Tell it like it is and make a difference with HEYWIRE 2010!

Heywire – a competition and a space for young people to share their ideas and be heard in the corridors of power.

Enter by 8 October 2010 for a chance to have your voice on the ABC, and win a trip to the prestigious Heywire Youth Issues Forum at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra.

What is Heywire?

Heywire is an ABC Radio initiative, providing a space for the conversation, stories, debate and ideas of young people from rural and regional Australia.

It’s a COMPETITION…open to people aged 16 – 22 and seeking stories in all forms of media – text, photos, video and audio – about life and issues in Australia outside the major cities. A winner is chosen by each of the 40+ ABC Radio regional broadcast locations across the country.  Winning pieces are presented on the ABC through ABC Local Radio, ABC Radio National, triple j and abc.net.au.

It’s a CHANCE TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE…winners also receive an all-expenses-paid trip to the Heywire Youth Issues Forum in Canberra in February 2011, where they gain leadership skills and have a chance to pitch their ideas to politicians, funding bodies and policy makers.

It’s a TOOL…a resource for parents, teachers, politicians and the wider community to engage young people with the concepts of digital literacy and social media. There are resource guides available for high-school teachers to tie Heywire into their teaching curriculum.

Entries close 8 October 2010. Enter your story now at: abc.net.au/heywire

“Heywire is just amazing, not like anything I’ve ever done before,” says 2009 Heywire winner Amy Rhodes from Concongella in Victoria. “Attending the Heywire Forum I got to meet the most incredible Heywire winners from all over the country and we worked together on solutions to problems in our communities.  We met politicians and decision makers and felt that we could really make a difference.”

“Heywire is a chance for young Australians to be heard. Since it began in 1998, over 400 Heywire stories have been broadcast on ABC networks and thousands more have appeared on the Heywire website.  Whether they are passionate about mental health care in regional areas, or the thrill of bull riding, young people come to Heywire to debate, exchange ideas and tell the rest of Australia how they see it,” says Leigh Radford, National Editor ABC Rural.

Heywire acknowledges the support of the Australian Government through the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government and the Department of Health and Ageing.