Youth Advisory Group

Expressions of Interest are now open for young Australians aged 16 – 29 who are passionate about contributing to important discussions about youth health and wellbeing. Our current Youth Advisory Group members deepen and broaden the Foundation’s understanding of current challenges for young Australians.

If you would like to know more about the Youth Advisory Group, please contact Marketing Communications Manager, Jennifer Ball at J.Ball@martinfoundation.org.au.

Connect with Lucy via LinkedIn

Lucy Stronach (she/her) is a consultant to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, a Youth Programs Officer at the Town of Victoria Park and teaches criminology at the University of Western Australia. She lives and works on Whadjuk Noongar land.

From 2020/21 Lucy was the Australian Youth Representative to the United Nations. Throughout 2021, she toured Australia to identify the concerns, needs and experiences of diverse and underrepresented young people before reporting to key stakeholders including the Australian Government and the United Nations.

A graduate of studies in Criminology, Law, and Security, Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism, Lucy is a passionate advocate of youth justice, indigenous justice, and gender-based crime prevention. Her work has taken her to the streets of Mumbai to fight for the empowerment of sex workers, to juvenile prisons in San Diego to aid young offenders, and to the UNDP in Bangkok to work with youth leaders in the promotion of human rights and justice.

Before assuming her role as the Youth Rep, Lucy worked across the Indo-Pacific as the Sri Lankan Fellow for DFAT’s New Colombo Plan Scholarship. Part of her program included working in Vietnam to combat the abuse of street children and rehabilitate victims of human trafficking, and after working at Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Defence, Lucy was named a contributing International Research Fellow where she helped formulate the nation’s first public defence strategy.

In 2021, Lucy was named one of YAIA’s ‘Young Women to Watch in International Affairs’, was a finalist for the 2022 Young Achiever of the Year Awards, sits on advisory boards for both the Sir David Martin Foundation and the United Nations Association of Australia (NSW), and is Vice President (Administration) of UN Youth Western Australia.

Corey is a proud Gamilaraay man and in 2022 was recognised with a Medal of the Order of Australia for service to Indigenous STEM.

He is the CEO and founder of DeadlyScience, which provides science resources, mentoring and training to over a hundred remote and regional schools across Australia with a particular focus on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. When Corey found out there was remote schools in Australia with hardly any STEM resources he set out to make change. To date, DeadlyScience has provided over 16,000 culturally appropriate books focused on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) as well as telescopes, microscopes and other equipment to spark student interest.

As a board member of Science Technology Australia, Corey is contributing to the development of their first ever Reconciliation Action Plan to further encourage participation and inclusion of First Nations peoples in STEM. Corey’s passion for Indigenous education has also been recognised through various awards including the CSIRO Indigenous STEM Champion 2019; AMP Tomorrow Maker 2019 and ABC Trailblazer 2019, 2020 Eureka prize finalist. In 2020 Corey was named a human rights hero by the Australian human rights commission. In his spare time Corey is a Research Assistant and has  co-authored an award winning children’s book, ‘The First Scientists”.

Connect with Maddy via LinkedIn

Maddy (she/her) resides in Wangal and Gadigal Country of Eora Nation studying a Masters of Social Work, whilst working with Australian Catholic University on Darug Country, and as a support worker alongside people living with disabilities.

Maddy has spent the past eight years working alongside young people for a variety of organisations and schools nationally, and internationally. She is the current Oceania Representative for the International Youth Advisory Body for the Dicastery of Laity, Family and Life in the Vatican. She sits on the board for the Marist Association which oversees Marist Schools, Marist 180, Marist Solidarity and Marist Youth Ministry.

Maddy is driven to redefine our perception of peripheries, and people on the margins, challenging the discourse to recognise everyone is at the centre of their own worlds, so we accept the invitation to take the time to sit with and amongst people – learning from them. By doing this providing a space in which everyone feels safe, heard and unconditionally loved.

She feels quite privileged to be journeying with young people, encountering them as whole people, allowing them a space where they do not have to justify who they are and why they are in this space.

Maddy’s hope for young people in the Sir David Martin Foundation and in society in general is recognition of the two-way learning and wisdom young people offer to the world, watching them grow to be the best version of themselves whilst being confident leaders for the betterment of our world.

Christopher-John is a youth advocate who is passionate about using his platform to champion the voice of young peoples who do not have the privilege to be able to speak for themselves. Christopher-John sits on the WA Ministerial Youth Advisory Council, advising the youth minister and advocating for young people.

