Cassandra Devine

“In Timor-Leste, I spoke to people younger than myself who knew what it was like to have their dignity taken from them to be treated as something less than human.”

Since living in East Timor two years ago, Cassandra has gained an understanding of how precious human rights are, and how easily they can be taken away. In her ambassador role she hopes to raise awareness about this by drawing parallels between the lives of young Timorese and young Australians.

“A difference can be made when a young person has the freedom to live their life with dignity,” says Cassandra. “My experience has shown me it is possible for positive change to occur, on both big and small levels.”

Through her Human Rights Youth Ambassador role, Cassandra aims to speak on issues affecting young people in her community, and see a greater awareness of human rights among young people.

“Young people are a particularly vulnerable group within society… not all of us are old enough to vote to determine our future, the status of young people in the community is generally quite low and older people don’t always ask us for our opinions,” says Cassandra. “Human rights are so important to young people in Victoria.”

Since returning from her internship with the Judicial System Monitoring Program in Timor, where she worked to promote human rights in the Timorese judicial system, Cassandra has been active in youth advocacy and policy issues. She is the Young Media Spokesperson of the Youth Affairs Council of Victoria, and serves on their Board of Governance. She is currently writing her thesis on the Cronulla riots, immigration and ethnic tension in Australian society.

Cassandra was nominated by the Youth Affairs Council of Victoria.