Creative Uprising

Creative Uprising is a project led by Regional Arts Victoria with local partners across the southwest, as part of collaborative efforts to support the creative sector – especially our young people.  

It gives young people a role in shaping creative opportunities in their communities. Participants will connect with other young creatives, share their views with local arts organisations, help develop ideas and potentially co-design and deliver creative activities in the region. Exciting!

This project helps further the Young People pillar of the regional South West Creative Industries Strategy 2025-2029, which identified a need to engage and empower young people to devise and deliver youth-led initiatives. We want to help young people have greater connection to skills, opportunities and each other, via peer-led programs that nurture talent, amplify voices, and develop future creative leaders and cultural contributors.  
 
The project also aligns with each Councils’ own Arts and Culture and Youth Strategies, and the learnings collated through consultation stages, which mirrored consultation with young creatives for this project.  
 
Young people told us they want:  

• access to safe, youth-friendly accessible spaces (both in real life and online) to connect, create and learn 

• ways to meet other creatives and mentors  

• pathways into the creative industries 

• local access to more inclusive programming, equipment, workshops and showcasing opportunities  

🌟 Creative Uprising is in response to your requests! 
 
Creative Uprising also supports the aims of Creative State (the Victorian government’s creative strategy) and Revive National Cultural Policy (from the federal government at a national level), plus various youth and community goals, including helping our local funders to support our community. Win!

Creative Uprising aims to build networks, skills and confidence, strengthen connections with local arts organisations/volunteers, and support youth-led creative participation and leadership.  
 
Young people will gain experience as youth advisors, collaborators, programmers and producers for new creative activations in the southwest. They will meet fellow creative peers and form new networks with arts organisations, volunteer committees and creative spaces, with Council officers, peak bodies and youth organisations. 
 
Young people in Stages 2 and 3 also get to devise and deliver their own ideas – working collaboratively as a regional network, leaning on advice and support from others who have pulled off cool youth-led initiatives across the state.  

RAV applied for funding from the federal government’s Regional Arts Fund and is also collating contributions from Corangamite, Glenelg, Moyne and Warrnambool Councils alongside from local trusts and foundations. Our collective pot of money is being used to pay for people and things needed by the project, including honorariums for young people and the costs of their activations. 

Young people who are aged 12–25 between September 2026 to June 2027 who live, work, study or have a strong connection to Glenelg, Corangamite, Moyne or Warrnambool can apply.  

We welcome young people with different creative interests, backgrounds and levels of experience, including people who may not see themselves as “artists” yet. You might make art, music, writing, videos, design, events, crafts or digital work; be interested in creative careers; or simply want more creative things happening locally. 

No. You do not need qualifications, a portfolio or previous experience in the arts. 

We’re looking for young people with ideas, curiosity, lived experience of the region and an interest in helping make local creative opportunities more welcoming, relevant and accessible. 

The project has three stages: 

• 1 – Listen & Learn — October 2026: Visit or connect with local arts organisations, meet other young people and share feedback about what would make creative spaces and opportunities more youth-friendly. 

• 2 – Co-Design & Plan — November 2026 to February 2027: Work with other young people and a support crew to develop ideas, partnerships and plans for creative activities. 

3 – Deliver — March to April 2027: Help bring youth-led creative activations to life! This could be an event, exhibition, workshop, showcase, conference, mentoring idea, podcast, a series of online events or something else shaped by the group. 
 
The initial EOI is for Stage 1, but you can tell us if you’d be interested in staying on for Stages 2 and 3 when you apply, and you may be invited to continue. We may also open opportunities again for additional young people to participate in Stages 2 and 3.  

Yes – to thank participating young people for their time, sharing their thoughts and helping bring ideas to life, an honorarium will be offered. Though not employment, this equated to roughly $35 per hour, the same as Council’s youth advisory boards are paid.  

There may also be other ways to be involved as a volunteer or paid service provider as the project develops, so watch this space and reach out if you’re very keen to collaborate! 

The first stage includes an in-person visit with a local arts organisation and two online meetings—one before and one after the visit. 

If you continue into later stages, the group will help shape how and when you meet. We’ll aim to work around school, study, work and other commitments wherever possible. 

Please still apply – we will work with participants to understand what support they need and overcome any barriers!  

This could include considering transport, meeting times, online participation, communication needs and other access requirements. We have a budget reserved to help cover transport needs for participants living far away from where we might meet or host events. Let us know on the EOI form, or contact the project team for a confidential chat about your needs.  

Yes – please do! Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people are warmly encouraged to apply. We’re being advised by a team of locally-based First Nations people and RAV’s First Nations Reference Group, to help the project feel culturally safe, respectful and meaningful for First Nations participants.  

Our whole approach is underpinned by First Nations’ ways of working, as we’re leaning on the Wayipunga framework from the Koorie Youth Council to inform how we work with ALL young people. 
It’s full of useful tips for how to support genuine and meaningful involvement in decision-making processes in a way that recognises and values young people’s rights to self-determination, experiences, knowledge and skills.  

Yes. You can both apply, and you are welcome to mention in your application that you know each other or would feel more comfortable participating together. Each person should complete their own Expression of Interest form so we can learn about what each of you would like to bring to the project. 

We recognise that the right support will look different for different people, and will work with participants and community to identify what is helpful. This might mean having access to someone you trust throughout the project as a “phone-a-friend”, having someone accompany you in meetings or visits, practical supports or anything you need to help you feel more comfortable to participate. 

Submit an Expression of Interest (EOI)

You can apply in writing, by video or audio, or by having an interview with someone from the project team whom you feel comfortable speaking to.  
 
Note that parental consent is needed for under 18s! 

Expressions of Interest for Stage 1 close on 20 September 2026. 

We encourage you to apply as soon as you can, especially if you would like support with your application! 

The project team will review all Expressions of Interest and contact applicants about next steps. 

Selected participants are expected to be announced by 12 October 2026, ahead of the first Listen & Learn activities later that month. 

We’ll aim to bring together a group of regional young people from with different interests, perspectives, locations and experiences. 

We are not looking for the “best” application or the most polished answer. We want to hear why you are interested, what you care about, and what you would like to see happen for young creatives in your community. 

Creative Uprising has been developed in response to what young people and local organisations have said they need: more safe and welcoming places to connect and create; stronger peer networks; more local creative opportunities; access to mentors, equipment and workshops; and clearer pathways into creative industries. 

The project is funded by the Australian Government’s Regional Arts Fund, with contributions from local foundations and councils. 

Creative Uprising aims to build young people’s networks, skills, confidence and leadership experience. It will help young people connect with local arts organisations, volunteers, mentors and other creatives, while supporting youth-led creative participation across the south west. 

It also gives local organisations practical feedback and ideas about how they can become more youth-friendly, accessible and connected to young people. 

Creative Uprising is led by Regional Arts Victoria in collaboration with Corangamite, Glenelg, Moyne and Warrnambool Councils, local arts organisations, young people, youth-sector partners and First Nations networks across the southwest. 

If you have a question, would like help applying, or want to discuss access needs, contact Stacey Barnes and Zoe Damman, RAV’s project team on [email protected], or reach out to your Council’s Youth or Arts team. Current contacts are below: 
 
Corangamite: 
Glenelg: 
Moyne: 
Warrnambool