ISDF Youth Competition draws multitude of entries

A competition aimed at drawing participation from Knysna’s youth in the development of the town’s Integrated Strategic Development Framework (ISDF) plan has drawn 31 registrations.

“A complete and effective ISDF can only be developed with input from the community,” said Knysna Executive Mayor Georlene Wolmarans. “The aim of this competition is to encourage and support innovative ideas, proposals and, eventually, contributions to the ISDF by Knysna’s youth.”

“Our young people are filled with great ideas on how to improve the lives of their communities, fuelled by unique and original thinking,” Wolmarans continued. “We want to harness those ideas and give our youth the opportunity to turn their ideas into a reality. This competition is the first step in doing just that.”

Groups consisting of three to five young people, all between the ages of 16 and 35 and living within the greater Knysna municipal area, were invited to prepare and present a concept proposal for an intervention that addresses one of the following questions:

• What would you do if you had unlimited funds to improve the greater Knysna municipal area to the benefit of all?
• What intervention being implemented in any place in the world would benefit and have the best impact on all the people of the greater Knysna municipal area?
• How can we use the estuary, fynbos and forest to improve the lives of all the people of the greater Knysna municipal area?

“We were very pleasantly surprised by the response to the call to entry,” said Wolmarans. “31 groups had registered by the closing date of 14 November, and we look forward to receiving the youth’s great ideas in the form of their concept proposals, due to be submitted by noon on 13 February 2015.”

“The competition and adjudication processes will follow very strict rules and procedures,” she assured. “The 15 groups with the best proposals will each be awarded R5 000.00 in the form of a planning grant to enable them to prepare a business model design for their proposal. These models must also adhere to strict guidelines and be submitted by mid-April 2015. An awards ceremony is planned for 24 April next year, where the top three business models will each be awarded R25 000.00 in prize money. Viable business models will also be included in the list of eligible projects as part of the ISDF.”

“This competition serves to integrate our young people into the mainstream economy of Knysna,” Wolmarans concluded. “And, in a time where unemployment and poverty are rife, especially amongst school leavers and the youth, encouraging entrepreneurship amongst the youth not only facilitates responsible and sustainable economic development, but assists us in creating a town where people and nature prosper.

The ISDF Youth Shape Your Future competition is sponsored by the Texas A & M University (TAMU), organised by the Knysna Creative Heads Consortium, and held in conjunction with the formulation of Knysna’s ISDF. For more information on the ISDF, this competition or its rules, please visit www.isdf.co.za or contact Knysna Creative Heads Consortium at 044 382 6732, or email carla@knysnacreativeheads.co.za. For more information on the ISDF, please contact Knysna Municipality Manager: Economic Development Ilse van Schalkwyk at ivanschalkwyk@knysna.gov.za, or email isdf@knysna.gov.za.