Wyndham Vale’s Strong and Deadly Aboriginal Youth group is one of 27 projects across the state to receive a share of $5 million in funding social connection opportunities.
Funded by VicHealth, the Aboriginal Wellness Foundation say they will deliver two co-designed programs that will foster social connections through traditional and contemporary culture, social and emotional wellbeing, education-employment and training opportunities, cross cultural experiences and LGBTIQA+ learnings for 18-25-year-olds.
Project manager Rowena Price said the need for the programs was identified by youth members.
“On separate occasions the youth attending both the mens and women’s programs approached the mentors and expressed gratitude for the spaces being provided to them,” Ms Price said.
“They also expressed that whilst they were really grateful to learn from Elders and older community, they felt they needed programs that would support them not only in their culture but the many different challenges that come along with being youth and young adults.”
Ms price said impacts the program will have on the lives of Aboriginal youth can be divided in three segments.
For short term impacts, the program enables previous program participants to return to mentoring alongside adult mentors, the youth who requested the program feel validated and heard and participants will be able to strengthen social connections with the broader Aboriginal community.
Ms Price said medium impacts will include: “Development of a deeper understanding of the values of respect, responsibility and accountability to county, culture and community, and
learnings and conversations that work towards breaking down barriers for our LGBTIQA+ community and understandings of how that transfers to cultural and contemporary understandings.”
“[The] long term impact [is] a community of healthy and well Aboriginal young people that have interrupted the cycles of intergenerational trauma,” Ms Price said.
“[And] emerging community leaders that are strong, deadly and resilient, and know they are supported and backed by their community.”
