ACT teens want to vote on climate change, housing issues

The Lyneham High School student can attend rallies, sign petitions and attend Greens meetings but there's one thing she can't do - vote.

"I think there's a very finite amount of time we have to reverse the climate crisis and it's unfair, in my opinion, for us not to be granted a say in those decisions at all," Miss Craemer-Banks said.

Young Canberrans aged 16 and 17 may be able to cast a vote in territory elections after Greens crossbenchers Johnathan Davis and Andrew Braddock brought legislation to lower the voting age to the Legislative Assembly on Thursday.

Under the proposed laws, it would be compulsory for 16- and 17-year-olds to vote but the fine for those who failed to vote would be lowered from $20 to $10. It would not apply to federal elections.

Youth Coalition of the ACT executive director Dr Justin Barker said young people were struggling with their mental health because of their lack of power to influence issues which concerned them.

"We know that there are huge decisions being made around the world and in the ACT that are going to affect their livelihood. The standout one is climate change," Dr Barker said.

"We also have 16-year-olds worried about how their education is going to translate to employment, how they're going to participate in a housing market.

"They're really profoundly affected by all of these things, which really undermines their wellbeing and mental health."

Dr Barker said there was a misconception 16-year-olds were unable to make informed decisions.

"That's not what the research shows us at all. In the time of cold cognition, of being able to make a considered decision, not under the pressure and under the gaze of their peers they can make decisions that are just as well-informed as an 18-year-old."

READ MORE:

He said the benefit of starting voting earlier while young people were still in school was they could undergo systematic and standardised education about the electoral systems at the time when it was most relevant.

"At 18, young people are everywhere. Some of them are apprenticeships, on a gap year, some of them are employed or unemployed," he said.

"There's no systematic approach to helping them take part in and engage in the democratic process through elections, but by learning to vote at 16, that will actually allow that to happen."

Mr Davis said the proposed legislation was not about gaining young left-leaning voters, but he would encourage people of all ages to vote for his party.

The bill will likely go through a committee inquiry.

Miss Craemer-Banks believed young people would rise to the occasion once given the responsibility of voting in territory elections.

"I would [vote for the Greens] but for good reasons. The other parties who I could go for, I honestly don't think have strong enough policies towards climate action," she said.

"And, for me, that's a real anxiety that I'm gonna have to face when I'm older and try to create some miraculous solution in the next 30 years."

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: