2017 New Zealand Youth Awards

Minister for Youth Nikki Kaye has announced the recipients of the 2017 New Zealand Youth Awards. The winners were recognised and celebrated at a ceremony which took place on 11 April at Parliament. Trophies and certificates were presented by the Minister to 50 young people and groups in recognition of their commitment to young New Zealanders in their communities. She also acknowledged the many nominees for their dedication to other young people.

Jaden Movold was one of the recipients of the Youth with Disability Award. Born with Spina Bifida, Jaden is an extraordinary role model with an unparalleled drive to change attitudes towards disability. He holds the title of Youth Ambassador for three organisations (Disability Resource Centre, Achilles International NZ, and Jonesy’s Youth Foundation), actively representing them through public speaking, fundraising, and community events.

Minister for Youth Nikki Kaye and Jaden Movold

“It was a huge honour winning a New Zealand Youth Award and being recognised for my contribution to my community and the disability sector. Winning this award encourages me to keep inspiring young New Zealanders, now and in the future, to believe in themselves and achieve their goals despite whatever challenges they face, as well as continue to change society’s attitudes towards disability,” said Jaden.

Eva McGauley, one of the recipients of the Giving Back Award, is passionate about making a difference in the world. She has been volunteering for Wellington Rape Crisis Centre since she was 14 and has raised over $50k for young sexual abuse survivors over the past nine months. Eva has helped to raise awareness about the need for 24/7 online counselling to be available for young people, and has been instrumental in getting young New Zealanders to come forward to share their stories in order to have their voices heard by people in power.

Eva McGauley speaks at the 2017 New Zealand Youth Awards

Eva had this to say about receiving her award:

"I am so honoured and proud to have won this award and am very grateful that getting this award has helped to shine a light on the work I do to help survivors of sexual violence. We have a toxic silence around sexual abuse that needs to be broken and having people recognised for their work in this area is a great way of doing that. It starts a conversation that our country really needs to have."

You can read more about the New Zealand Youth Awards, all of the recipients, and the amazing things they are doing to support other young people here.