By Harguan Kaur and Taylor Navarro
Hi beloved readers, it’s Taylor and Harguan here, the two youth editors at The Westsider. We are both pumped to announce the awesome plans we have for this year at E-Gen, and share a bit about ourselves.
So, you might find yourself wondering ‘what is E-Gen?’ Well, simply put we are the ‘emerging generation’ — or shorter, E-Gen!
More specifically, we are a section of The Westsider aimed at giving younger writers in the western suburbs a chance to write what they are most passionate about. This has allowed many talented writers to share their knowledge about a plethora of different topics, from economics to music recommendations. We are the platform for all the young talent in the West.
This section is approaching its first anniversary, but in all that time we have realised that we haven’t gotten around to introducing ourselves. E-Gen exists because of editor Taylor Navarro and our assistant editor Harguan Kaur, and all articles have been submitted and edited in our ‘off time’ during Year 12. But now, we’re one year in and in university, and a vision of growth has unveiled itself to us in 2025, something we’d love to share with you, once we put a face to the section.
My name is Taylor.
2025 marks the start of my third year at The Westsider, and the second for E-Gen; the cosy little section that Barbara entrusted me to grow back in 2023. Since then, so much has happened, all of which I am so privileged to have experienced. I have written and edited countless articles, reviewed our local gems of plays, met so many wonderful people and watched E-Gen develop from just a name my Dad helped me come up with to a proper section I am so proud to be a part of.
I think one of the most exciting things about E-Gen is that it gives young people the opportunity to be published. It’s an idea most people associate with hyper-successful careers, maybe a stroke of luck— and definitely not accessible when you’re so young. But The Westsider has changed that by giving voice to our ideas. And with E-Gen, those voices have been amplified. We have brought fiery debates, trends and politics on social media to paper, and have made our seemingly misunderstood generation easier to understand. I love what I do and now with the freedom of being graduated, we have so many plans to elevate that. And I also have a big thank you to give to Harguan for that. Oh, did you know we go to school together?
Talking about loving what I’m doing, I’m an Arts student at the University of Melbourne. It’s probably no surprise that the long-term goal is to become a reporter, which means I’m majoring in Media and Comms with a minor in Politics right now. I’m determined to bring current news to the public with my stories and further challenge people to develop unique perspectives on our affairs. I think my favourite article that I have ever written for The Westsider was ‘The Art of Questioning’. It made me realise that’s what I wanted to be doing!
I am Harguan.
I have been writing at E-Gen for around two years (mostly about countless economics issues) and now I help Taylor in an editorial capacity. For me E-Gen was the platform which allowed me to talk and learn more about all things economics. So, it is self explanatory that I ended up studying a Bachelors of Commerce with a major in Actuarial Sciences at the University of Melbourne! Now, I have the pleasure of not only learning about commerce everyday at university but also seeing countless students share their own passions through their writing.
Without E-Gen, I would never have seen just how big my love for commerce truly is, so that is why my biggest passion is allowing all writers to see their amazing work published. As someone who has seen ‘Thank you for your submission’ on countless writing competition entries, I know the importance of having your work on a platform and your name with it. Everyone should have the chance to have what they believe in, published; a chance to see the power of words in actions. And it just so happens that is what both Taylor and I hope to achieve this year (more about that below).
Now, with a platform such as this and the amazing support of The Westsider, we hope to take E-Gen for a tour around the western suburbs enlisting writers as we go. We aim to start a new program targeted at writing outreach to give everyone the chance to have their work, stories and passions published. At the core of all of this is the belief that everyone can be a talented writer with the right amount of support. We hope to see our cosy section grow into a bustling city full of the dedication of young writers across the western suburbs.
Make sure to stay tuned and up to date on all things E-Gen, we have awesome things in store and would love to see you come along for the ride!
Any questions about E-Gen? Want to get your school involved? Contact us!
Taylor Navarro (for all general queries): taylormnavarro@gmail.com
Harguan Kaur (for planning a school initiative eg. compass post, assembly speech or lunch time meeting): harguankaur@hotmail.com