YAG Camp 2026: “Lead for those who can’t.”
On Friday 7 February, CMY’s Youth Participation team spent three days at YMCA Camp Manyung in Mount Eliza, for some fun, reflection and planning. Over 30 young people from our programs came together to cook food, climb a high ropes course, hit the beach, play group games, and prepare for the year ahead.
The group included young people aged between 14 and 25 from many different regions around Victoria, who represented our Youth Advisory Groups (YAG) in Metro Melbourne, Gippsland and Ballarat, the South Sudanese Community Support Group (CSG), the Western Young People’s Independent Network (WYPIN), and Le Mana Pasifika Project.
This year’s camp focused on strengthening existing bonds between our leadership groups while also taking the time for leaders to reflect on why they are leaders in the first place.
“The type of leader I want to be is a proactive, productive one who is trusted by others.”
Zane, Metro YAG
“The type of leader I want to be is a haven, a safe space and someone who creates positivity for everyone.”
Aaliyah, Le Mana Pasifika
“The kind of leader I want to be is the one that shows up for others.”
Ajak, Jamma
“The leader that I want to be is to encourage and inspire others to be themselves but also be able to communicate with the young people and understand what they are going through.”
Bond, WYPIN
This reflection brought us to an activity led by Le Mana where all of our young leaders brainstormed a new proverb for 2026. This phrase will lead all of our young leaders in their work throughout the year. After voting for their favourite phrase, everyone decided on: “Lead for those who can’t.”
This year’s YAG Camp brought our young leaders closer to each other while starting the year off with an exciting weekend. Here’s what some of the young people themselves learnt on camp:
“The thing I gained was more communication and stepping out of my comfort zone. I think I needed to learn to get open more around other YAG members.”
“I learned that not everyone is comfortable speaking up and sometimes even the smallest amount of support can make the biggest difference to them.”
