On 14&15 May, Skyler Anderson, Chelsea Brown and Gabbie Warner (pictured from left) attended UN Youth’s annual Raise Your Voice event. This fantastic opportunity was offered to us through the Passionate Enhanced Learning Program (PEL) at Carmel and it enabled us to learn new skills and utilise them in a real-life scenario. Over the course of the weekend, we partook in workshops that specialised in pitching an idea, social media marketing, and mental health/wellbeing. It was such a pleasure to listen to speakers such as Madi Randall, a social media influencer, who taught us how to market through social media and grow our personal brand.

On the second day of this event, we were split into groups based on the sector of our schools. We were all put in the North group where we agreed there is a lack of mental wellbeing resources available for young people on the North Shore. The skills we had learnt from the weekend inspired and empowered us to make a change which led us to create our project.

Our project includes a social media-based organisation that allows the youth of today to connect and relate with other young people. On social media platforms such as Instagram and Tiktok, we will use two resources. The first is called ‘Our Stories’ where young New Zealanders can share their stories and experiences about mental health. This would follow the four dimensions of Hauora, mental and emotional, physical, spiritual, and social wellbeing. The second would be professional opinions and tips from counsellors, psychologists and statistics to give a clinical view of mental health in New Zealand.

Overall, this weekend allowed us to take skills we learned from workshops and apply them to a project we believe is much needed in our community. We hope to achieve success through our project and see a change in the North Shore.

Skyler Anderson (Year 12), Chelsea Brown (Year 10) and Gabbie Warner (Year 10)