SA students want right to vote, free public transport, fitness, sustainability and diversity
South Australian students are calling for a shift on matters close to their hearts – from voting laws to free public transport.
SA News
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Lowering the voting age, free public transport and fitness for students, greening our canteens and supporting diversity are among the issues that matter most to South Australian teens.
Made up of 150 of the state’s brightest high school students, the South Australian Student Representative Council (SA SRC) are fighting to make it happen, running five campaigns to tackle these issues.
Year 10 St Mary’s College student Tareeka Wickramasiri is one of many calling on the state government to lower the local government voting age to 16.
“If you can drive, you can work, you can fly a plane, you can pay taxes, you should be able to vote,” she said.
“Everyone wants the best for their generation and we want to express that in our voting and hopefully make a difference.”
A poll of 769 high school students conducted by her team found that over half believed the age should be lowered, with two thirds likely to vote if there was change.
Those unsure of how to vote were less likely to, which Ms Wickramasiri said showed the importance of civics education in schools.
“We need to teach kids early on this is how parliament works, this is how voting works so they get that in their minds that it’s not a scary thing,” she said.
The SA SRC also wants the state government to provide free public transport and access to fitness and leisure centres for high school students, with their petitions collecting more than 2000 signatures combined.
Year 12 Avenues College student and 2024 Teen Parliament winner Denzel James said the cost of transport was a barrier to education.
“I’ve seen the impacts with young people who cannot afford to pay for public transport,” he said.
“As a student, this issue is really important since other states have a system where they provide free public transport for children and young people who live a certain distance away from schools.
“We’re wanting to advocate on this as children and young people deserve a fair right share of education with free public transport.”
For Maddison Polomka, 15, who has two heart conditions, keeping fit has been vital for her physical and mental health but the cost has been a huge barrier.
“A lot of gyms around offer a 12-month membership that is around $75-100 and people struggling financially can’t afford that,” the Birdwood student said.
“For the last four years my dad didn’t have a job, so having to figure out what to do with stuff around me, trying to help myself while not being able to get to a gym was hard.”
With more than 200,000 tonnes of food waste sent to landfill in SA each year, Elena Wabnitz, 15, is fighting to green our canteens by ensuring all high schools have access to and use organic waste bins.
“In a growing world where temperatures, pollution and quality of life are on the decline, we should all be prepared to take action to care for this country,” she said.
“To care for the generations now and the generations to come means to take action against the little things; food wastage, food nutrition and food packaging.”
So far their petition has received more than 450 signatures, with the Temple College student also co-creating an Eco-Club to foster passion in junior students and equip them with “the knowledge to make sustainable choices and avocation”.
Lastly, the SA SRC is also campaigning for the widespread use of a diversity audit tool to be embedded in schools.
This would be used to audit their policies, curriculum, co-curricular groups and staff to promote inclusivity and celebrate diversity.
With the community being made up of so many different nationalities, disabilities, gender identities, sexualities, and religions, Year 11 student Nysa Khanna from The Heights said celebrating diversity would only “make us stronger”.
“By promoting an inclusive environment, which is a right for every child, it makes us have better educational outcomes and it also promotes better social and mental development,” she said.
Jiya Iyer, 16, was born in Australia after her parents migrated from Mumbai and wants to see diversity not only recognised but celebrated wholeheartedly.
“Schools have gotten better but there’s still a long way to go definitely,” the Year 11 Mount Carmel Student said.
“High school students already have a lot on their plates at school and out of school pressures, so making school a more positive environment in terms of diversity and acceptance is very important to me.”
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