DFAT played host to this year's winners of the Young Diplomats Program (YDP) on Thursday 11 October. Each year the Australian Institute for International Affairs (AIIA) and James Cook University (JCU) organises the YDP for Year 10 students from schools in the Townsville region in Queensland. This year, schools competed in a simulated UN conference on 'advancing global nuclear security'. DFAT's Queensland State Office was represented on the judging panel.

The winning team from William Ross State High School, and other outstanding competitors, travelled to Canberra for a three day visit. The Recruitment and Workforce Planning Section organised a program of presentations at DFAT on nuclear security (ASNO), the 2011 Japanese tsunami/earthquake (Japan Section), and a briefing on DFAT's role in crisis and consular case management (CEC).

The students heard a first-hand account of the Japanese emergency response by Peter Roberts, had the opportunity to sit at the very same tables where treaties have been negotiated and learned about DFAT's contribution to policy, and services to the Australian public.