Divall said. “Together, with the other 20 communities across Canada, they are going to pool the youth voice into the first youth policy of Canada.”
The two things Golden youth focused on was providing the youth input into the Canada Service Corps and the Youth Employment Strategy, which are both federal government initiatives. The Canada Service Corps focuses on providing a place for youth to tell their views on service, and what it means to them, turning their service ideas into reality with grant funding, and finding volunteer opportunities. It engages youth with programs like 4-H Canada, Apathy is Boring, the Canadian Wildlife Federation, and more.
The Youth Employment Strategy helps young people connect with employment opportunities and make successful transitions into the working world. It runs a number of skills training and career-based programs through Skills Link, Career Focus, and Canada Summer Jobs.
In the current contribution to the youth policy, it has been addressed that young people should be taught financial literacy and coding skills, and that the Canada We Want is a thriving economy with support from the educational system, working to create an equitable and discrimination-free work environment.
The full youth policy, working toward the Canada We Want goals is available online at www.studentscommission.ca. The Canada We Want conference in February was led by the Students Commission of Canada, and brought more than 200 youth together to discuss the topics outlined in the policy.
