our voice - save the children new zealand child and youth council magazine issue 2

Issue 02 | January-March 2012

Our Voice New Zealand Child and Youth Council magazine

Some of your council members

Back row: Mike, Veronica (chair), Alice, Brittany, Diva, Kate

Front row: Kyra, Cindy, Sarah, Saarah


Contents Navigate your way!

Letter from the editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Contributing writers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Leadership in action: volunteering . . . . . . . . 3

Leadership in action: CYC leaders introduce their schools to the Values Exchange (VX) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Submission on the Green Paper for Vulnerable Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Leadership in action: Room 8’s Living Museum, a project by Greenacres School . . 8

P3 Foundation social enterprise competition . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Mary Little’s goodbye message . . . . . . . . . . 11

Upcoming events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Volunteers wanted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Child and Youth Council application form . . 14

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Contact us . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17


© Save the Children New Zealand 1

Letter from the editor

What a fantastic time it has been relaxing during the holidays, even with our limited amount of summer. I hope you've all had a great holiday season, surrounded by your closest loved ones, and of course, good food! The holiday season was the perfect opportunity to relax after receiving all of our exam results. During this time the Save the Children NZ Child and Youth Council (CYC) were already juggling ideas behind the scenes to promote all of our networking and involvement to the wider community. Since working with Dr David Seedhouse on the Hear Our Voices Values Exchange website, we as the young change makers of tomorrow have been able to make great contributions to the lives that we live today, and will live in the future. There are many cases set up by the Values Exchange team as well as students from various schools around the country that are waiting for a response and an opinion. I recommend you all get involved in this fast growing community of informed students. You can be readily involved with the Save the Children NZ Values Exchange by clicking this link: http://stc.vxcommunity.com/ Cecilia Paredes, editor

Also in this magazine is a contribution from one of our own CYC members, Fardowsa Mohamed, who writes about her experience with fundraising for the Save the Children NZ Waitakere Branch right here in Auckland alongside Saarah Abdeen (). It's great to see such involvement starting to rise from our CYC members and we're all looking forward to sharing some more stories with you in our next issues. Hopefully we can all follow in Fardowsa and Saraah's footsteps by helping out more in our local communities and our Save the Children New Zealand local branches. A highlight for Save the Children New Zealand early this year was our submission of the Green Paper for Vulnerable Children. With many contributions coming from youth towards this paper, we can definitely be proud of ourselves wanting to have our voices heard and recognised from individuals with higher power, such as Alfred Ngaro who is one of the new National MP's. Read the article on Page 4 of this issue, with a link to the whole submission on Page 5! With this magazine's theme on getting involved, reaching out to the local community and telling them what Save the Children and youth leadership and learning is all about, we hope you find some inspiration to gather some of your friends up and help out to create some local projects! Don't forget to share with us the many different events, projects and presentations that you've been involved in.

http://stc.vxcommunity.com/


2 © Save the Children New Zealand

Contributing writers

Fardowsa Mohamed (right) from Save the Children

Hi, I'm Fardowsa Mohamed. I am a Year 13 student at Massey High School. I was born and raised in Auckland, but my family is originally from Somalia. Some of my favourite pastimes are writing, watching movies, engaging in a good debate, and relaxing with family and friends - and there's nothing I love more than a good laugh. I joined the CYC last year because I wanted a platform to make a difference for youth in New Zealand. I saw the CYC as an opportunity for me to do this, so I went for it and applied to be a regional representative for Auckland. For me, it's about educating youth on the issues that face us, I feel that silence and ignorance are the worst things to have in a society. I wish to move closer to this goal in my time as a Save the Children CYC member. Fardowsa has written an article on her contribution towards her local Save the Children branch. You will find it on page 3.

Anna Kerr

Anna is a teacher at Murrays Bay Intermediate School and a coordinator of the P3 Foundation’s Social Enterprise Competition (SEC 2012). Anna has written some information on the SEC from previous years that can be found on page 8.



