In 2003, Parra Youth Matters, a youth organisation in Parramatta (Sydney) collaborated with academic partners to organize Australia's first youth citizens' jury with 15 young people to deliberate on issues of concern to their community.
Problems and Purpose
Australia’s first youth jury was organized by Parra Youth Matters and collaborators at local Sydney universities. The aim of the jury was to bring young people from Parramatta together to discuss issues that were meaningful to them and to integrate their views into the broader community.
More specifically, the jury were charged with deliberating on the question of the media’s adverse influence on perceptions of culture and Australia [1].
Background History and Context
According to Active Democracy, the organisation behind Parra Youth Matters and the youth jury,
“It all started way back at the beginning of 2002, when a class of second and third year university students enrolled in a Government class at the University of Sydney on consultation and deliberative democracy run by Dr Lyn Carson. As part of the class we formed our own Citizens' Jury, taking on various roles including juror and facilitator. This experience had such an effect on us that when Dr Carson suggested that we could run a jury of our own, with young people, we jumped at the idea, a project team was formed and a project titled "Parra Youth Matters" began. While we have very different interests, backgrounds, cultures and ambitions we are united by our sincere belief in the importance of democracy and the positive impacts that deliberation can have on people and their communities.” [2]
Organizing, Supporting, and Funding Entities
The youth jury was organized by Parra Youth Matters, and the project team was led by Dr Lyn Carson and a group of trained undergraduate students. It was supported by the University of Sydney and Southern Cross University, and the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs [3].
Participant Recruitment and Selection
15 young people aged 16-17 participated in the jury. An initial 72 young people applied to take part after an open advertisement was put out for jurors. From this, a smaller group was randomly selected. There were significantly more female than male participants [4].
Methods and Tools Used
A citizens' jury process was adapted for the youth jury.
What Went On: Process, Interaction, and Participation
The jurors met for three introductory sessions before the full three day jury in July 2003. Introductory sessions were dedicated to ice breaker activities and getting to know each other as well as sharing issues and discussing expectations for the jury [5]. They also discussed issues that arose from surveys carried out in the Parramatta community, and used the final introductory session to decide on a specific area of interest for the jury deliberations to focus on [6].
During the three-day jury, participants heard from speakers representing different aspects of the media and had the chance to question them and generate new ideas from their presentations. The final third day of the jury was dedicated to supporting the jurors through the processing their ideas into final recommendations [7].
Influence, Outcomes, and Effects
The jury was highly commended by NSW politicians at the time [8]. Since the jury was not commissioned by or directly connected to decision-makers, it was not expected to result in any direct changes to policy but was circulated amongst the community and stakeholders [9].
Analysis and Lessons Learned
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See Also
References
[1] Parra Youth Matters (2003). About Parra Youth Matters. Available at: http://activedemocracy.net/parrayouth/youth_jury.html
[2] Parra Youth Matters (2003). Project Team. Available at: http://activedemocracy.net/parrayouth/project_team.html
[3] Parra Youth Matters (2003). About Parra Youth Matters. Available at: http://activedemocracy.net/parrayouth/youth_jury.html
[4] Parra Youth Matters (2003). Introductory Session 1. Available at: http://activedemocracy.net/parrayouth/is1.html
[5] Parra Youth Matters (2003). Introductory Session 1. Available at: http://activedemocracy.net/parrayouth/is1.html
[6] Parramatta Youth Jury (2003). Media, Culture and Youth: Recommendations from the Jury [pdf]. Available at: http://activedemocracy.net/parrayouth/parra_youth_matters_report.pdf
[8] http://activedemocracy.net/parrayouth/media_release5.html
[9] Parra Youth Matters (2003). FAQs. Available at: http://activedemocracy.net/parrayouth/is1.html
External Links
http://activedemocracy.net/parrayouth/pym.html
Notes
A detailed write up and all documents relating to the jury can be found on Active Democracy.
