Applications now open
Are you aged 18-25 and from a refugee background?

Do you have experience in advocacy in Australia and knowledge of refugee youth issues in the international context?

Are you interested in supporting national youth consultations with refugee young people in Australia?

Would you like to be part of a team to advocate on international refugee youth issues with the United National High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva, Switzerland in June 2016?

If the answer is YES? Then this is for you…But hurry – it closes in a few hours!

The Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network (MYAN Australia) and the Refugee Council of Australia (RCOA) are supporting young advocates from refugee backgrounds to take part in high-level international advocacy on refugee issues in Geneva in 2016.

They will be selecting two young people to join the Australian NGO delegation at the annual consultations between the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and NGOs and participate in a Global Workshop for Refugee Young People in Geneva, Switzerland in 2016.

The theme for next year’s UNHCR NGO Consultations is ‘Youth’. The consultations bring together NGOs from around the world and provide a forum to network, gather and share information, hear about new policies and best practice, discuss protection gaps and identify joint solutions. Participation in these meetings also provides opportunities for high-level advocacy through side meetings with UNHCR personnel, government representatives and other key players.

In 2016, the UNHCR and the Women’s Refugee Commission (WRC) will also hold a Global Refugee Youth Workshop, a culmination of the Global Refugee Youth Consultations held in 2015-2016. These will complement the UNHCR NGO Consultations, with theme of Youth and Adolescents in 2016.

The scholarship recipients will need to commit to approximately 8 days in Geneva with exact dates to be confirmed but at least including 11 June – 18 June 2016. The recipient will have the opportunity to raise issues and concerns with senior UNHCR personnel, meet NGO representatives and young people from refugee backgrounds from around the world and learn about current and emerging issues in international refugee protection.

Applicants must be from a refugee background, aged 18-25, have experience in advocacy activities in Australia and knowledge of refugee youth issues in the international context.

Applications close 5pm Wednesday 9th December 2015

For more information read the Call for Applications.