As part of our Reconciliation Action Plan - Reflect, Youth Projects has set several goals and objectives to improve our cultural awareness, increase our recruitment, retention, and engagement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander talent, acquire a deeper appreciation of customs and celebrate significant events together - becoming a stronger, more inclusive organisation along the way.

Since 2006, Reconciliation Australia has provided the framework for organisations to leverage their structures and diverse spheres of influence to support the national reconciliation movement. Youth Projects now joins a network of more than 1,100 corporate, government, and not-for-profit organisations that have made a formal commitment to reconciliation through Reconciliation Australia's RAP program.

First Nations people now represent up to 21% of the folk we work with, and this is an incredibly important step for the organisation to take.

We've got a successful track record in building employment, health, education, and social outcomes, in partnership with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, but we also acknowledge that we have much more to do as Australia seeks to close the gap in education, employment, life expectancy and disease burden that still exists between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians and non-Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians.

As CEO, Ben Vasiliou, shares, "we will continue to collaborate with the sectors we work in to ensure that Youth Projects' approaches are aligned with the principles of self-determination. And, we will continue to working with, listening too, and responding to, the needs of our first nations people who use our services."

Our 'Reflect' Reconciliation Action Plan:

• Forms an essential part of our efforts to increase the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples employed in the Youth Projects,
• Works to increase the engagement of First Nations owned organisations across our supply chain; and
• Commits us to continue to promote an understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, communities, cultures, heritage and aspirations.

Along our journey, we collaborated with Naarm-based artist (and proud Wurundjeri, Dja Dja Wurrung & Ngurai illum Wurrung woman) - Ky-ya Ward / Djirringu to elevate young talent, and supporting First Nations businesses.

Ky-ya has worked with Youth Projects to understand our story and journey and created an artwork that not is not only deeply powerful, but reflects our reconciliation story, journey, and connection to community.

Artwork created by Naarm-based, Ky-ya Ward / Djirringu 

Our goal at Youth Projects is to establish an organisation where reconciliation lives in the hearts, minds and actions of all our teams, and we embrace this very important step in further closing the gaps that still exist for our first nations community.

Youth Projects' Reconciliation Action Plan is now available to view online: Reconciliation Action Plan - Reflect 2022-2023.