Ballarat's brightest young people are being pushed into the spotlight as nominations open for the 2020 City of Ballarat Youth Awards.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The awards, which have been running since 2005, aim to showcase young people within the community who have made a significant or positive contribution towards Ballarat.
Youth Development Officer Danielle Gervasoni said she believes the awards provide an opportunity to celebrate those aged 12-25 within the Ballarat community.
"We really highlight and showcase the young people within our community because sometimes young people don't have the opportunity to be seen or heard," she said.
These sentiments were echoed by Youth Awards Night Ambassador Shon Dunn, who added the awards provide some positive reinforcement and validation for young people working hard within the community.
"I think it comes down to validation from the community that this is what we want young people to be doing," he said.
It's the positive reinforcement that they are contributing in a meaningful way to the community.
- Youth Awards Night Ambassador Shon Dunn
As the awards move towards a digital platform, Ms Gervasoni is hoping the amount of nominations will surpass the 130 mark the awards received in 2019.
"Nominations have been opened for a week now and we've already seen a nice collection of nominations come through already," she continued.
"We really want to encourage people to submit applications that highlight and speak volumes about people and the positive impact they bring to the community."
Ballarat Youth Council member Jacob Osenaris added the online platform may encourage more people to get involved with the awards as it strips away the anxiety of a physical awards evening.
"Some young people may be intimidated by getting up in front of people," he said.
"So this digital presentation is great because it takes some of that pressure away and will hopefully encourage more people to be involved."
Nominations for the Youth Awards will close on July 20. To nominate a young person, go to youthawards.ballarat.vic.gov.au.
Have you signed up to The Courier's variety of news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in Ballarat.