Year 12 student Alicia Cheung recently spoke to The Examiner about her experience representing the electorate of Burt at the National Youth Parliament held in Canberra.
Very interested in the fields of politics and law, Alicia describes the event as being a major milestone on her educational journey.
“The National Youth Parliament was advertised through our school portal, and after encouragement from my friends and teachers, I decided to apply. As part of the selection process, I responded to several questions about my leadership experiences, personal initiative, interest in civic engagement, and reasons for wanting to participate in the program,” she said.
“Although a letter of recommendation is not compulsory, applicants are strongly encouraged to provide one from a teacher, mentor, or another person who can speak to their character and abilities. I chose to ask my science teacher to write my recommendation, as she has been able to observe my work ethic, participation, and growth as a student throughout the year.”
Alicia has highlighted certain social issues as being of major concern to her.
“One major problem that has become particularly important to me is women’s safety, because it is something I have experienced personally. I have been followed on public transport by men and even chased in train stations, which has made me change my perception of the idea of safe travel. I started being aware of my surroundings and started wondering all the time if the man beside me is a threat.
“What bothers me the most is how normal this behaviour has become for a lot of girls and women. I am interested in how politics can go beyond reacting to threats and focus on preventive measures like creating a safer environment in public places, providing safe transport, and implementing policies. This has made me understand that politics is not some kind of debate that happens somewhere far away but affects the lives of people directly.”
She described her visit to Canberra as the highlight of the year and particularly enjoyed being able to share the Youth Parliament experience with 149 other like-minded young people.
“It broadened my perspectives and gave me new insights into life. Having studied politics, it was so amazing to see everyone that I had learnt about, from the teal independents to all the ministers, in person, and then being able to interact with them. I met some of my favourite people in Canberra.”
“As part of the event, we were given two bills to debate, those being intergenerational fairness and an AI transparency act. The intergenerational fairness act was to establish a commissioner to require an intergenerational impact assessment of major Commonwealth proposals, to establish a parliamentary joint committee on intergenerational fairness and for related purposes. In short, this bill aimed to include the younger generations in decision-making through a commissioner.
“The AI bill, on the other hand, concerned the setting of rules about how AI should be used when its application could potentially harm individuals. In short, it gave affected individuals the right to request a meaningful explanation of AI use and provided for human review of affected decisions. It required AI-generated or materially altered content to be clearly labelled when made available in regulated settings, unless an exception applied.”
Alicia believes she gained substantially from having partaken in the event, not just from witnessing firsthand the legislative process, but by learning to tolerate imperfection and setbacks.
“I think one of the most important lessons I learned from National Youth Parliament is that it’s okay to mess up. When I first applied for the program, I refused to join any speaking or leadership roles in fear of not being ‘smart enough.’ That is one thing I truly regret. Moreover, I learnt that there are so many pathways to get into politics and law and that the world will not end if you do not get your desired marks. If you truly work hard, there are always other ways.”
Once finishing school, Alicia wishes to study law interstate, though she is also considering pursuing commerce as an undergraduate before progressing to a postgraduate Juris Doctor. She is particularly interested in commercial law, as it combines her interests in law, business and the way major decisions affect individuals and communities.
“Although commercial law may not seem like the most obvious pathway for creating social change, I do not see the two as separate. I want to build a career that gives me the knowledge and influence to advocate for others, particularly those who may not have the same opportunities or confidence to advocate for themselves.”
