By the age of 17, young people can be charged with criminal offences, start working full time and pay taxes, legally engage in sexual intercourse, drive vehicles, give consent for medical procedures, and be part of the defence force.
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Young people by the age of 17 make a huge difference in Australian society, whether that is through climate activism, entrepreneurship, or socio-economic contributions.
As such, it makes no sense that young people cannot engage in the democratic process until the age of 18.
It is particularly important now, more than ever before, that we engage young people in political processes.
The consequences of decisions made today will directly affect young people and the future generations, as we face challenges such as climate change, youth unemployment, and youth suicide and self-harm.
In the current Federal Parliament, only three members out of 226 are under the age of 30.
This is disproportionate to the percentage of young people in Australia.
When Australia lowered the voting age from 21 to 18 back in 1973, the guiding principle for that decision was the loss of lives and serious injury that those between the ages of 18 and 21 suffered in the wars.
The idea being that if someone was going to risk their life for their country, they should also be allowed to engage in democracy.
Similar guiding principles should now apply when issues of climate change, housing affordability, and Australia's investment in defence are talked about every single day.
It absolutely matters that young people get a say, as these things ultimately influence their future.
Former PM Scott Morrison in January suggested that young people under the age of 18 should be allowed to drive forklifts to alleviate supply chain workforce shortages, a far more dangerous activity when compared to simply having the basic citizenship right to vote and engage in political processes.
The argument against lowering the voting age - that young people lack the cognitive and moral capacity to vote, is founded merely on prejudices against young people's capacity rather than any scientific basis.
Research shows that basic cognitive processes and the ability to reason logically matures by the age of 16.
The recent federal election was proof that young Australians are actively engaged and passionate about politics.
The seats with the highest proportion of youth voters under 30 - Brisbane, Griffith and Ryan - were won by the Greens who outlined policies around climate change, mental health and housing affordability, issues that young people are most passionate about.
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Countries that have already lowered the voting age to 16 have seen higher rates of overall youth engagement.
The reasoning for this is logical - the earlier young people engage in political processes, the more likely they are to continue to participate in voting.
This was evident when Austria lowered their voting age to 16 in 2007.
In their National Council election in 2017, the percentage of voters between the ages of 16 and 17 were around 91 per cent, much higher than the national average of around 80 per cent.
In 2014, Scotland enfranchised those above the age of 16 to participate in their referendum and they are now in the process of legislation to allow those that are between the ages of 16 and 17 to be candidates for parliament.
It is now time for Australia to do something similar.
- Narayan Khanal is currently studying a doctor of medicine degree and represented Australia at this year's Y20 summit, one of the official engagement groups of the G20 summit.
