Young Champions Program

First Languages Australia is working in a number of ways to support and mentor Australia’s bright young language ‘champions’.

The Young Champions program was established to encourage, promote and mentor our next generation of language workers. Through this program, First Languages Australia invites young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders to participate in language mentoring activities.

The program began in 2013 when First Languages Australia and the Ministry for the Arts invited a group of ten young language champions, nominated from around Australia, to meet and work with experienced language advocates. This meeting established the foundations for a network of young language workers around the country supporting each other to achieve their community language goals.

Since then, First Languages Australia has called for nominations from young ‘champions’ to attend and participate in facilitated mentoring at regional meetings, as opportunities arise. Such events have included the Puliima Languages and Technology Forums, Queensland’s State Languages Meetings, WANALA conferences and events, and the inaugural Indigenous Languages Conference held in collaboration with the 12th Pacific Arts Festival.

Internships have also been available, with languages centres offering a one-week placement so a young champion can get hands-on experience and mentoring in different aspects of the language centre’s work. Read the story of an internship here.

During Covid, attention turned to online networking and training, with the facilitation of small group professional development activities together with Living Languages, and linking with young language activists from around the world with Rising Voices.

First Languages Australia has a strong commitment to fostering the engagement and enthusiasm of our next generation of language leaders.

Photograph in header: Young Champions at Puliima 2019, captured by Katherine Soutar courtesy of Puliima Language and Technology Forum.