Youth Media

Since the mid 1990s, Plan's global youth media program Hear My Voice has provided children in Africa, Asia and South & Central America with a platform to express themselves.

The result has been award-winning youth media projects that have helped children speak out through video, radio, print and new technology on issues such as child labour, early marriage, education and HIV/AIDS.

Having a voice allows young people to take action to improve their lives and the lives of other children in their country.

They develop communication skills, team work, creativity and powers of self-expression. Through youth media projects, children are no longer just recipients of development programs but active participants.

Hard issues made easy with children

Addicted Innocence, a film produced by children from the 'Children Have Something to Say' youth media program in India, looks at the effects of alcohol and other substance abuse on children in the heart of Delhi.

The biggest challenge for this film was finding talent — a job made much easier with children at the helm for two reasons: they know their surroundings best, and have better access to places and people. They found three colourful characters involved in drug addiction who felt easy appearing on camera because they were asked by their friends.

At one location they were told they needed special permission to shoot. They were working to a tight schedule and had no time to get permissions. But the child factor saw them through. The management could not believe that the children would be handling the entire production, and allowed them to shoot only out of curiosity.

Plan in Australia has packaged films made by various Plan-supported youth media clubs around the world into a weekly television series called Hear My Voice which was screened on Foxtel’s Aurora Community Television channel in 2005/06.

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