Helping us to steer U-Report into a new direction reflecting youth demand, from polling to providing direct assistance, meet the new U-Report Youth Council! Serving from 2020 until the end of 2020 they function as a steering group to help launch several new services including a mental health chatline with the Ministry of Health & Wellness; and assisting UNICEF in launching a separate messaging service for parents.
Africka (top left) started her own charity Fi We Children Foundation which now has 100 volunteers islandwide.
“What I aspire to achieve with U-Report would be representative of persons all over Jamaica including rural areas. I’m really excited for my role in terms of getting more people to access the services U-Report develops, like with the mental health chatline we are working on. To help people who are afraid of speaking face-to-face, to make them aware when the support becomes available, to get counselling because its private and right at your fingertips. I'm so excited to be a part of this overall."
– Africka Stephens, U-Report Youth Council member with responsibility for mobilisation
Fresh from hosting the #UNFILTERED2020 Summit, new Youth Council member Antonette will be taking charge of our marketing.
"As Co-Director of Girls Who Know JA, I firmly believe in the youth voice and advocating for such. U-Report does an excellent job at doing same and being an outlet for the youth to be educated and heard. I am super excited to merge my two passions, marketing & advocacy in helping to shape a better Jamaica for our youth. I will bring fresh, dynamic and inclusive ideas for U-Report to continue to thrive and for our impact to be broadened."
– Antonette Hines, U-Report Youth Council member with responsibility for parenting messaging service
U-Report is for youth, but with Jerome (top right) from our Youth Council we’ll be using the same messaging tech to reach parents. With a background mentoring youth in correctional facilities, Jerome wants to help ensure the home is a safer place.
“It feels great to be a part of the new U-Report Youth Council and growing to understand the needs of Jamaican parents so that we can develop a new platform to engage some of the most vulnerable families.”
– Jerome Palmer U-Report Youth Council member with responsibility for parenting messaging service
Currently creating an artificial intelligence powered chatbot to help Jamaicans with their legal rights, Nicholas Kee’s (top centre) bringing his tech skills to our new Youth Council.
“U-Report highlights the importance of youth voices and I am grateful to be a part of the team; I get to forge my love of technology and human rights. I am excited to help bring some of the most impactful projects to the forefront and give youth more of an active voice in society.”
– Nicholas Kee, U-Report Youth Council member with responsibility for technology.
At our new Youth Council’s first meeting, we were snapping pics when a member broke his face mask. So Raihn (foreground in photo) reached for her bag and offered a fresh replacement, because she’s the kind of person who wants nobody to be left without.
“I think what I am really excited about is reaching as many young people as possible, and ensuring we’re reaching diverse groups of youth – it is important that young people feel that their voices are being heard and having impact, no matter where in society they are coming from.”
– Raihn McNish, U-Report Youth Council member with responsibility for accessibility.
We met high school student Ree-Anna (right in photo) during on a Zoom call impressing professionals three times older with her passion and knowledge. Now serving on our Youth Council, she’s helping to develop our adolescent mental health chatline.
“To be moving U-Report from hearing what youth have to say to actually helping those of us who are struggling, I am really excited to be part of something so uplifting as the development of the new chatline.”
– Ree-Anna Robinson, U-Report Youth Council member with responsibility for our mental health chatline project
