4 young women from the North join PM's Youth Council

Four young womenfrom the North will be representing the territories' youth for the next two years while discussing with the Prime Minister issues that matter.

Earlier this week, Justin Trudeau announced his Prime Minister's Youth Council, a group of 15 young people from across the country eager to have their voices heard.

Two of the council members are from Nunavut, Rachel Smale and Nmesoma Nweze.SylviaPascua-Matte is from Fort Simpson, N.W.T.,and Alex Bouchardhails from Yukon.

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"We're there, not for an older person to say what they think the youth are thinking; we're here to have the [adults] communicate with us and actually tell them what [the youth] are thinking," saidPascua-Matte, 17, theyoungest member of the council.

That's exactly what Smale, 19, wants to do too. Hailing from Pond Inlet, Nunavut, she plans on bringing up suicide prevention, something that's often talked about in her community, but isn't necessarily understood.

"If my friend committed suicide nobody teaches us what the coping should be like," Smale said. "So we're lost in our minds of depression. That's the main thing I want to change."

Alex Bouchard, 24, grew up in Whitehorse and graduated from the University of British Columbia in Indigenous and First Nations Studies. She's the eldest of the group and says everyone around her is inspiring.

"It was great because we got to see different people's opinions and you know, the ways they see the world, which is way different when you're 17 than when you're 24.

"I feel like it'sso great because they are so optimistic. It's so awesome to see."

Meeting Justin Trudeau

Some people in the North are still coming down from their star-struck dazes after the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Will and Kate, visited Yukon this past week.

But for these four young visionaries, their celebrity sighting started with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

"I was star struck," Smale said. "Like, 'Oh my gosh, that's the Prime Minister, I'm sitting across from him.'

"And then when he started talking to us, it was as if we were the big thing and he was just a guy. And I started thinking we were equal."

Pascua-Matte got the same down-to-earth feeling, noting how different it feels when the Prime Minister is talking in front ofa small group, compared to what it's like when he's at official events on TV.

"I was really nice, actually," Pascua-Matte said. "You felt more important."

Bouchard says Trudeau is "as cool as he seems," and hopes that can translate into an open line of communication for young Yukoners.

"I think one of the biggest things that I want to do is just make sure that there is a direct line to me to bring up issues to the Prime Minister," Bouchard said.

"I'm sure in the future there's going to be a different Yukoner that's going to be represented in the youth council and [hopefully] they can take on that mantle and just be that line of communication,so that youth feel comfortable to come talk to us and just let us know what they think."

For the next two years, the four young women will join the other council members in Ottawa every few months.

Pascua-Matte says the group hopes to keep in touch when they're in their own communities as well.

"They're all really talented and nice people," she said. "It's so impressive."