Leadership in action Fardowsa and Saarah attend Save the Children New Zealand’s

Christmas lunch and volunteer at a fundraiser! When I arrived at the Christmas lunch meeting of the Save the Children Waitakere Branch last December, I didn't really know what to expect. I knew that the volunteers at the meeting would be long-time members of Save the Children. I was reassured by this fact, because I was certain we'd find common ground on supporting children's rights - and we did. The volunteers and I, as well as my fellow regional representative and friend Saarah Abdeen, hit it off. We talked about the problems not only that the youth council wishes to address, but also the issues surrounding children that the branch focuses on. As a West Aucklander, it was interesting to hear about the work the branch does in my neighbourhood and their extensive contribution to the community. Their work with schools, like my own, inspired me to take the Child and Youth Council (CYC) message further into my own community. This is particularly awesome because it'll mean that when I want to start doing this, I now know who to chat to. From the get-go I was captivated by the dedication and enthusiasm exhibited by branch, the same enthusiasm I've noticed in the CYC. They told me about how they often very often, in fact sell handmade and second-hand goods to raise money for the charity. The most interesting thing was how creative they got with their stalls and fundraisers. They would organise stalls at hospitals, churches, festivals, and even established make-do shops in their own homes, a selfless act of charity I greatly admired. This opened my eyes to the range of opportunities we as the CYC could hone in on to promote the council and our contribution to the community revelations I plan on reporting back to the CYC! After we chatted about our respective roles in the wider Save the Children family, and before we dug into the Christmas lunch I was much anticipating, we talked about our areas of overlap and how we could work together. We eventually decided that we could help each other out with fundraisers, advertisements and the like, which I thought the council would love to hear about. As a start to our new plan to support one another, the branch members and I agreed that it would be a great idea if I could help out with a stall that was coming up at Waitakere Hospital later in the month. I must say, helping out at the stall was an awesome experience. There's nothing better than selling delicious baking while representing an organisation you love. After our nice chat, and the financial summary of their year - which I'll be first to say flew right over my head - we ate a great lunch, and said our farewells. Although this was the last time in 2011 I'd meet with all the members of this friendly group, I believe our connection with the Waitakere Branch will strengthen throughout 2012. We plan to extend this connection to other branches in Auckland, and New Zealand-wide.



Leadership in action

CYC leaders introduce the Values Exchange (VX) to their schools The Hear Our Voices Values Exchange, launched in November 2011, is an online platform that engages young New Zealanders on the issues that matter to them. It promotes deep thinking and enables clear communication about social issues that affect us all. It invites children and young people to share their perspectives, ideas and solutions. It is a chance to listen to what children and young people are saying so that Save the Children New Zealand can work with them more effectively. This is an image of the VX think screen. Visit www.stc.vxcommunity.com

http://www.stc.vxcommunity.com/



Values Exchange in Wellington

Speaking at the leadership conference Alex said, “Our plan was is to build a movement of young New Zealanders who are aware of their rights and responsibilities, keen to have their voices heard and to contribute to positive change in their schools, community and nation. This can be done by having your voice heard through the values exchange website and by engaging in useful community projects. All the members of our youth council have talked to their schools and are asking for sessions in which the students will try out the values exchange website in class. This will give them an introduction to, and understanding of, the process they can take to make their voices heard.

Amarind, who is a support member in Wellington, and I have asked Scots College to run such a project, which will happen next term. This website is very good as it is simple and interesting to use. You can read and give your opinion on topics that other people have posted and even post your own. All the information and thoughts from the users are collected. The data is then used by the Save the Children council either as a resource to plan their actions or to show the government what children and young people are thinking”.

"I expected that the Values Exchange would not have a major or lasting impact on the students of Year 10 Scots College. However to my surprise, and to the surprise of my colleagues, Alex Smith, Mercy Jumo and Dr David Seedhouse, the students took in the information and many went on to use the VX afterwards. I believe we accomplished much in introducing the VX to the students at Scots, and hopefully this sort of success will continue throughout the year. I wish luck to any other college that is looking to spread the new VX tool!"

