Once a BRAT, always a BRAT

THERE is no getting rid of the BRATs … trust us, we’ve tried. The BRATs (Bright, Roving, Annoying, Teens) programme has been around for 20 years and with about 120 participants a year, one can only imagine the size of this “family”.

Last week, we organised a reunion of sorts, hoping that no one would turn out (so that the R.AGE team could enjoy a peaceful brunch at The Bee in Publika, KL) but no, the BRATs showed up and some even brought along their partners and babies.

Just kidding, we love the BRATs.

It was good to note that the BRATs are still the noisy, active bunch they were years ago, and that they grew up – some vertically and most horizontally – to become successful people in their own way. *proud parent mode*

One of the BRATs programme founders and SwitchUp.TV senior executive producer (The Star’s online TV channel) Tan Ju Eng, as well as other The Star editors and journalists, also stopped by to say hello to the group.

This year, there will be three BRATs workshops – in Johor Baru (March 25 to 28), Kuala Terengganu (June 5 to 8) and Kota Kinabalu (Aug 14 to 17).

The workshops, facilitated by journalists and editors from The Star, will see participants being sent on field assignments to discover the cities they are in. The articles, photos and videos produced by the participants from those assignments will then be published in R.AGE.

While the deadline for application was March 6, we still have a few spots left for the Kuala Terengganu and Kota Kinabalu workshops. This really is your last chance to be part of one of the largest youth platforms in Malaysia, so send in your entries by March 16. Good luck.

BRATs is organised by R.AGE and supported by ExxonMobil. For more information, and to apply, log on to facebook.com/starbrats.