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13 <br />school’s student council as well, creating a <br />com munication link between leadership <br />within the MYAC and the school community. <br />By choosing youth from a diversity of schools <br />and ensuring that at least some are from <br />leadership roles, the concerns, ideas, and <br />initiatives brought forward by the MYAC is <br />disseminated to the larger youth population <br />of Pelham. The MYAC also organizes a youth <br />forum that gives all youth in the community <br />the opportunity to have their voices heard. <br />Successes of a Council in Action <br />A major role of the MYAC is to provide a <br />communication link between the youth <br />of Pelham and the town council. MYAC <br />members have the opportunity to join town <br />committees and participate as active voting <br />members. The youth of the MYAC have <br />participated in a variety of committees and <br />brought forward a diversity of ideas and <br />initiatives. For example, the MYAC advised <br />the city on how to design a new community <br />centre that is youth friendly. <br />In an interview with the Jack Layton Fellows, <br />Mayor Dave Augustyn of Pelham stressed <br />that the MYAC has given the youth of Pelham <br />the chance to speak on issues that matter the <br />most to them, such as a lack of public spaces <br />for youth and bullying within the community <br />and schools. More importantly, these concerns <br />are then addressed by the MYAC through <br />initiatives such as the development of a <br />skateboard park and the anti-bullying aware- <br />ness campaign, Pink Shirt Day. These projects <br />and ideas were drafted and presented by the <br />MYAC as recommendations to town council, <br />giving the MYAC a strong leadership role <br />within the local government structure. <br />Empowerment of Young Leaders <br />The MYAC makes significant contributions <br />to town council and the overall community. <br />The members of the MYAC also benefit from <br />participation; they hone leadership skills, <br />access networking opportunities, and develop <br />an increased knowledge of municipal govern- <br />ment structure, politics, and issues. Finally, <br />throughout their tenure, MYAC members are <br />also exposed to a wide variety of careers <br />within municipal government. <br />2 When using <br /> Twitter to <br /> engage local <br />residents, mention the <br />youth representatives <br />if you are tweeting <br />about issues that are <br />of interest to them and <br />their peers. This will <br />extend the dialogue <br />beyond your own <br />network and reach the <br />youth representatives’ <br />networks as well. Also <br />encourage your youth <br />representatives to <br />tweet regularly about <br />their activities related <br />to your municipality to <br />broaden your reach. <br />3 Have your <br /> community’s <br /> youth repre- <br />sentatives create a <br />Facebook page where <br />they regularly post <br />updates about their <br />work and ongoing <br />issues affecting the <br />community, providing <br />that their peers with <br />a regular source of <br />current information. <br />4 Encourage <br /> youth repre- <br /> sentatives to <br />hold youth town halls <br />at their high school <br />as a way to promote <br />engagement in <br />muni cipal affairs <br />and gain diverse <br />youth perspectives <br />on local issues. <br />5 Be creative! <br /> Encourage <br /> your youth <br />represen tatives to <br />write a monthly <br />article in the local or <br />regional newspaper <br />or to inquire about <br />having a radio show <br />timeslot to discuss <br />issues that matter to <br />them and to engage <br />the wider population <br />in their work.