Amarind Eng Values Exchange in Auckland

Saarah Abdeen and Tejaswi Pagadala have been busy introducing the VX at Epsom Grammar.

“Just did the Values Exchange with the Year 10 class today with Amanda and it went really well. The teacher will be presenting the VX community site to the Social Studies department so that should be good . Also there were a few students who expressed interest in joining CYC...!”

Saarah Abdeen

Amarind Eng and Alex Smith supported a class of Y10

through a VX lesson. Alex also made a presentation to a group of senior student leaders that attended the

leaders’ conference at Scots College on 3 April 2012.



Hear our voices Children are everyone’s responsibility – young people tell

Save the Children New Zealand and the government

Young representatives working with Save the Children New Zealand handed over the

organisation‟s submission on the Green Paper for Vulnerable Children to new National MP Alfred

Ngaro at Parliament on 22 February 2012.

The group of young students from Bishop Viard College, Naenae College and Scots College

delivered a document containing the voices of over 130 children and young people from around

New Zealand to Mr Ngaro.

Via an online platform and taking recommendations from its 2010 Hear Our Voices consultation as

a starting point, Save the Children New Zealand had asked children and young people what issues

they wanted the government to address when it came to looking after New Zealand‟s vulnerable

children.

It found that 20% of respondents felt the most urgent matter for government to deal with was to

give children and young people more of a say on the issues that affected them.

Domestic violence for children, bullying and looking at the connections between gangs, drugs,

alcohol and child abuse were also key priorities that young people who engaged with Save the

Children said needed addressing.

When asked „what is the most important influence‟ when it comes to improving the lives of

vulnerable children, the majority stated that the „family/whanau‟ was most critical.

However, when looking at a case study, which reflected a family in crisis, most young respondents

said that family life was something that was interconnected with society – rather than solely the

result of good or bad parenting. Most also recognised the need for parents to be supported –

both economically and with parenting skills – and argued that it was this support that would allow

better parenting.

Continued... ....

http://www.savethechildren.org.nz/assets/520/Save%20the%20Children%20New%20Zealand%20-%20Green%20Paper%20submission.pdf



When asked to define a „vulnerable child‟, not having basic physical needs met, or living in an

unsafe family environment were the main themes.

Speaking after meeting with Mr Ngaro, Save the Children New Zealand CEO Liz Gibbs said there

were both social and economic implications for not respecting children‟s rights.

“It‟s essential that things change in New Zealand. We are not doing well by our children and

young people.

“However, the Green Paper is this country‟s chance to really address some of the critical issues

that confront vulnerable children. The voices of our young people need to be carefully considered.

Save the Children New Zealand is playing its part in bringing some of these views to attention

today,” she said.

National MP Alfred Ngaro, who has held a number of Green Paper meetings throughout

Auckland, was pleased to receive the submission from Save the Children and encouraged more

New Zealanders to do the same.

“The response to the Green Paper has been outstanding, especially from agencies like Save the

Children who work closely with our children and young people.

“But I want to encourage more Kiwis to have a voice on these issues. Your submissions are important because they will inform the writing of a White Paper and a ten-year children‟s action

plan,” he said.

You can read the submission at

http://www.savethechildren.org.nz/assets/520/Save%20the%20Children%20New%20Zealand%20-

%20Green%20Paper%20submission.pdf





Leadership in action Room 8’s Living Museum

Greenacres School is in our headlines again. In our previous issue, Greenacres students Alyssa and Amelia, and teacher Mr Young, promoted leadership through the Drucker in Schools Leadership Programme. Recently, Room 8 from Greenacres created a 'Living Museum'. They showcased various New Zealand historical events and icons, encouraging other students, parents and members of the community to learn about our rich historical background in a fun and interactive presentation. The historical events included in Room 8's Living Museum included the Treaty of Waitangi, the 1981 Springbok Tour and the Women's Right to Vote. Did you know that New Zealand was the first country in the world to allow the vote for all women? Alongside the historic events was a display of iconic New Zealand men and women who have shaped our history throughout the years, including Sir Edmund Hilary, who was the first person to reach the top of Mt Everest and Sir Richard Hadlee, a famous cricketer. Even Phar Lap, the champion racehorse was featured! Proving to be a crowd favourite was the Lord of the Rings exhibit, as the trilogy of movies were filmed entirely in New Zealand, and featured many New Zealand actors and crew members. This is one of the greatest triumphs for the New Zealand film industry and has increased our international recognition. An estimated 200 guests came to see what Mr Bilton said was "mind glowingly good" exhibits. Other reviews were highly positive, crediting the students for all their hard work and efforts. "Every display has something unique [with] very knowledgeable hosts," said Kirstie Ross, a guest that had reviewed the exhibit.



