Will Mezner

YOUTH ENGAGEMENT LEAD, WORLD VISION

Will Mezner is passionate about empowering young people to engage powerfully with their world and solve problems that have never been solved before. His desire to end poverty was sparked in a 2011 trip to East Timor with World Vision, where he saw firsthand the positive impact that development can have on vulnerable communities. Will started his organising career in VGen and the campus Fair Trade movement, campaigning for and securing Fair Trade Accreditation for Flinders University and Convening the national Fairly Educated conference in 2014. He then took on an organising role with One Community, convening an education sector alliance in South Australia to oppose Gonski cuts. He has also been an advocate on refugee and foreign aid issues and has campaigned with Christians for Marriage Equality and SA’s Family and Domestic Violence Advocacy Network. With a background in youth empowerment at high schools and universities, he is currently World Vision Australia’s Youth Engagement Lead and the National Facilitator of VGen, World Vision’s youth advocacy movement. He has recently moved to Melbourne from his home in Adelaide with his wife Elise, a high school teacher. Will graduated from Flinders University in 2016 with degrees in Law and International Studies.