Tell us about your work with the Accountable Futures Collective?
Most recently, I worked on the Accountable Futures Report, helping define accountability and workshop the themes.
It was a really collaborative process. Young people worked together to decide the themes, the language, the recommendations, and who those recommendations should be directed to.
How do you explain accountability to other young people?
I always start with something simple.
If someone has done something wrong, what would you expect them to do?
You’d expect them to apologise, make up for their actions, ask how you’re feeling and try to make things right.
If we understand accountability between people, the same idea applies to services and systems.
If a service discriminates against you or causes harm, we’d expect it to acknowledge that, do better and work with young people to stop it happening again.
Accountability isn’t just person to person. Entire organisations and systems have to be accountable.
Otherwise, we’re putting all the responsibility onto one person, and that’s not accountability.
What drew you to the Accountable Futures Collective?
As young people, we don’t often get the chance to think about who should be responsible. We often just face the consequences, and that’s how we find out the system hasn’t been accountable.
That’s why the idea of holding systems accountable really stood out to me.
You hear the word “accountability” all the time. A research project might ask a young person to contribute because their experiences will inform a policy paper that’s supposed to lead to change. But often you never hear what happened. You don’t know whether your recommendations were implemented. It might take 20 years before something changes, and you’re never kept in the loop.
For young people navigating systems like youth justice or mental health, and experiencing harm firsthand, we don’t talk about accountability enough. We don’t talk enough about who is responsible. Young people are left facing the consequences of the system.
That’s one of the reasons I joined the Accountable Futures Collective. I want systems that prevent harm instead of causing it, with a long-term focus instead of putting a band-aid solution in place and hoping for the best.
What I really love doing is working with researchers, policymakers and grassroots organisations to support how organisations work with young people. I also want to build young people’s capacity to be involved.
Can you share an example where you’ve seen systems fall short?
One example that comes to mind is the social media age restrictions.
It’s been frustrating watching the conversation move from consultation to summits, to legislation, and then to implementation where nothing really seems to have happened. As a young person, it feels very disjointed.
When I talk to friends who are still at school, they speak about how important social media is for connection and finding information. Young people have shared both the positives and the harms of social media, but the actions taken aren’t what young people were hoping for.
Why aren’t we putting responsibility on the big technology companies, or on government itself, instead of placing it on young people, their families and schools? The people with the least power are often carrying the responsibility.
What does good accountability look like?
I’ve worked with amazing people who are genuinely willing to learn, unlearn and be open-minded about how they work with young people.
The challenge is that the rest of the organisation also needs to support that work.
Leadership matters, but organisations also need to give staff the time, resources and support to collaborate meaningfully with young people. It’s easy to say, “Go and consult a young person,” and tick a box, but when staff are overworked and under-resourced, accountability falls short.
What is said doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to be done properly or in a meaningful way.
Which of the seven principles of accountability resonates most with you?
They’re all important, but right now I’d say enabling all young people to get involved.
It’s about making a conscious effort to involve young people from communities who don’t usually get these opportunities. It might be the first time they’ve spoken publicly about an issue in their community or about a harm they’ve experienced.
Accessibility is so important. If it’s not done with enough support, participation can become tokenistic or even harmful.
It’s not just about creating a youth committee. It’s about asking which young people you’re speaking to, who you’re not speaking to, and why.
A lot of organisations see young people as people who need protecting. Of course that’s important, but young people are also just as capable of informing decisions as any adult. That often gets overlooked.
Reflective practice is essential. If organisations aren’t reflecting on who they’re including and how they’re working, they’re not setting a standard or holding themselves accountable.
What made the Accountable Futures process different?
There was a lot of back and forth, and there were many different ways to contribute.
The events were really accessible. There was support with transport, accessibility accommodations and flexibility in how people could be involved.
You didn’t have to work on the report itself. You could join a panel, facilitate a session or simply come along and observe.
There’s always an understanding that people have things happening in their lives, and that’s okay.
I’ve been involved in similar work before, but Accountable Futures has been a highlight, from the way events are run through to writing the strategy and finding new ways to involve young people.
Why is paying young people for their contributions important?
Paying young people is another part of accessibility.
Some young people simply can’t afford to take time away from work to attend a meeting or workshop, even if they really want to.
You wouldn’t expect anyone else to contribute their expertise without being paid, so why do we apply a different standard to young people?
What advice would you give organisations wanting to work alongside young people?
Don’t underestimate young people, and don’t underestimate grassroots initiatives.
Some of the best solutions come from community and from people on the ground.
A young person might have an idea, but they don’t have the support to make it happen. That’s where philanthropy can play an important role by helping make those ideas possible and showing that accountability is possible too.
What gives you hope?
The fact that Accountable Futures exists gives me hope.
When I first joined, I was feeling really dissatisfied and wasn’t very hopeful about what else could be done.
Now I’m hopeful that these seven principles can be put into practice, and that more young people will learn about Accountable Futures, understand what accountability means, and feel confident standing up for themselves.
It reminds me of all the times I wish something like Accountable Futures had existed when I was experiencing harm from the system.
There’s never a better time to start than now.
