Niagara Region gets it Youth Advisory Panel repping all 12 municipalities

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Published December 3, 2021 at 3:48 pm

Niagara Regional Chair Jim Bradley

Not long ago, Niagara Regional Chair Jim Bradley put out the call for young Niagara residents to serve on his Regional Chair’s Youth Advisory Panel – one from each of the region’s 12 municipalities.

On Monday (November 29) night, he welcomed them all to their first meeting at the regional headquaters in Thorold.

After the completion of an extensive recruitment and assessment process, the following 12 panel members were selected:
  • Mackenzie Arts, Fort Erie
  • Keegan Hedley, Grimsby
  • Ava Meadows, Lincoln
  • Salony Sharma, Niagara Falls
  • Benjamin Zalepa, Niagara-on-the-Lake
  • Natalie Anderson, Pelham
  • Sierra Walsh-Fiore, Port Colborne
  • Madeleine Alexander, St. Catharines
  • Sawyer Dalton, Thorold
  • Christina DeGagne, Wainfleet
  • Carter Kipp, Welland
  • Esther Gerryts, West Lincoln
“On behalf of Regional Council, I want to thank all of the youth from Niagara who applied to be part of the advisory panel. After careful review, I was impressed by the caliber of the applications and I want to stress what a difficult decision it was to select these 12 individuals,” said Bradley.

“After participating in this inaugural meeting, I look forward to receiving the input and feedback from this important group over the coming months, and I know Regional Council will carefully consider the advice of this panel as they make policy decisions for all of Niagara.”

During this initial meeting, the panel selected Niagara Falls representative Sharma as its chair and Hedley of Grimsby as the vice chair for the duration of the panel’s one-year term.

In addition to the 12 citizen youth members of the panel, Regional Councillor Diana Huson will participate as a non-voting member, providing advice and guidance when required.
The Youth Advisory Panel members will serve a one-year term, with an optional one-year extension. The panel will meet a minimum of six times throughout the year, and provide one formal update to Regional Council on their progress and priorities.
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