Aboriginal youth benefit from award program

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The Duke of Edinburgh Award program encourages young people aged 14 to 25 to expand their horizons through community service, skill development, physical fitness, and taking part in expeditions and explorations.

Participants in the program work toward three different levels of recognition-bronze, silver and gold.

The program is international in scope, known outside of Canada as the International Award for Young People, and was established by the Duke of Edinburgh in 1956. The program has been operating in Canada since 1963.

The program is open to all Canadian youth. In 1996, however, a new initiative was started-the Charter for Business. The program teamed up with the business community to reach Aboriginal and inner-city youth, northern and rural youth, young people with disabilities, and young offenders.

One example of the program is the Ranch Ehrlo Society, a residential treatment centre for young people based in Pilot Butte, located just east of Regina.

"Rancho Ehrlo is very active, and we have a number of Aboriginal young people involved through them," said Wendy Machmer, executive director of the Duke of Edinburgh Award program for Saskatchewan.

"Quite a few of them through Ranch Ehrlo have actually already obtained their bronze and are working on their silver."

Ranch Ehrlo held a special ceremony this summer to recognize the latest group of young people to earn certification under the award program-nine at the bronze level in the areas of expedition and physical recreation and two at the silver level in expedition, physical recreation and community service. The participants earned their certification through involvement in canoeing, basketball, skating, floor hockey, and volunteer activities within the community.

Machmer estimated that of the 500 or so participants in the program across the province, about 100 of them are Aboriginal youth.

One of the things that attract youth to the program, Machmer said, is that it gives them "a recognition of the things that they're doing in their life.

"A lot of young people these days don't really get the recognition they deserve," she said.

"In the programming, they get to pick their activities, which is something that really attracts them. We give them an outline of the program, such as, they do have to do an expedition, they do service work, they do physical recreation and they develop a skill, which is like a hobby. But within those areas, they get to pick what they do. So that appeals to young people, that they have choices."

Participants benefit from the program, not just by learning new skills and experiencing new things, but also by gaining a sense of accomplishment, which in turn translates into improved self-esteem.

Jeff Augustine has seen the difference the Duke of Edinburgh Award program has made in Big Cove First Nation in New Brunswick. Augustine, a police officer on reserve, has been the driving force behind the establishment of the award program there. A unique approach to the program has been taken in Big Cove. The Duke of Edinburgh Awards has joined forces with the Department of National Defence to form a joint Duke of Edinburgh Award/Sea Cadet Corps on the First Nation.

The combination is historic for a couple of reasons, explained Roger Acreman, the former executive director of the Duke of Edinburgh Award, New Brunswick division.

"One, it's the first all-Aboriginal Sea Cadet Corps in Canada, and secondly, it's the first time that the two programs have been offered as a package in the community, or anywhere else in Canada," he said.

"What we've done with the two programs, in fact, is very much adapt them to Mi'kmaq culture," he said. The program is linked to the great maritime history of the Mi'kmaq people, and incorporates a series of presentations by Elders, giving participants an opportunity to learn more about their culture, "to give young people pride and self-esteem in their Mi'kmaq heritage."

The combination of the two prorams is a good fit, Acreman explained.

"The Duke of Edinburgh Award is very much an individual challenge. A young person has to maintain physical fitness. They have to participate in expeditions, they have to learn new skills, and they have to do community service. And a lot of things that they do in cadets will qualify for some of those requirements. But the cadets bring the structure, because the kids have to parade every Tuesday night, and they're in uniforms. So the cadet aspect of it brings structure to the award."

Big Cove First Nation is the largest First Nation in New Brunswick, with around 2,600 residents. Of those, about 150 youth are involved in the joint Duke of Edinburgh/Sea Cadet program, with another 12 adults involved as leaders.

Augustine said he got involved in the program because, as a police officer, he is involved with the people of the community every day and saw the need to give the young people on the reserve something to do.

"Basically my goal was to keep them off the street, and keep them away from the drugs and the alcohol. And I have been doing this for two-and-a-half years, and it's working. It's really working," he said.

"We do a lot of hiking. We do a lot of looking at plants. We do stuff in the forest, and then we do talking about drugs and the alcohol. We do sports activities. Basically we keep them busy. We try to keep them busy," he said.

"The cadet program is the best thing that we ever had in the reserve here," he said, adding that before the program started, the young people on reserve had nothing.

"So I decided to take the challenge, and so far I'm succeeding, and the kids are succeeding. So that's what I like to see."