Continued… Mr Young, the Room 8 teacher at Greenacres School, praised the students for their hard work and enthusiasm. He said that he too learnt a lot when he listened to the students sharing their knowledge and was happy to see how much the museum meant to other people. Here are some photos from Room 8's Living Museum Project!

Sir Edmund Hilary Exhibit by students Halo and Ioane. Maori Exhibit by students Shaniyah, Jack and Kayley.

The favourite Lord of the Rings exhibit.



P3 Foundation Social Enterprise Competition

In partnership with Save the Children New Zealand and the Ministry of Youth Development

The inaugural 2010 Social Enterprise Competition was a resounding success, bringing together high school students from all over Auckland to develop solutions for alcohol abuse in their communities. Teams used the Drucker In-Schools Project Management Framework provided by Save the Children to produce original and innovative solutions. These were then presented to a panel of judges at the presentation day following a keynote address by His Worship the Mayor of Auckland, Len Brown.

The winning team from Mount Roskill Grammar School, MARJ, used the $1500 prize money to help implement their solution: an alcohol expo that aims to educate and raise awareness about alcohol. It was supported by New Zealand Post and the Ministry of Youth Development. Held at the University of Auckland Business School, the event attracted over 500 students and members of the wider Auckland community. The team surveyed attendees before and after the expo and found a 25% increase in their knowledge and awareness about alcohol. In 2011 the SEC expanded further into high schools right across Auckland. Last year students focused on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) with a particular emphasis on children, devising projects to combat or help meet a particular MDG at either a local or international level. Again each team presented their ideas in front of a panel of judges at a presentation day. This year we were honoured to have as judges Sir Ray Avery (2010 New Zealander of the year, CEO and founder of Medicine Mondiale), Allan Freeth (CEO of Telstra Clear) and Richard McGill (Associate Director at Deloitte). The winning team from Rangitoto College, Rainex, was given $1500 to execute their idea of providing a Tongan community with water tanks. Since winning the competition, they have secured rainwater collection systems to go with the water storage tanks from Marley LTD, as well as additional financing from Allan Freeth of TelstraClear. Tanks were ordered from a Chinese firm and have already arrived in Tonga, ready to be assembled soon on Tafahi Island along with the rest of the equipment. For more details visit http://www.p3foundation.org/projects/social-enterprise-competition/



Goodbye message from Save the Children New Zealand’s Mary Little

So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, goodbye! At the end of March, I (the one dressed in black and white with a plate of food in my hands) moved on to a new job at Volunteer Service Abroad, where I am doing social media, website management and other communications-style activities. This is the area I’m keen to get into, so it’s an exciting move for me. Of course I am very sad to have left my friends and colleagues at Save the Children New Zealand. It’s been a pleasure getting to know members of the Child and Youth Council, mainly via tweet, email and Facebook. I enjoyed meeting you IRL at the AGM, and found you just as charming as you are digitally. In the meantime, our new Communications Coordinator, Jude, will be running the Save the Children Facebook page (www.facebook.com/savethechildrennz), and will probably be the person moderating the CYC Facebook page. Drop by and say hi to her, she’s nice! It’s been a treat, CYCers. Keep up the good work. (Phot o f rom h t t p ://3.b p .b logsp ot .com /-

YgBzPzShTR4/Tp 4GWxp R2xI/AAAAAAAACyA/yc5b m XrGsPs/s1600/Sound + of + Music+ Good + b ye.jp g )



Upcoming events Make sure to put these in your planners!