Additionally Christopher-John believes in the potent power of sport to connect communities and is the inaugural Research and Policy Officer for the Football Futures Foundation, the charity arm of Football West which uses football as a tool to empower marginalised communities.

In his spare time Christopher-John runs the student radio station he co-founded at the University of Western Australia, UDUB RADIO, while also pursuing postgraduate studies.

Jess is a recent graduate who studied a Bachelor of Laws and a Bachelor of Social Science, majoring in Social Justice and minoring in Criminology. During university, Jess completed the Macquarie University Global Leadership Program with Merit. She was also the recipient of the 2020 MQ Outstanding Volunteer Award and the Dean’s Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Macquarie University Law School Community.

Jess is passionate about advocacy for, and by, young people. As Secretary of the Macquarie University Model United Nations Society, Jess helped university and high school students develop confidence and leadership skills through ‘munning’ – a simulation where students can learn about diplomacy, international relations, and the United Nations. This gave students the opportunity to research, collaborate, learn, and debate global issues in a safe and respectful forum. Jess also demonstrated her advocacy skills in the National Justice Project Disability Hackathon, where together with her team, she won the 2021 competition. Jess hopes to use her legal skillset to address the injustices faced by marginalised communities, and has previously worked in this space as an Assistant Supervisor at the Redfern Legal Centre and as a Paralegal at Settlement Services International.

Jess is particularly passionate about Indigenous rights, reflected in her volunteer work at the Aboriginal Land Council where she assisted in reviewing and appealing ministerial rejections of land rights claims. Jess has also volunteered at Speaking in Colour, an Aboriginal owned and operated small business which provides Aboriginal consulting services and cultural capacity training to corporates, schools and other organisations.

Given her background in law, social science, and criminology; Jess is a strong believer in supporting models that treat addiction as a public health issue, instead of a criminal one. She hopes that as a member of the YAG, she is able to help and advocate for the young people of Triple Care Farm who want to make a long-term change in their lives.

Lincoln is a passionate young member of the LGBTQIA+ community with a passion for providing support and implementing change, particularly for those less fortunate than himself. Growing up with several mental health conditions and in a heavily drug-affected area, Lincoln has witnessed first-hand the brutality substance abuse can have on the life of a young person and the impact poor mental health can have on perpetuating this cycle. Using this experience, Lincoln hopes to be a driving force in providing support for young people nationally.

Although young, Lincoln has many notable accomplishments under his belt. Lincoln was a member of the inaugural United Nations Youth Australia Emerging Leaders Program, a three week tour that saw Australia’s brightest and most ambitious young people travel Japan, China and South Korea discussing prevalent political issues. As well as this, Lincoln is remembered at his small rural high school for leading the way for LGBTQIA+ students in Catholic Education and campaigning for just and fair treatment for all in the face of adversity.

Lincoln is currently studying a Bachelor of Arts at Monash University, majoring in Human Rights, and is involved in many extra-curricular activities including Monash Dance Society, Amnesty International Monash, and the Monash Student Association.

Sarah is a Research and Evaluation Coordinator at Youth Off The Streets, a NSW based not-for-profit youth organisation.

Her main research interest lies in improving the understanding of risk and protective factors that are common to substance use and experiences of homelessness, particularly within youth cohorts.

Sarah has a keen interest in the extramedical use of pharmaceutical stimulants and ketamine.

She is passionate about turning large and complex data into approachable and meaningful research and contributing to the creation of impactful, sustainable, and inclusive policies.

Harry has recently finished a degree in Psychological Science at Deakin University, and particularly enjoyed learning about addiction, and coaching and counselling for behaviour change.

He joined Lifeline as a telephone crisis supporter during 2020 in Melbourne, and recently transferred to Lifeline’s Sydney phone room after moving between the two cities.

Harry is a passionate advocate for destigmatising individuals, families, and communities affected by problem drug and alcohol use.

Sarah is the Co-Chair of the Australian Youth Affairs Coalition and the Founder of KOS Magazine, a platform that aims to capture the stories of how everyday people positively impact their local and wider communities to create change. She has recently become the Marketing and Communications Manager at the General Sir John Monash Foundation.

In her spare time, she is also involved with, NEXUS Australia, Kids in Philanthropy, UNICEF and The Centre of Youth Policy and Education Practice at Monash University. Sarah holds a Master of Marketing from Monash University and has completed the governance for NFP’s course with the Australian Institute of Company Directors. With a passion for empowering the next generation of leaders, Sarah’s goal is to become a global leader and enact sustainable change for youth around the world.