ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY

The Australian Government acknowledges the Traditional Owners of Country throughout Australia and acknowledges their continuing connection to land, waters and community. We pay our respects to the people, the cultures and the Elders past and present.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware that this website may contain images, voices and names of deceased persons.

Indigenous.gov.au Connecting With First Nations Australians
Back to Stories

Jye Walker: Trailblazer and change enabler

19 March 2018
Safety and Wellbeing
Aboriginal young man dressed in blue shirt. In the background is a light and doorway and some blue colours.

Jye Walker is an ABC Heywire Trailblazer enabling change in the lives of youth in the Great Southern region of Western Australia through ‘Rock and Water’, a self-awareness, self-confidence and social skills building program.

Jye Walker from Albany in Western Australia is a Trailblazer. Originally from Bundaberg in Queensland, this Goreng Goreng young man is enabling change in the lives of youth in the Great Southern region of Western Australia.

Jye, who is studying Enrolled Nursing, is a previous winner of the ABC Heywire competition that seeks out regional youth ‘at the centre of the conversations that shape their communities’. The competition brings them to Canberra for the ABC Heywire Youth Summit.

This year, Jye came back to the summit as a Trailblazer. Director of ABC Regional, Fiona Reynolds, explains the difference between the two programs.

‘Trailblazers builds on the success of the ABC’s Heywire regional youth program, and doubles down on our commitment to champion young people who are building a bright future for regional Australia,’ Fiona said.

Working for the Great Southern Aboriginal Health Service, Jye is doing exactly that.

He delivers ‘Rock and Water’ a self-awareness, self-confidence and social skills building program designed to help youth deal with their problems. It involves different physical activities including role playing.

Presented at schools, the 10-week program includes workshops featuring role-plays and other physical activities. They examine and discuss issues related to physical, mental and social emotional wellbeing, including bullying.

Also offered to outside organisations, the program has achieved great success, receiving positive feedback from the students.

Find out more

The Australian Government collaborates with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation to make Heywire possible.

Held for the last 20 years, the 5-day Heywire Youth Summit enables winners to refine their community based ideas and projects with the help of industry mentors and then present them to those who are in a position to help them.

For more information, go to Heywire.