Youth Challenge Australia
Encyclopedia
Youth Challenge Australia (YCA) is a non-profit organisation founded in 1991 that sends young Australia
ns on international community development projects in Costa Rica
, Panama
, Nicaragua
, Guyana
, Guatemala
, Vanuatu
, Mexico
and India
. Since 1994, YCA has also been involved in sending young people to remote, indigenous communities within Australia, such as Yuendumu, Ikuntji (Haasts Bluff
), Kintore
, Alice Springs and Yulara.
YCA's vision is focussed on contributing to an international community that celebrates its diversity, values sustainability and recognizes the powerful role of youth in society. Its mission is to engage and empower young people through collaborative and sustainable grassroots community initiatives, to create understanding and bring about positive change.
The projects YCA volunteers undertake are many and varied. The projects differ from country, to region, to community, and are always driven by the needs of the community. Generally speaking, the YCA project focus areas fall into these major categories:
Construction and infrastructure projects
Building community halls, local primary schools and community aqueducts in partnership with the local community.
Environmental conservation projects
Clearing rainforest trails; maintaining national wildlife parks; documenting local flora and fauna; developing infrastructure to support local involvement in ecological tourism through information centres, trails and community restaurants.
Social development projects
Preparing for and participating in community seminars for local youth, women or farmer groups; undertaking research with street children to assist in local advocacy programs; participating in preparation and activities with local farmers groups; organising tutoring for local disadvantaged youth. Specifically exploring issues with health and life skills, and promoting positive communication within a community.
Health related projects
Facilitating community health seminars with local youth on HIV/AIDS and other health issues; disseminating information on diseases (e.g. malaria
) and distributing appropriate health kits.
YCA's history stretches back to 1978, when HRH the Prince of Wales
launched a 2-year, round-the-world youth expedition to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Sir Francis Drake's circumnavigation of the globe. More importantly, this was an attempt to address the lack of real challenge and opportunity facing large numbers of youth. Operation Drake involved 200 international youth in three-month programs centred on science, community service, and adventure in remote parts of the world. Operation Drake was an outstanding success, and this inspired the British
organisers to launch a much larger and more ambitious successor program. In 1984 Operation Raleigh was launched, involving 4000 participants from over forty nations.
Past participants from Operation Drake organised Operation Raleigh Canada
. These volunteers committed to selecting Canadian participants, forming a Board of Directors
, and fundraising 50% of each participant’s cost. The Canada
organisation also organised a Canadian Arctic Expedition in 1988, involving 25 youth from 15 nations.
Although Operation Raleigh concluded as planned in 1988, it once again surpassed expectations and ignited the energy and enthusiasm of hundreds of volunteers. It became clear that there was an abundance of interest in continuing an international program that could continue to provide young people with the benefits of the experience.
In 1989 past participants, volunteers and sponsors in Canada
, Australia
and Guyana
took the initiative and Youth Challenge International
was born. The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) endorsed YCI by providing $150,000 start-up capital and by partially funding YCI’s inaugural project in Guyana
(1990). A group of Australian volunteers, alumni of Operation Raleigh, provided a huge boost to the success of this first program, sending 4 participants and several Group Leaders.
Upon their return to Australia
in 1991, these early alumni - mostly students at University of Technology Sydney (UTS) as well as UTS Senior Lecturer, Mark Darby, a Group Leader in Guyana
- set about to make this great opportunity available to other Australian youth. In 1992, with now dozens of alumni having participated on projects in Guyana
as well as in Mexico
, Youth Challenge Australia was founded.
In 1993 Australia
completed its first of what was to be three consecutive Pacific projects in the Solomon Islands
, with 16 Australia
ns and 35 other participants from the Solomon
's, Mexico
and Canada
.
Since 1991 over 1000 Australia
n participants have participated in Youth Challenge projects worldwide, and a staggering variety of projects in community development have been achieved through the participant's labours and fundraising monies.
The Youth Challenge International Alliance
Internationally, four independent, autonomous Youth Challenge organisations work together to deliver field programs involving common goals and methodologies. These autonomous organisations are each financially self-sufficient, deriving their income from local private & public sector donations, and from local volunteers participation fees.
Although each of the Youth Challenge partners is independent, all members of the network recognise that their work and livelihood is fundamentally interdependent, requiring close consultation, co-operative decision-making and joint planning. The International Alliance Council, composed of the Executive Director
and the Board Chairperson from each country, meets once a year.
Continuity, as well as local control, are essential elements of organisational and project sustainability. All YCA partner organisations are locally governed and staffed.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
ns on international community development projects in Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
, Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
, Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, Guyana
Guyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
, Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
, Vanuatu
Vanuatu
Vanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Since 1994, YCA has also been involved in sending young people to remote, indigenous communities within Australia, such as Yuendumu, Ikuntji (Haasts Bluff
Haasts Bluff, Northern Territory
Haasts Bluff, also known as Ikuntji, is an Indigenous Australian community in Central Australia, a region of the Northern Territory. The community is located in the MacDonnell Shire local government area, west of Alice Springs...
