A local high school student has been selected as one of the ten Queensland youth representatives at the 2023 UN National Youth Conference.
Emmaus College student Natalie Burns has been involved with UN Youth for more than a year, and is now taking her involvement to the next level.
She said the leadership connections and youth-advocacy opportunities were what initially attracted her to UN Youth.
“I have always had an interest in public speaking so that appealed to me,” Ms Burns said.
“Being able to get the voice of young people heard and to a have a say about what needs to be changed was also enticing; however, making a positive impact for people from all walks of life was the biggest appeal.
“At last year’s state conference, I made connections and spoke with Imogen Kane, the 2023 UN Youth Representative, and listened and learnt about and from her story -that was a great and inspiring experience.”
This year, Ms Burns was fortunate enough to be selected for the upcoming national conference.
At the conference, Ms Burns will compete in a model UN contest, undertake public speaking and data collection, which, along with data from other countries, will ultimately be presented to the United Nations.
To be selected for the conference, she was required to write about an issue she found most important in her life
She chose her school’s Orion Club.
“In this club we undertake situational problem solving which really gets you thinking about issues of importance to Australia and the wider world,” she said.
“I believe the National Conference selectors were looking for people who want to make a change in the world, which I was able to show thanks to the skills I developed as part of my participation in Orion Club.”
Ms Burns said she was hoping to make a positive impact on the world.
“It is important to always be involved in the community and think about people other than yourself,” she said.
“I encourage everyone to consider problems facing our world and to identify what they can do as an individual or as part of a group to be a ‘change maker.’
