Following in the foot steps of the Duke of Edinburgh

The former Duke of Edinburgh, founded a program for boys and girls in the 1950s to encourage them to learn more about their own individual courage, strength and compassion, in the pursuit of the good of those young people and the communities in which they lived. 

This year FAST Track members Vish Vijayakumar and Siena Towndrow are both enrolled in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DofE), the world’s leading youth achievement award. The DofE and its mission to encourage personal discovery, self-reliance and responsibility in an environment of social interaction and team work has remained unchanged through the course of over 60 years. 

The program takes between one and four years to complete, allowing participants to progress through levels to achieve Bronze, Silver or Gold DofE Awards. Participants can select and set objectives in each of the following areas: 

• Volunteering – service to others or the community over a period of 12 months
• Physical – achieving a certain standard of health and fitness over 12 or 6 months
• Skills  – developing practical skills and nurturing personal interests and talents (12 or 6 months depending on timescale for physical)
• Expeditions  – completion of an outdoor challenge over the course of 4 days/3 nights
• Residential – at Gold Level, participants must undertake an additional section which involves shared activity in a residential setting away from home for 5 days/4 nights

Canberra Sprint Coach, Steve Dodt, is a strong supporter of community engagement within FAST Running and has also volunteered his time for this DofE program’s intake. Steve will work alongside Participants, to assess activities that contribute to the completion of their Duke of Ed Award, including:

• Helping set an achievable goal
• Offering support and motivation towards achieving the goal 
• Confirming the goal has been achieved

For more information on how to get involved in FAST Running’s community endeavours, please contact us.