Learning how to prevent youth suicide

The suicide of a young person is heartbreaking for a community and especially for their family and friends.

To help in the prevention of this ongoing tragedy, the MacDonnell Regional Council Youth Services (MacYouth) sent 9 youth board representatives to Melbourne for a 3-day Indigenous Suicide Prevention Forum late last year.

Aged between 16 and 27, the representatives from Hermannsburg, Santa Teresa and Kintore in Central Australia were accompanied by 3 MacYouth staff members.

The forum consisted of two workshops presented by Thirrili, a provider of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-specific postvention support and assistance.

Major themes addressed were the importance of connection to culture and land in ensuring social and emotional wellbeing of Indigenous people, community led solutions and more funding for Aboriginal/community-controlled organisations.

The young reps were nervous, shy and excited at first, not really knowing what to expect but grew in confidence throughout the forum.

Francis, 27, represents the youth of Kintore, 530 km west of Alice Springs.

‘It felt really good to talk story about Kintore, Francis said.

‘What makes us strong is going out bush with elders and learning about country. We have strong elders who show us how to hunt, dance and sing’.

Cheryl, 20, represents the youth of Kintore.

‘[I] liked the part in the workshop where everyone stood up and shouted, “we are young, black and deadly!” This makes me feel confident to stand up and talk at youth board meetings’.

An important aspect of the forum was the opportunity for 1 on 1 conversations during the breaks between speakers. Many of the adult attendees were interested in hearing about the reps’ communities and experiences. 

This empowered the reps and they felt proud to be representing their communities. They knew they would return to their Youth Boards with knowledge and skills and the confidence to make a difference.

Nicholas from MacYouth accompanied the reps.

‘Our representatives were passionate, proud and willing to learn,’ Bianca, the Manager of Youth Services said.

‘They showed fortitude when facing new and daunting experiences. They didn’t complain about the length of each day’s schedules, or the high level of language, philosophies and strategies that were being discussed. They were gracious and accommodating and supportive of one another.’

‘We were successful in meeting our objectives, just from the personal growth of each individual. This is a great building block on the work that MacYouth has already been working on in terms of awareness and training on youth suicide prevention.’