Teen Parliament 2025: Leaders of the future wanted for the opportunity to appear in parliament

Calling all senior high school students with big ideas. The Advertiser has opened nominations for this year’s Teen Parliament. Enter here.

The chance to win a $10,000 scholarship and the opportunity to be heard by South Australia’s decision-makers beckons for young leaders who submit their idea for a better future for the state.

Applications have opened for The Advertiser’s Teen Parliament 2025, where entrants will be in the running to become one of 30 students representing the youth of SA at Parliament House on February 14.

Students from years 10, 11 and 12 will have two weeks to submit their ideas relating to topics such as health, education, environment, transport and energy.

Applications close on February 6.

Up to 10 students will receive a $10,000 scholarship following the event.

Teen Parliament scholarship winners Denzel James and Chloe Wyatt-Jasper are helping to launch applications for the 2025 event. Picture: Dean Martin

Among the 10 scholarship winners from 2024, Chloe Wyatt-Jasper, Denzel James, Jordy Harvey and Rachel Files are continuing to make their mark following the event.

Chloe, 15, had a whirlwind 2024 in which she secured $5m for mental health in the state budget following an appeal to Premier Peter Malinauskas at Teen Parliament.

Chloe Wyatt-Jasper with Premier Peter Malinauskas on the steps of Parliament after the state government announced a range of youth mental health supports in the state budget. Picture: Kelly Barnes

“I’m finally glad there’s change,” said the Elizabeth Indie School student from Hillier.

Chloe was just two weeks old when her father, who had schizophrenia and a drug addiction, killed her brother Jakob, stabbed her mother, severed Chloe’s ear and took his own life in 2009. She used part of the Teen Parliament scholarship winnings to fund a new laptop, which would help her study an aged care course on her way to becoming a mental health nurse.

Denzel James at the Australian of the Year SA awards in Adelaide CBD. Picture: Ben Clark

Aspiring politician Denzel James, 19, was nominated for the 2025 SA Young Australian of the Year award after he worked with UNICEF Australia in Canberra to promote environmental issues.

“I want to be someone who creates change,” said the Avenues College graduate, from Para Hills.

Denzel used his scholarship to go to Queensland to capture videos while snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef for a school project.

Teen Parliament winner Jordy Harvey dreams of being a flight attendant. Picture: Tom Huntley

Rachel Files with Premier Peter Malinauskas after winning her scholarship. Picture: Supplied.

Warriappendi School year 12 student Jordy Harvey, 16, continued to pursue her dream of becoming a flight attendant and in May, she spent a day with Qantas at Adelaide Airport with Indigenous cabin crew members.

“I only have to be 18 to do it and I turn 17 this year so it’s pretty close now,” Jordy, from Croydon, said.

She used her scholarship prize to purchase a car.

In August, the state government announced that civics would be taught in all subjects across the curriculum for years 9 and 10 students after Rachel Files advocated for it in Teen Parliament.

“For my idea to become legislation, it was unreal,” said Rachel, 18, who has since graduated from Renmark High School.

The Renmark teen’s scholarship was put towards living costs at Lincoln College in North Adelaide as she will study politics at university to pursue her dreams of becoming a politician.

Originally published as Teen Parliament 2025: Leaders of the future wanted for the opportunity to appear in parliament