Background: Professional development (PD) in a range of occupations has become increasingly digitised. Numerous digital courses are available, with evidence that social media, blogs and apps are increasingly being used for PD. Yet despite clear benefits, there is little robust evidence on the characteristics of digital PD that impact positively on…

There is a body of research that indicates the need for community-driven and culturally responsive pedagogies in sport-based interventions. There is much to learn from the pedagogical approaches and experiences of African Australian refugee-background coaches who work with refugee-background young people toward acceptance and affirmation of their…

This case study of a community youth theatre project interweaves reflective descriptions of practice, data excerpts and analysis to examine young people's exploration of cultural identity through theatre in a regional city in Australia. The process undertaken to create this work is theorised in relation to concepts of cultural difference and…

In remote and very remote Australia, young people engage youth workers in sexual health discussions, often out of necessity due to low access to health services. Youth workers' and youth service managers' perspectives on these interactions and the sexual health training they receive are poorly understood. In this study, youth workers and youth…

Australia entered the COVID-19 pandemic with a youth (15 to 24-year-old) unemployment rate of 11.6% in December 2019, three times higher than the 25 to 64-year-old unemployment rate of 3.6%. The strategies taken by governments to minimise the spread of COVID-19 have had widespread economic impacts. By July 2020, youth unemployment had risen to…

Despite growing scholarly interest in student voice and leadership over the past two decades, both terms continue to be used with little consensus about their meaning. They are also often evoked without much clarity or agreement as to how they should be enabled or enacted, for what purposes they should be fostered, or what conditions are necessary…

The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which participation in structured outdoor programs is associated with improvements in adolescent health and well-being. Students (n = 160) were recruited from three secondary schools in Victoria, Australia. Adolescents completed online surveys 3 weeks before camp (Time 1), 1 week before camp…

The provision of musical experiences for youth, especially in low socio-economic areas (SES), requires funded support and imaginative resourcing. This paper presents data from the Penrith (NSW Australia) Youth String Program offered in partnership by the Australian Chamber Orchestra (ACO), Penrith Symphony Orchestra (PSO) and The Joan Sutherland…

This paper uses transnational postcolonial feminist participatory action research (TPFPAR) to examine two sport for development and peace (SDP) initiatives that focus on Indigenous young women residing in urban areas, one in Vancouver, Canada, and one in Perth, Australia. We examine how SDP programs that target urban Indigenous young women and…

The social, emotional, psychological and mental health needs of young people are highlighted in the social agendas of many Western countries. While a range of youth programs have been developed, there are pervasive difficulties achieving young peoples' sustained attention and positive participation in these programs (Santisteban et al. 1996;…

In recent times the Australian Government has become increasingly concerned with the challenge to the dominant culture by humanitarian immigrants entering the country. As a part of a complex strategy, emerging from the events of 9/11 and the perceived changing face of multiculturalism in Australia, the Attorney-General Robert McClelland announced…

There is a strong body of literature on the types of youth mentoring programs and the dynamics of successful programs and mentoring relationships. This Resource Sheet draws on evidence from 45 studies. Over half were Australian studies, with additional evidence from research in other colonised nations such as New Zealand, Canada, and the United…

Australia's Northern Territory is twice the size of Texas, with only 230,000 people living in its enormous space. About half reside in the capital Darwin in the tropical far north; the next biggest town with a population of 25,000 people is Alice Springs, 1600 kilometers south in the central desert. Some 70,000 Indigenous people form 30% of the…

A strong feature of the widening participation agenda is improving the aspirations of groups that are underrepresented in higher education. This paper seeks to reposition the utility of this as a focal point of educational interventions by showcasing the success of a mentoring program that takes a different approach. The Australian Indigenous…

Many studies have highlighted the capacity of community arts programs to re-engage those young people considered at-risk of disconnection from future education and/or employment. "Evolution" is an artist-guided visual arts program established for young people challenged by mental health and social issues that aims to foster re-engagement…