With the dissolution of the City of Peterborough’s volunteer youth council, the newly formed Peterborough Leaders of Tomorrow group aims to give agency and power to young residents to have their voices heard on important local issues.
“If they (the city) are going to shut down our stuff because it’s adults running it, why don’t we have something that we run ourselves so no one else can shut us down?” said Avery Trenholm, lead organizer of Leaders of Tomorrow, in a recent interview with kawarthaNOW.
Trenholm was a member of the Peterborough Youth Council that worked in collaboration with city recreation and parks services staff to organize and become involved in community events.
But when the council was quietly dissolved in 2025, she felt disappointed there would no longer be an established forum for youth to have their opinions heard and have the opportunity to engage in community leadership.
Aiming to give youth a voice at city hall
For Trenholm, her passion for community organizing and politics was spurred on through the opportunity to present research from her civics class to council. Her work included collecting data on the issues most important to school-aged youth in Peterborough.
She has continued to be active in the community by co-organizing the city-wide student walkout this past March to protest cuts to the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) and is on the Student Senate for the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board (KPRSDB) for the 2026-27 school year.
“I would just like to give youth, especially people who are passionate about youth politics and youth inclusion, a space to be able to be heard,” Trenholm said.
From her research and experience working with students and youth, there are numerous local issues that students care about deeply. This included sidewalk maintenance, a lack of youth-centred spaces, and drug use among young people.
“There’s no safe spaces for youth to go and hang out and enjoy themselves, especially without a lot of money,” she said.
Further to this, Trenholm identified that recent recreation and third-space developments in the city have been largely directed away from young people. In particular she spoke about the recent construction of new pickleball courts.
She said this is in part the result of a lack of youth engagement on the part of council and city staff.
“They don’t share our experiences, but there’s no way for them to hear from us because they don’t reach out to us, and then when we try to communicate with them, they kind of cut that off.”
Asking mayoral candidates whether they will work with youth
Leaders of Tomorrow wants to communicate and work with the city to ensure that the youth perspective is being considered. From hosting meetings at city hall to collaborating on events to giving delegations at council, the group will look for opportunities to have a direct impact on the city.
“My number one priority is that they hear us, and that we make ourselves heard,” Trenholm said.
In light of the upcoming municipal election, Leaders of Tomorrow also wants to encourage candidates to consider how their platform can support young people and how youth will be impacted in the long-term.
“You’re not trying to win our votes, but we have to grow up in the future that you guys are creating for us,” Trenholm said.
On its Instagram page, the group has put out a call to all mayoral candidates to answer three questions: what they are willing to do to create more youth leadership opportunities with the municipal government, whether they are willing to reinstate the youth council, and whether they are going to work with the youth of the city.
Trenholm said that a major challenge for youth wanting to engage with politics and community organizing is the fear of speaking up or facing retaliation or dismissal from adults and elected officials.
“I know a lot of people are afraid to speak out,” she said. “There’s a big fear and stigma almost.”
During the recent OSAP walkout, Trenholm said that many students were fearful about making a statement and speaking out about their concerns.
Adults often dismiss the opinions of youth who aren’t voters
Further to this, Trenholm said that in her experience there is often a lack of respect from adults towards youth who are interested in politics and that she has been dismissed when trying to share her opinions.
“There’s been this stigma and mindset that people who are under 18 who aren’t voters are just kids, and they don’t have opinions or thoughts, or they can’t think properly, or they don’t have fully thought-out opinions,” she explained.
“They kind of look down on us. They think that they’re in a higher place than us, and they’re not really. We’re all the same,” she added.
Based on her research, Trenholm said that the vast majority of students have strong and thoughtful opinions about almost every issue she asked about.
“It’s more rare to see someone who doesn’t care about the issues than someone who does,” she said.
For Trenholm, the reason for these deeply held opinions is simply that young people live in the same world as adults and see the same challenges in their community.
“When you have to deal with things, you tend to form opinions on it, and have thoughts about it,” she said.
Recruiting youth to help shape the group’s future
Leaders of Tomorrow is just beginning its work and has drafted a constitution and bylaws. The group is seeking members for its first executive board to help develop the direction and goals going forward. The only requirements are that members are aged 13 to 18 and live or attend school in the City of Peterborough.
Trenholm said she will use her leadership experience to empower young people to take on new roles and participate in community action. Despite the wariness of some of her peers, she is not afraid to speak out about the issues that are important to her.
“If no one else is going to do it, why shouldn’t I?” she said. “Right here in the city there are issues and problems that we can solve and make our tomorrow better.”
For more information and to connect with Peterborough Leaders of Tomorrow, visit www.instagram.com/ptboleadersoftomorrow.
