Revolve is YFC's research paper on youth issues in Australia. It is produced quarterly and deals with topics relevant to the youth culture in which we work.

As people committed to working with young people and their families, we do not have the luxury of working with families as we would like them to be. We work with Australian families as they are. And they are many and varied. Nuclear, extended, mixed, blended, gay, step, lesbian, de facto, married, divorced. Add to that the fact that families vary widely in their quality of life: from child abuse and incest through to “just liveable” through to happy and contented. Add to that the differing cultural and ethnic groups in Australia which shape families according to long-held assumptions passed down through generations. Australian families are bewildering in their variety.

What does a paper on Consumerism seek to achieve? Will it be a sermon telling people not to enjoy themselves, to stop shopping? No. What it attempts to do is show the effect of consumerism on young people in Australia and the consequences for Christians who work with young people.

The habits, attitudes and practices of consumerism have woven themselves so intricately into the life of young Australians that it is extremely difficult to see what is wrong with it. Almost every aspect of young people's lives is commercialised, press-ganged into service for the profit of corporations and their shareholders. Their fashions, hairstyles, phones, desires, insecurities, clothes, language, rebellious instincts ..... all these and more are used by corporations to make money.

For most of the past few hundred years, the mainstream church has believed that Western culture was basically "Christian". People were familiar with the church, they recognised Christian language, rituals and traditions, and would call themselves Christians if asked to identify themselves religiously. Mission was not needed in our nation. Mission was something that happened in "heathen" nations, dark places where the gospel's light had not shone. This view of things is now changing.

The Australian church can no longer focus on simply sending people overseas, but must focus on mission 'in its own backyard'. The question for Christians who work with young people is not whether we should be engaged in mission amongst them. The question is: what kind of mission is needed? Here we explore two aspects of the answer to that question.

Religion is hot news in Australia right now. There is a focus on 'extremist' religion, usually Islamic. Family First, a political party with roots in the Assemblies of God, succeeded in getting a senator elected at the last federal election. Both the Prime Minister and Treasurer have visited Hillsong Church recently. In Victoria, a race and religious vilification case has just finished. Intelligent Design, as alternative theory of origin, has garnered much media attention. But how do young people interact with issues of religion and spirituality? Do they think about their spiritual journey in the same way as previous generations? What are the differences?

For some, multiculturalism is not an issue. Australia seems to be handling its cultural diversity fairly peaceably, and outside metropolitan centres the percentage of overseas-born young people is negligible. Why focus on this issue? By focussing on our differences, don't we simply encourage divisiveness? Does it have much to do with our mission to serve young people in the name of Christ?

While these questions are valid, it is also true that Australia's diverse mix of ethnicities is a constant challenge. We have not yet resolved the tensions between the diverse cultures that inhabit Australia. As to whether multiculturalism is relevant to Christian mission amongst young people, incarnational mission requires that we take seriously the history, culture and ethnicity of the young people we serve.

This edition of Revolve aims to provide information about some of the issues of working with Indigenous (Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander) young people. It will present an analysis of the context of Indigenous young people's lives, and how YFC Australia and Christian youth workers can respond, particularly through adjusting our way of thinking. It is hoped that this discussion will challenge some of our ambivalence about working with Indigenous young people.

Rural young people include those who are living in regional and remote areas of Australia. The experiences for young people living in rural Australia are quite different to those of urban young people. Research published recently describes the aspirations of young people in regional areas. It details the factors in rural life that impact on rural young people's aspirations and the strategies that may be applied to sustain and enhance these young people's aspirations. This issue of Revolve will discuss these findings and their relevance to YFC Australia and Christian Youth Workers.

It is the aim of this issue of Revolve to not only highlight the prevalence of mental illness amongst young people in Australia, but also to stimulate discussion around how Christian youth workers might respond to young people presenting with mental health issues, and how we can develop programs that assist in the prevention and early intervention of mental illness among young people.

Youth participation is about giving young people the opportunity to voice their ideas and concerns on issues that are important to them or affect their lives, listening to what they have to say and involving them in decision-making. Youth participation is currently a significant issue in youth work practice in Australia and around the world. This issue of Revolve will discuss youth participation and its relationship to Christian youth work, as well as provide frameworks and approaches to youth participation for further consideration.

Sexuality and sexual health is a prominent issue for young people. Adolescence is the time when young people are forming their identities, including their sexual identity, and is a time for exploring, and experimenting with sex. This issue of Revolve will discuss aspects of young people's sexuality and sexual health and propose approaches to practice that ensure the overall health and well-being of young people.

This issue of Revolve focuses on major trends in young people's use of technology and possibilities for using technology for ministry. Technology is undeniably a major part of many young people's experiences. Technology is "changing the macroworlds that shape adolescents' lives, the microworlds that many youth live in," and the life that many young people aspire to (Larson, 2002). It's also changing the way young people relate.

Young people experiencing risk include those who are presently at risk of harm. They may be involved in, or exposed to drug use, crime, homelessness, mental illness, unemployment, suicide/self-harm, early school leaving, truancy, abuse and/or neglect. This group of young people make up a large proportion of the young people YFC work with.

"Generation Y";, "The Millennials" and the "Echo Boomers" are terms referring to young people born roughly between 1980 and 2000. As with any description of a generation, stereotypes and generalisations about a group of people do no justice to the group in consideration. Cautious about contributing to the array of generalisations about today's young people, this issue describes general trends and characteristics that can be correlated to the experiences of the particular group of young people that Youth for Christ Australia is wanting to reach.