1. P3 Foundation Social Enterprise Competition

in partnership with Save the Children New Zealand and the Ministry of Youth

Development

See details at http://www.p3foundation.org/projects/social-enterprise-competition/

2. Youth Week 2012

Youth Week (19-27 May) is about recognising the amazing contributions and achievements of New Zealand’s youth. The week inspires our society to value and support the diversity of its young people. Youth Week’s theme is ‘LOVE THE SKIN IN YOU’RE IN’ - we hope you’re feeling inspired. What does this theme mean to you? From Takapuna to Timbuktu - all young voices from New Zealand and around the world are welcome - share your line and help us create the global poem. So share your thoughts, share this event - invite your friends! We are really looking forward to see what develops.... Short link: http://on.fb.me/KzLXtM Full link: http://www.facebook.com/events/288381361256888/

3. Values Exchange

Changes are afoot for the Values Exchange with new case studies being added. Visit the values exchange and have your say. www.stc.vxcommunity.com

http://www.p3foundation.org/projects/social-enterprise-competition/

http://on.fb.me/KzLXtM

http://www.facebook.com/events/288381361256888/

http://www.stc.vxcommunity.com/



Volunteers wanted Regional representatives to lead Child and Youth Council

Save the Children New Zealand is seeking applications from children and young people under the age of 18 to become CYC regional representatives in the following regions:

Waikato Bay of Plenty Gisbourne Hawkes Bay Nelson Marlborough Tasman West Coast Otago Southland

The role of a CYC leader is to:

advise the Save the Children New Zealand Board and staff on issues that are important to children and young people

coordinate children’s voices nationally plan, run and attend meetings help to increase awareness of children’s rights and responsibilities advocate on issues of concern to children and youth, and take part in making

submissions to the government and to the United Nations. Leaders of the CYC are expected to grow CYC membership and to take part in group emails, teleconferences and regional meetings. The CYC leaders will also work closely with Save the Children branches and shops.



Child and Youth Council application form

Your full name: ___________________________________________________________________

School: ________________________________________ Region__________________________

Contact address:__________________________________________________________________

Contact phone number: _______________________ Email address: __________________________

How old are you?______________ Birthday date/month/year:_________________

Are you… female male

What ethnicity are you?

Maori

European

Pacific Islander please specify ____________________________

Samoan

Papua New Guinean

Solomon Islander

Asian please specify ____________________________

African please specify ____________________________

Middle Eastern please specify ____________________________

Other please specify ____________________________

How did you find out about the Youth Council?

a friend Council website newspaper

school youth worker other ______________

Do you agree to follow the Youth Council guidelines?

Yes no not sure

Why do you want to join the Youth Council?

_______________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Why would you make a good Youth Council member?

_______________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________-_____________________________



Name one problem faced by young people in your area or in New Zealand.

Please suggest how you think children and youth can be part of the solution.

Please tell us anything else you would like about yourself such as interests and any involvement you have or have had in your local community, hobbies, being a member of a club or committee, doing volunteer work. _______________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Parent / guardian consent I give permission for my son / daughter to participate in the Child and Youth Council.

I give permission for photographs of my son/daughter to be used by Save the Children New Zealand in promotional material including the website, publications and media releases and in any manner appropriate to advance the work of Save the Children.

(Print) Full name of parent/guardian: _________________________________________________________

Signature: ______________________________________________________________________________

Contact phone number(s): _________________________________________________________________

Email: __________________________________________________________________________________

Date:____________________________________________

Please send this form back to Save the Children Child and Youth Council, PO Box 6584, Marion Square, Wellington 6141.

Contact: Mercy Jumo, Programme Manager: T: 04-381 7585 E: [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]



The founder of Save the Children, Eglantyne Gebb, penned the first draft of what we now know as the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Article 1Everyone under 18 has all these r ights.

