medical student Alan Huynh (St Lucia) has been recognised for his support of young people from all walks of life.
A recent recipient of the and Inaugural Young People鈥檚 , Mr Huynh is passionate about his community service and volunteer work with those from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.
鈥淎dvancing the views of young people within community organisations and through public debate is crucial to ensuring that youth issues continue to be given attention,鈥� he said.
鈥淚t is incredibly inspiring to see people stepping up, challenging themselves and getting so much out of volunteering in the community.
鈥淚t鈥檚 also motivating to see young people take full advantage of the opportunities available to them in Australia and, through this process, succeed in improving their own quality of life.
鈥淢uch of the work I do revolves around facilitating opportunities for people to contribute and making sure the views of the voiceless are included in community discussions.鈥�
As Youth Chair of the and Vice-Chair of the , Mr Huynh ensures young people鈥檚 voices are heard and valued on issues such as racism, age discrimination and multiculturalism.
鈥淣ow is a particularly interesting time to be involved in the national conversation on multiculturalism and youth participation so I look forward to seeing how both these areas evolve in the next year,鈥� he said.
鈥淭hrough my community work with young people I get the feeling that while having a vote, being part of the political process and having their rights respected in the workplace are important, there is something more that young people yearn for: to belong and to be valued.
鈥淗uman rights are often seen through the lens of constitutions and treaties, but I believe that there is also a practical dimension to human rights.鈥�
Some of the Mr Huynh鈥檚 more practical volunteer ventures include organising a Projects for Peace youth camp for refugee students from Milpera State High School and working as a tutor for the .
鈥淚t has been an incredibly rewarding experience to be able to foster a sense of lifelong learning and create an environment where the students are willing to ask questions about their studies and confident enough to be inquisitive about different career pathways,鈥� he said.
Next year will again be action-packed for Mr Huynh who, in addition to tackling the third year of his medical degree, aims to help run another youth camp, ensure there is a youth focus at the Federation of Ethnic Communities Council Australia National Congress, and start planning a new international training initiative encouraging university students to be globally active citizens.
Media: Mr Huynh (0413 853 451, s4137820@student.uq.edu.au) or Penny Robinson at 疯马秀视频Communications (07 3365 9723, penny.robinson@uq.edu.au)