), Kintore
Kintore, Northern Territory
Kintore is a remote settlement in the Northern Territory of Australia, located approximately 530 km west of Alice Springs and close to the border with Western Australia. At the 2001 census, Kintore had a population of 691, of which 95% identified themselves as Aboriginal...
, Alice Springs and Yulara.
YCA's vision is focussed on contributing to an international community that celebrates its diversity, values sustainability and recognizes the powerful role of youth in society. Its mission is to engage and empower young people through collaborative and sustainable grassroots community initiatives, to create understanding and bring about positive change.
The projects YCA volunteers undertake are many and varied. The projects differ from country, to region, to community, and are always driven by the needs of the community. Generally speaking, the YCA project focus areas fall into these major categories:
Construction and infrastructure projects
Building community halls, local primary schools and community aqueducts in partnership with the local community.
Environmental conservation projects
Clearing rainforest trails; maintaining national wildlife parks; documenting local flora and fauna; developing infrastructure to support local involvement in ecological tourism through information centres, trails and community restaurants.
Social development projects
Preparing for and participating in community seminars for local youth, women or farmer groups; undertaking research with street children to assist in local advocacy programs; participating in preparation and activities with local farmers groups; organising tutoring for local disadvantaged youth. Specifically exploring issues with health and life skills, and promoting positive communication within a community.
Health related projects
Facilitating community health seminars with local youth on HIV/AIDS and other health issues; disseminating information on diseases (e.g. malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
) and distributing appropriate health kits.
YCA's history stretches back to 1978, when HRH the Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales is a title traditionally granted to the heir apparent to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the 15 other independent Commonwealth realms...
launched a 2-year, round-the-world youth expedition to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Sir Francis Drake's circumnavigation of the globe. More importantly, this was an attempt to address the lack of real challenge and opportunity facing large numbers of youth. Operation Drake involved 200 international youth in three-month programs centred on science, community service, and adventure in remote parts of the world. Operation Drake was an outstanding success, and this inspired the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
organisers to launch a much larger and more ambitious successor program. In 1984 Operation Raleigh was launched, involving 4000 participants from over forty nations.
Past participants from Operation Drake organised Operation Raleigh Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. These volunteers committed to selecting Canadian participants, forming a Board of Directors
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
, and fundraising 50% of each participant’s cost. The Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
organisation also organised a Canadian Arctic Expedition in 1988, involving 25 youth from 15 nations.
Although Operation Raleigh concluded as planned in 1988, it once again surpassed expectations and ignited the energy and enthusiasm of hundreds of volunteers. It became clear that there was an abundance of interest in continuing an international program that could continue to provide young people with the benefits of the experience.
In 1989 past participants, volunteers and sponsors in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and Guyana
Guyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
took the initiative and Youth Challenge International
Youth Challenge International (YCI)
Youth Challenge International is a youth-centred, non-profit, non-religious, non-governmental organization focused on international development issues. It aims to equip developing country youth with skills and resources to contribute positively to their communities as well as engage Canadian youth...
was born. The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) endorsed YCI by providing $150,000 start-up capital and by partially funding YCI’s inaugural project in Guyana
Guyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
(1990). A group of Australian volunteers, alumni of Operation Raleigh, provided a huge boost to the success of this first program, sending 4 participants and several Group Leaders.
Upon their return to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in 1991, these early alumni - mostly students at University of Technology Sydney (UTS) as well as UTS Senior Lecturer, Mark Darby, a Group Leader in Guyana
Guyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
- set about to make this great opportunity available to other Australian youth. In 1992, with now dozens of alumni having participated on projects in Guyana
Guyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
as well as in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, Youth Challenge Australia was founded.
In 1993 Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
completed its first of what was to be three consecutive Pacific projects in the Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
, with 16 Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
ns and 35 other participants from the Solomon
Solomon
Solomon , according to the Book of Kings and the Book of Chronicles, a King of Israel and according to the Talmud one of the 48 prophets, is identified as the son of David, also called Jedidiah in 2 Samuel 12:25, and is described as the third king of the United Monarchy, and the final king before...
's, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Since 1991 over 1000 Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n participants have participated in Youth Challenge projects worldwide, and a staggering variety of projects in community development have been achieved through the participant's labours and fundraising monies.
The Youth Challenge International Alliance
Internationally, four independent, autonomous Youth Challenge organisations work together to deliver field programs involving common goals and methodologies. These autonomous organisations are each financially self-sufficient, deriving their income from local private & public sector donations, and from local volunteers participation fees.
Although each of the Youth Challenge partners is independent, all members of the network recognise that their work and livelihood is fundamentally interdependent, requiring close consultation, co-operative decision-making and joint planning. The International Alliance Council, composed of the Executive Director
Executive director
Executive director is a term sometimes applied to the chief executive officer or managing director of an organization, company, or corporation. It is widely used in North American non-profit organizations, though in recent decades many U.S. nonprofits have adopted the title "President/CEO"...
and the Board Chairperson from each country, meets once a year.
Continuity, as well as local control, are essential elements of organisational and project sustainability. All YCA partner organisations are locally governed and staffed.