The Multicultural Youth Affairs Network (MYAN) began in 2008 as a partnership between the Youth Coalition of the ACT and Multicultural Youth Services (MYS). It seeks to improve supports for multicultural young people, strengthen multicultural youth services in the ACT, strengthen connections between ‘mainstream’ and multicultural youth services, and raise the profile of multicultural youth issues in the ACT. There are currently over 75 individual members of the MYAN, comprised of youth and community service representatives, government representatives, and other stakeholders.

Between 2008 and 2010, the MYAN was supported through in-kind support by both the Youth Coalition and MYS. The Youth Coalition recently received funding in partnership with the Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network (Australia); from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship to progress the work of the MYAN in the ACT. With this funding the Youth Coalition employed Atem Atem as coordinator of the MYAN for one day per week over 12 months, until 30 June 2011.

Click here for more information about the Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network (Australia).

At a Planning Day held on 24 June 2010, MYAN members agreed that a Reference Group should be established to provide strategic guidance to and identify priorities and strategies for the MYAN.

Click here to view the Terms of Reference for the MYAN Reference Group.
Click here to view the MYAN Issues Paper, developed in December 2010.
Click here to view the most recent quarterly MYAN Newsletter, developed in October 2010.

2011 Forums

The Multicultural Youth Affairs Network Reference Group hosted a series of forums between February to June 2011. The first forum on Multicultural Young People and Mental Health was held on 23 February 2011, and sought to explore mental health issues for multicultural young people; including access to services and cultural understandings of mental health. The second forum ‘Is there best practice when working with multicultural young people?’ was held on 16 March 2011, and explored strategies-based ways of working with multicultural young people, and how services can become more inclusive. The third forum on Multicultural Young People and Education was held on 26 May 2011, and explored issues experienced by multicultural young people, particularly those who are newly arrived, in relation to education in the ACT. The fourth forum, 'Where to from here for the Multicultural Youth Affairs Network?' was held on 8 June 2011, and brought together the findings from the previous forums; other activities that occured during 2010 and 2011; and looked at the direction of the MYAN in 2011/12.

For more information on the MYAN:

Multicultural Youth Affairs Network Coordinator
Atem Atem: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it (one day per week)

Secretariat to the Reference Group

Katrina Campion: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it