Hamilton East Youth MP Rosalie Norton wants to give back to her community

Rosalie Norton, 17, is Jamie Strange's Youth MP for Hamilton East. Photo / Supplied

The heart of Hillcrest High School student Rosalie Norton, 17, truly beats for the community, so it was only natural for her to put up her hand to become this year's Youth MP for Hamilton East.

The year 12 student was selected by Hamilton East MP Jamie Strange after an extensive application process in which applicants were asked to send in video submissions.

Rosalie is a committee member at Seed Waikato and the Waikato Women's Fund as well as a part of the Waikato Regional Council youth council and a co-founder of youth workshop initiative Mindbox.NZ. Last year, she also was a guest speaker at TEDxRuakura discussing her journey in volunteering for her community.

When hearing about the opportunity to represent the Hamilton East electorate at Youth Parliament it was a no-brainer for Rosalie to put her name forward.

"I really wanted to apply as I am super passionate for our community and already involved with a number of projects already and this opportunity as a Youth MP gives me a glimpse into the life of politics whilst also allowing me to be a voice for other youth in our community," she said.

"This is also another way I can give back to the community the same way the community has given back to me as well."

Strange said: "Making the choice as to who would be my next Youth MP was incredibly difficult due to the number of strong applicants I had. In the end, it came down to the hard work that Rosalie had already done in our community and I'm excited to work with her on new projects throughout 2022."

Hamilton West's Youth MP is Fraser High School student Aidan Donoghue who was selected by Hamilton West MP Dr Gaurav Sharma. Sharma said: "Aidan has an incredible story of turning adversity into motivation. He has an understanding of..., the support of community groups and social services needed to help our tamariki."

Youth Parliament is held every three years and is an opportunity for young New Zealanders to learn first-hand about New Zealand's democracy.