Swipe It Moisturising Lip Balm by the Body Shop for Make It 16

The Body Shop has become the first major business to back the Make It 16 campaign, which aims to lower Australia’s voting age.

The Body Shop is supporting Make It 16 via a petition in store, customer education and a $50,000 donation to the cause.

Customers can purchase a Swipe It Moisturising Lip Balm to help support the campaign, with The Body Shop donating $5 from every lip balm sold to Make It 16.

The Swipe It Moisturising Lip Balm is certified by the vegan society, comes in a fully recyclable plastic tube, and is made from Community Fair Trade Shea Butter from Ghana, where the Body Shop has been working with Tungteiya Women’s Shea Butter Association for over 25 years. The trade provides a fair price and financial independence for more than 600 women.

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The Body Shop’s support of Make It 16 forms part of the beauty brand’s global Be Seen Be Heard campaign, in partnership with the United Nations Secretary General’s Envoy on Youth, which aims to amplify youth voices in public life.

A survey of more than 1000 Australians commissioned by The Body Shop Australia and conducted by YouGov Research online between July and August 2023 concluded that 60 per cent of Australians are open to discussing lowering the voting age to 16, with that figure rising to more than 70 percent for those aged 18-34*.

Over a third (34%) of 18-24 year olds agree that young Aussies pay tax and have adult responsibilities, so should be able to have a say and over a quarter (27%) agree that it would lead to a more inclusive democracy. Interestingly, over a third (36%) of all Aussies could also be convinced with more education and information. Most commonly, they said access to more information and evidence on the benefits and reasoning capacities of 16 and 17 year olds (38%) and information to learn about the reasons why this is the right decision for Australia (36%) would sway their view.

Make It 16 co-founder and Year 11 student Archie Coppola said many assumptions about the issue are misguided.

“We can already drive, consent to medical procedures, join the armed forces, vote in political party pre-selections, leave school or home, pay rent, and work full time. So, we should also have the right to vote,” Archie said.

“Lowering the voting age and including more engaged, young voices in elections will only strengthen our democracy, and help our elected representatives to make better decisions.

“Additionally, research shows that young people are cognitively mature enough to vote, as ‘cold cognition’, judgement in unhurried decision making, is mature by aged 16.”

Shannon Chrisp, APAC Brand and Activism Director at The Body Shop said:

Our customers are demanding more of us when it comes to taking a public stance on social or political issues, particularly amongst the younger generations, with 61% of Gen Z saying businesses should take a stand on the issues that matter to them. Not only that, but there is already support to lower the voting age, and many more Aussies want to learn more about the issue. That’s why it was important for us to use our platform to bring this issue to light, and make it easier to access information. “We’ve always had a strong activist history at The Body Shop, and know that young people are our most powerful changemakers. Supporting this campaign represents just one way we’re redefining what it means to be a changemaking brand right now.”

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