Meet AMO’s 2025 Youth Fellows

In Fall 2024, AMO staff received applications for the 2025 cohort of the AMO Youth Fellowship Program. After conducting group interviews with a shortlist of candidates, three exceptional Youth Fellows were selected based on their experience in their local communities and their interest in municipal politics and governance. 

Ida Mensah is from Brampton and is a third-year Political Science student at York University. With a longstanding interest in law, Ida has always aspired to contribute to building an equitable society. Upon entering university, she learned that public policy is another pathway in which she could achieve that goal and has since made many efforts towards civic engagement.

She is a member of the 1834 Fellowship which is a public policy and civic leadership program for Black Canadian youth. She is a volunteer with the GLOCAL Foundation of Canada which promotes digital civic engagement and political literacy amongst young Canadians. She serves as a co-leader of the Brampton Group at Results Canada, where she has engaged with local MPs to advocate for global health efforts. She is passionate about advocating for the needs of underrepresented groups in political decisions, such as children and adults with disabilities.

Recognizing the essential role of municipal government in citizens' daily lives, Ida looks forward to gaining further insight into the functions of municipalities by contributing to an AMO Task Force and engaging with various officials. She is also excited to conduct the Youth Networking Session with the other Youth Fellows at the Annual AMO Conference.

Kerry Yang is from Sudbury and is studying Health Sciences at McMaster University in Hamilton. Born in Saskatchewan but raised in Northern Ontario, Kerry considers home to be a diverse collection of places and people. Community has been the driver of Kerry’s municipal involvement– whether in Northern Ontario, where she advocates for BIPOC youth representation, or in Hamilton, where she serves as the Associate Vice President of Municipal Affairs at the McMaster Students Union. 

She is also involved in provincial and federal advocacy, having authored a policy paper on Racism and Religious Discrimination with the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance and crafted a guide on youth service navigation across Canada with the Tamarack Institute. Kerry was named as an Ontario Community Changemaker in which she is pursuing a project on amplifying BIPOC voices and stories in Northern Ontario. She is passionate about representation in advocacy fields and is excited to learn from diverse policymakers and municipal leaders.

AMO Board mentor: Councillor Tammy Hwang

Nathan Bean, a lifelong Zorra Township resident, is a first-year student at the University of Ottawa studying towards a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and Public Administration. In his role as Junior Student Trustee on the Avon Maitland District School Board during the 2023-24 academic year, Nathan advocated for student issues and organized a board-wide initiative to properly dispose of electronic waste.

Nathan has always been passionate about municipal matters and has advocated for these issues by delegating to his local municipalities for improved road safety and improved environmental protections. As a political science student, Nathan is passionate about civic education and is excited to improve Ontarian’s understanding of municipal governance through the AMO Healthy Democracy Project. 

AMO Board mentor: Mayor Jamie McGarvey
 
For more information about the Youth Fellowship Program, please visit AMO’s Youth Engagement page or contact Stewart McDonough at smcdonough@amo.on.ca.