A Message from the Youth Advisory Panel
We, the members of the Youth Advisory Panel, are excited to present this Youth Retention and Attraction Strategy to our fellow Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
We are a group of 19 youth who come from diverse backgrounds and have diverse points of view, but we all volunteered to provide advice and guidance to government on the development of the Youth Retention and Attraction Strategy. We are all excited about this strategy because we feel it signals the beginning of something special. The approach used to develop this initiative showed us that political, business, and community leaders in our province have recognized that if youth truly are the future, then youth deserve a place at the table when that future is being determined.
As this strategy was developed, we were consulted about the process, we gave input that led to action, and we used our experiences and opinions to shape the world around us. We played a key role in every step of this process, from the early stages of planning the dialogue sessions to presenting the findings. We took a leading role in one of the most important undertakings of the Provincial Government, and we are seeing real change resulting from our efforts.
In short, we believe this strategy has begun a bold new era of youth engagement, and we are honored to be at its forefront.
Working in partnership with the Provincial Government, community leaders and Canadian Policy and Research Networks, we helped create a living document that will help our province become more welcoming and adaptable amid rapid changes in values, technology, and the economy. This strategy will provide a foundation for the future, and with it we will build a province that we will always want to call "home."
We are certain our contribution to the development of this document is the beginning of what will be many contributions by our generation towards unprecedented prosperity in Newfoundland and Labrador. We thank Government, provincial stakeholders, and CPRN for giving us this opportunity. We watch eagerly as this strategy is implemented, and we look forward to seeing youth continue to guide provincial policy development for years to come.
Sincerely,
Nushka Blais Remzi Cej Amanda Cull Jonathon Earle Sabrina Fitzpatrick
Kent Foran Sarah Hann Jeremy Hoffe Thomas Howard John McLean
Pam Morrissey Lezlee Anne Pitcher Chris Sheppard Daniel Smith
Kara Snow Adam Vickers Jenelle Welshman Heidi Williams Chan Wiseman
Members of the Youth Advisory Panel