More than just a seat at the table

Shanay Gao-Kuhlmann had just finished high school. She was eagerly debating at the YMCA Youth Parliament when she decided to chat with the person who had been chairing the debate. 

Unknown to her at the time, this interaction would lead to a surprise follow-up that would boost her interest in politics. 

A few weeks post-debate Bellarine MP Alison Marchant emailed Gao-Kuhlmann asking her to become a youth associate for parliament.

‘Of course, I said yes,’ she recalled. 

She became one of ten youth associates chosen by the Legislative Assembly Economy and Infrastructure Committee to help gather evidence for its inquiry into student pathways to in-demand industries. 

The group made history as it was the first time young people had contributed directly to the research stage of a Victorian parliamentary inquiry.

The young adults aged 18 to 27 spoke to between 20 to 30 of their peers across the state about their thoughts and experiences with employment pathways after high school. They then drafted reports and presented the information to MPs at a roundtable. 

From her discussions with friends and young people in her community, Gao-Kuhlmann found rural students’ pathways were limited by location, opportunities and cost-of-living pressures. Many students were unaware of subsidies for in-demand courses. 

She documented anecdotes from young people, including one who claimed a counsellor had advised: ‘Maybe you should consider something else because I don't think you’re going to get a good enough ATAR.’

Another of the youth associates, Atharva Nerlikar, said he was grateful to ‘hear the perspectives of people that live regionally, and how their views on tertiary education and industry pathways were different to my community’. 

After talking to various young people, Nerlikar noticed the lack of alignment between ‘what universities are preparing students with and what employers want to see out of their new graduates’.  

‘People really were able to open up and talk candidly about not just what their kind of practical experience was but also how it made them feel,’ he said. 

Committee Chair Alison Marchant said engaging youth associates was a really unique way of gathering evidence.

Traditionally committees call for submissions from the public and conduct public hearings with relevant stakeholders before producing a final report. 

‘Engaging young people is harder because the people that respond to you or make submissions tend to be older people who have had more experience in a topic,’ Marchant said. 

She indicated that the onus is on politicians to ensure young people are represented because young people’s voices are incredibly valuable 

‘If you're trying to make change for the future and it's their future it's important that they're part of it,’ she said.

She noted that the committee ensured a diverse group of young people took part, with the youth associates reaching out to multicultural and First Nations youth, as well as young people with disability.

According to Marchant, the youth associate initiative gave young people a complete experience of a committee inquiry, seeing it from start to finish.

‘So it's not like they've just come in, made a submission and never hear from it again. They've been involved in the whole process,’ she said. 

Shepparton MP and Committee Deputy Chair Kim O’Keeffe believes it could be a blueprint for future youth participation in committee inquiries.  

‘I thought it was brilliant. We should be using it more,’ she said. 

O’Keeffe’s position on youth involvement in parliament shifted in a conversation she had with a young person. 

‘We always say they're our future,’ she said. ‘But someone pulled me up and said, “no, we are actually your now”. 

‘You're right, you absolutely are,’ she replied. 

The inquiry hit home for O’Keeffe because of the opportunities it could create for regional youth. 

‘I had a small business myself for over 30 years. I’m very mindful of what the future looks like for small business in regional Victoria. What are the opportunities for our youth?’

O’Keeffe said Shepparton local Rowan Farren-Parnell was a good choice to be one of the youth associates because he was already a ‘local champion’ who was very passionate and showing great leadership. 

‘For him to have that opportunity to then come into parliament to be part of this was a way for us to show that his voice really matters in the community,’ she said. 

To bring the project full circle, several of the youth associates, including Farren-Parnell and Gao-Kuhlmann, returned to parliament in early September to watch the committee’s report being tabled 

Reflecting on the experience, Gao-Kuhlmann said it showed her the importance of making young people's voices heard.

‘I feel like I belong here,’ she said.