Youth 2010: The Big Download
Home » Blog » Lynda Brendish » Youth 2010: The Big DownloadFoundation for Youth Development and TelstraClear hosted Youth 2010: The Big Download to address issues in New Zealand youth programmes.
In Good #11, we profiled the Foundation for Youth Development (FYD) and The Big Walk for the Good Cause section of the magazine. FYD offers programmes, through regional trusts around the country, which aim to combat New Zealand’s terrible track record in youth suicide, pregnancy, offending, and drug and alcohol abuse.
The Big Walk managed to get groups of teenagers walking 100km sections the length of New Zealand, accompanying FYD co-founders Graeme Dingle and
Jo-anne Wilkinson. The walk, which ran
from November 30–January 31, was organised to bring attention to youth issues.
Sixty of the teens who participated in The Big Walk, along with business and community leaders and government representatives, met in Wellington for Youth 2010: The Big Download in February. The event, hosted by FYD and TelstraClear, was held to identify the ways current youth programmes are working, and how to apply that on a larger scale in combination with government, business and community support.
Brighter Futures, the newly released report on the event, outlines the aims and discoveries and next steps in creating youth programmes that really help, and avoiding “silos of well-meaning groups which, in reality, have little opportunity to effect change”.
The big push appears to be for a nationwide youth programme, with a holistic approach and broad cross-sector participation. “We want the Government to establish a social sector taskforce that will lead an integrated approach to youth development, involving NGOs, local and national agencies, police, social services, justice and education. This will ensure our young people are getting support from all sides when they need it,” said Graeme Dingle in a statement.
Brighter Futures anticipates that such preventative programmes would “greatly benefit” around 80 percent of Youth Court offenders by “helping to avert negative behaviours and the associated societal costs they incur”.
It’s an ambitious plan, but one with the backing of some very passionate and well-placed people.
