Geelong’s First Junior Mayor

By Jennifer Chiu, Publications Coordinator

Year 10 Geelong College student Josie Horne has made history by becoming the City of Greater Geelong’s first Junior Mayor. Josie was voted in by her peers on the Youth Council during the group’s induction at City Hall on Monday 18 February. Mayor Bruce Harwood (OGC 1978) then visited the College the following day to congratulate Josie and give her the chance to wear the City’s historic mayoral robes and chain. “I’m going to be working alongside the Youth Council to work and engage with young people in the region to implement strategies and recommend projects which the Geelong City Council can implement in future,” Josie said. “We work to find out what young people in the region want, and then we’ll suggest projects which we think will be the most effective in targeting these areas. “Some key topics that we want to combat as a group include environmental sustainability around Geelong, including how businesses can be sustainable and how we can manage population growth; also safety throughout central Geelong especially – make sure everyone feels safe at all times regardless of who they are or what they believe in.”

Josie, who’s one of three Bellarine Ward Youth Councillors, will appear before Council four times this year to present the Youth Councillors’ findings and recommendations. She will also carry out mayoral duties such as attending official functions and acting as the group’s spokesperson.

Year 7 student Lulu Joske was also selected for the Youth Council. Youth advisory groups within Geelong’s wards elected the youth councillors. Josie became interested in the Youth Council after reading about the opportunity in a newspaper. “I never really knew there was a platform for young people to express their views, and the fact there was a platform really inspired me to go for the role.” She said being on the Youth Council had opened her eyes to a potential pathway as a councillor or politician, and she was also interested in studying law. She is picking up new skills, such as chairing a meeting, being organised and communicating clearly with a broad range of people, as well as adjusting to her responsibilities as a council representative. “I was just thinking as an individual but now I’m representing a group,” Josie said. “It’s been both exciting and nerve-racking.” Mayor Harwood said Josie was “extremely passionate” about our region. “So I’m sure she’ll be an excellent leader of this group. We’re looking forward to hearing the ideas of all 12 Youth Councillors and building them into initiatives that will help us achieve our clever and creative vision, and the goals set out in our council plan,” he said.

City of Greater Geelong Mayor Bruce Harwood (OGC 1978) with Junior Mayor Josie Horne (Year 10), who’s donning the city’s historic mayoral robes and chain. Scan the QR code above with a smartphone camera or app to see more from our interview with Josie, or type https://youtu.be/3G8dDtpVxQ into your web browser.