Article 2You have the right to protection againstdiscrimination. This means that nobody can treatyou badly because of your colour, sex or religion, ifyou speak another language , have a disability, orare rich or poor.

Article 3All adults should always do what is best for you.

Article 4You have the right to have your rights made areality by the government.

Article 5You have the right to be given guidance by yourparents and family.

Article 6You have the right to life.

Article 7You have the right to have a name and a nationality.

Article 8You have the right to an identity.

Article 9You have the right to live with your parents, unless itis bad for you.

Article 10If you and your parents are living in separ atecountries, you have the right to get back togetherand live in the same place .

Article 11You should not be kidnapped.

Article 12You have the right to an opinion and for it to belistened to and taken seriously.

Article 13You have the right to find out things and say whatyou think, through making ar t, speaking and wr iting,unless it breaks the r ights of others.

Article 14You have the right to think what you like and bewhatever religion you want to be, with yourparents’ guidance.

Article 15You have the right to be with fr iends and join or setup clubs, unless this breaks the r ights of others.

Article 16You have the right to a private life. For instance, youcan keep a diary that other people are not allo wedto see.

Article 17You have the right to collect information from themedia – radios, newspapers, television, etc – fromall around the world.You should also be protectedfrom information that could harm you.

Article 18You have the right to be brought up by yourparents, if possible.

Article 19You have the right to be protected from being hur tor badly treated.

Article 20You have the right to special protection and help ifyou can’t live with your parents.

Article 21You have the right to have the best care for you ifyou are adopted or fostered or living in care .

Article 22You have the right to special protection and help ifyou are a refugee.A refugee is someone who hashad to leave their countr y because it is not safe forthem to live there.

Article 23If you are disabled, either mentally or physically, youhave the right to special care and education to helpyou develop and lead a full lif e.

Article 24You have a right to the best health possib le and tomedical care and to information that will help youto stay well.

Article 25You have the right to have your livingarrangements checked regularly if you have to belooked after away from home.

Article 26You have the right to help from the government ifyou are poor or in need.

Article 27You have the right to a good enough standard ofliving.This means you should have food, clothes anda place to live.

Article 28You have the right to education.

Article 29You have the right to education which tr ies todevelop your personality and abilities as much aspossible and encourages you to respect otherpeople’s rights and values and to respect theenvironment.

Article 30If you come from a minor ity group, because of yourrace, religion or language , you have the right toenjoy your own culture, practise your own religion,and use your own language.

Article 31You have the right to play and relax by doing thingslike spor ts, music and drama.

Article 32You have the right to protection from work that isbad for your health or education.

Article 33You have the right to be protected from dangerousdrugs.

Article 34You have the right to be protected from sexualabuse.

Article 35No-one is allowed to kidnap you or sell you.

Article 36You have the right to protection from of an y otherkind of exploitation.

Article 37You have the right not to be punished in a cr uel orhurtful way.

Article 38You have a right to protection in times of war . If youare under 15, you should never have to be in anarmy or take part in a battle.

Article 39 You have the right to help if you have been hur t,neglected, or badly treated.

Article 40You have the right to help in defending yourself ifyou are accused of breaking the la w.

Article 41You have the right to any rights in laws in yourcountry or internationally that give you better rightsthan these.

Article 42All adults and children should kno w about thisconvention.You have a right to learn about yourrights and adults should lear n about them too.

This is a simplified version of the United Nations Con vention

on the Rights of the Child. It has been signed by 191 countries.

The convention has 54 articles in total. Articles 43 – 54 are

about how governments and international organisations will

work to give children their rights.

The official text of the Convention can be obtained from Sa ve theChildren, Education Depar tment, 17 Grove Lane, London SE5 8RD.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child

200c/00



Contact us We’d love to hear from you!

To share your stories and feedback, email us at [email protected]

To learn more about Save the Children New Zealand visit http://www.savethechildren.org.nz/

mailto:[email protected]

our voice - save the children new zealand child and youth council magazine issue 2

Documents

children nz child

children nz values exchange

youth leadership

youth council cyc

youth council magazine

council members

voice new zealand child

cyc members