Vibewire Youth Services is a  non-profit, volunteer-based youth organisation, dedicated to providing increased opportunities for Australia's youth to express themselves, communicate and create relationships with one-another, access relevant information and services and play a more visible role in presenting and defining their (sub)culture. Across the media spectrum, Vibewire creates platforms for young people to address issues they are passionate about, while at the same time assists them to build their skills and talents in a supportive and creative environment.

Vibewire has been working to these ends since 2001 and along the way has been named NSW Community and Non- Profit Microbusiness of the Year, has been awarded the World Summit Youth Award for Community Engagement by the United Nations and had two staff awarded as the youngest ever recipients of the Future Summit Leadership Award’s in 2007. Founder and CEO Tom Dawkins is currently a  YouthActionNet Fellow of the International Youth Foundation.

The vision of Vibewire is to be a dynamic, innovative youth run organisation providing expression opportunities for younger Australians through media and the arts.

Our Projects And Commitment to Innovation

Our initiatives are not only innovative and community inclusive, they bring out distinct and meaningful social change in the young people involved and eventually in the shape and character of Australia’s democracy, making it more accessible to young people’s voices. To these ends, out projects:

• Create platforms for young people to express themselves and share their stories through projects such as Vibewire.net, Reelife Short Film Festival, Interface Anthology, Election Tracker and the e-Festival of Ideas;
• Provide training and support for young artists, thinkers and social entrepreneurs through initiatives such as the sQuareOne Incubator, Interface mentorship program, media makers fund and our series of workshop programs; and
• Promote the voices of young people, young people’s leadership capacities and best-practice models of youth participation through projects that include our NewConnections Conference, Election Tracker, the Interface Anthology

Our Aims:

Vibewire aims to:

• create meaningful avenues for young people to express and empower themselves;
• foster the skills, competencies and relationship networks of our team and the youth community;
• foster a sense of ‘connectedness’ by creating significant, sustainable relationships for young people with their peers and with youth communities nationally and internationally;
• enhance young people’s self-esteem by giving them a sense of inclusion and respect;
• break entrenched cycles by creating new pathways and opportunities, including for at-risk and isolated young people;
• innovate in the provision of citizenship opportunities for young people, utilising media and arts-based expression to empower and engage young people; and
• provide a unique and inspirational environment for peer mentorship and youth leadership.

In working to these aims, Vibewire continually evolves to reach greater and more diverse audiences, expanding the impact of the organisation along the way.

History

Goals

Recognition