LRTT Policy Fellowship

Are you sick of the sneering, cat-calls and negativity? Are you just a little bit fed up with shortsighted “policy development” which sometimes more closely resembles a stream-of-consciousness, back-of-the-napkin mode of governing?

We think we might just have a solution… Let me explain it to you. The Left Right Think Tank is proud to announce the launch of its Policy Fellowship for 2011, our key initiative to engage young people in public policy and foster a society that seeks and embraces the ideas of young people.

The Policy Fellowship provides young Australians aged 16 to 24 with direct exposure to the process of policy development and the inner workings of Australia’s political system. Each of Left Right’s four state teams will produce a series of policy recommendations on an area of policy covering one of the following themes: governance, economic sustainability, education (tertiary) and infrastructure development.

The Fellowship con­sists of a series of work­shops that explore the myriad of factors that lead to, and create, change in Australia. Prominent rep­res­ent­at­ives from gov­ern­ment, the media, non-government organisations and other key stake­hold­ers guide the ses­sions in con­junc­tion with exper­i­enced Left Right staff.

We offer unri­valled ment­or­ship and train­ing oppor­tun­it­ies. Federal government Ministers, Members of Parliament, Political staffers, heads of public-sector depart­ments and other experts will guide and advise the Fellows through­out the pro­duc­tion of their policy, allow­ing them to for­mu­late cred­ible, hard-hitting and targeted recom­mend­a­tions to some of Australia’s most press­ing problems.

Our Fellows will engage in rig­or­ous con­sulta­tion and engage­ment with hundreds of young people across Australia through­out the research and development of their recommendations, enabling them to act as a voice for the concerns of many young Australians. Finally our Fellows will have an oppor­tun­ity to meet with Ministers and shadow Ministers to advoc­ate their policy dir­ectly to government.

Left Right is Australia’s first and only policy think-tank of young minds. We’re a national organisation with teams in New South Wales, Western Australia, Victoria and Queensland and more than 70 volunteer staff members across the nation. Dr Peter Shergold AM, former head of the Department of Prime Minister & Cabinet is one of our four outstanding patrons… We mean business!

Our vision is for a society that seeks and embraces the ideas of young people and we achieve this by engaging young people in public policy and speaking truth to power. We’re not naïve enough to think we have a monopoly on the answers… but we’re absolutely certain of one thing; Australia’s long-term policy decisions (or lack thereof) most impact on young Australians.

At Left Right, we believe that by engaging young people in discussions about public policy, and by allowing them to develop it for themselves and lobby for the best outcome, we can create lasting change. We’ve just launched our bi-annual Policy Fellowship and here’s why we do it:

1. To provide young Australians an opportunity to learn about the development of public policy and to better appreciate its importance, and impact on their own lives and their communities
2. To develop substantial and valuable policy recommendations that demonstrate the capacity of young people to meaningfully participate in Australia’s public policy debates.

We’re seeking the involvement of hundreds of young Australians from every corner of the country and from all backgrounds to help draft a blueprint for our nation’s future.

 

Reece Harley

National Policy Director

Left Right Think-Tank