Report
Andre Gordon
Youth Support youth forum 2002
Each day we turn a new page in the book of life and it is way you live your
life which determines what goes on those pages, Even though sometimes life
takes you places to give you a better understanding of the people in the
world. The youth support forum held in London in October was one filled with
important knowledge and yet much fun. The relationships formed in the one
week were priceless and the experiences gain will be treasured, in
situations like this you don’t know where to tart because every aspect is so
interesting, by virtue of this I will start at the beginning. The journey to
England was smooth especially since my Jamaican counter parts are good
travelling partners. Even though I did not know my peers in the begging
with the exception of Jodi and Omar, the other people I did not know were
very friendly and before we left Jamaica we were all friends. I really
enjoyed the first two days of touring, London is a beautiful city and having
the honour of touring it was to my delight. The Italians and the Americans
are nice to be around even though in the case of the Italians language
barrier was a factor, therefore I did not get to know much of them because
they spoke little English and I understand little Spanish and no
Italian.
The presentations on the first day were quite good and the information
transmitted was well received. I found the presentation about the adolescent
development interesting since I am a teenager and many of the issues
affecting adolescent either affect me or my peer therefore it is important
that I am educated. The issues of sexual identity was discussed again
important knowledge was gain, I was able to understand gender identity
issues which come up in other cultures.
The idea of having workshops was an ingenious
one and Doctor Birch and her team must be commended for it. The workshops
were very interesting, the one on crime and violence taught me a lot about
crime and violence in schools in other countries and I was able to share
about what takes place in some Jamaican schools. The other workshop, which I
enjoyed, was the acting workshop headed by Leila, I enjoyed learning the
basics of acting and the other members of the team were just great.
The presentation on the effects of Tobacco
smoking was very informative information obtained
includes learning that there were 4000 chemicals in cigarette smoke and also
about the short or long term effects of the habit.
Overall presentations were good and the much
needed information was well received.
“MUCH LOVE FROM JAMAICA”
YOUTH SUPPORT -
Conference report Alesia Walker
- Scholarship winner.
Today’s youth are constantly fighting battles;
they fight with their families, figures of authority and society in general.
To add to this they also have internal conflicts, which often seem life
threatening and impossible to resolve. Adolescents are always seeking new
knowledge of themselves their potential and talents. However society does
not always provide the resources necessary, for them to realise their full
potential. This lack of efficient resources often leaves our young people to
wonder who cares for, or is even aware of their existence.
The week of October 20th -27th proved as one
where the voices of young people from all different parts of the world were
heard. We were given a unique opportunity to express our views thoughts and
feelings. We were allowed to share our experiences, talents and
personalities with persons from different cultures racial and religious
backgrounds. The young people who were part of this seminar were reassured
that society was in fact interested in us as young people and did actually
want to see us learn and grow. Dr Diana Birch, who hosted the seminars and
also paid the way of many delegates, was greatly appreciated as she made our
week possible. There were also a number of speakers present at the seminars
and they all presented on some very controversial issues which we all
enjoyed being apart of. The 2002 youth conference was held at the Barbican
centre in London. The participating countries included Italy, England,
America and of course Jamaica. The seminars were for young people who had
difficult life experiences, which they had eventually overcome, as well
young people who were counsellors trying to find new ways of helping
troubled youths.
Our week began with a tour of London; we
explored this beautiful city for two glorious days and visited some of its
most historical monuments. Among the many places we saw were: Buckingham
palace, London bridge and London Eye. The next three days of our week in
London found us at the Barbican centre where our conference began. We had
highly intellectual speakers who covered a wide variety of topics. Topics
covered included: the media influence on young people, teenage pregnancies,
street children, sex education and family life. The topics discussed at the
seminars were very enlightening we came to understand that issues such as
teenage pregnancies and the street children problem do not only affect our
little island but are also major concerns for other countries such as south
Africa which constantly fight against these growing problems. Our
discussions helped us to identify some of the major problems faced by young
people in today’s society. Amongst the problems identified were poverty and
poor family structure
Poverty has always plagued society; it is like a
hereditary disease, which passes from generation to generation until it
finally affects the larger society. When our young people are born and
raised in poverty-stricken environments; they often grow up without an
education and sometimes without a skill and therefore they are forced to
survive with whatever low paying jobs are available. However the majority is
usually left unemployed and often times they turn to criminal activities.
Another problem facing our young people
discussed at the conference was family life. Family is the most important
social group in society. It is where we are first taught the norms of
society and how to survive in our environments. The role of the family seems
however to have been misunderstood and instead of making our present
situation better it has in fact contributed to worsening the situation. We
have come to understand that with society’s constant financial problems it
is almost impossible for the single income family to survive, and parents if
present can hardly make time for the rearing of their children, hence we
have the television supervising and parenting. The present family structure
simply will not do if we intend to make a change in our society. We need to
get back to the basics, to where it took the whole village to raise a child
and when parents took an interest in their offspring and when parents were
not themselves children looking for love.
The sessions we had in London truly opened our
eyes, we were forced to see that things as they are, are not good and that
the present world, in which we live, is not a place we would enjoy making
children of our own. We realized that we as young people need to make a
change; we need to take matters into our own hands and fix all that has gone
wrong. We also realize that we couldn’t make an attempt for change on our
own. Some may say we need the government and while the help of the
government may be necessary, I believe that our greatest help comes from the
Lord hence society needs to get back to praying, we need to seek the face of
God so He can give us vision to make a change and the strength to carry it
through.
Alesia Walker
A note from Alesia
- I must express my gratitude for the amazing opportunity you
offered us all as young people . You gave us a chance to express ourselves
and share our talents with people from all parts of the world, you reminded
us that someone did actually care. THere is something very special and very
sincere about your efforts that gives me more encouragement to persue my own
dream of becoming a psychologist and makes me want to give all that I can
give to human kind.
I learned a lot at the conference, but the most
important lesson I learned while in London was that of giving and sharing
love with each person I came in contact with, since LOVE truly does conquer
all. I dont want to spend the whole night writing so let me end by
telling you how very special you are and how very thankful I am to you.
Please continue to do what you do best , loving and giving of yourself - one
life saved is enough reason to smile. God bless you.
World Youth Forum - Omar
Richards Tivoli - Gardens High School
Omar won a Scholarship
for his rap poem on Suicide.
World Youth
Forum which was held at the Barbican Centre in London October 23rd
-25th
2002 which was
hosted by Dr Diana Birch and the Youth Support team has place a special
impact on the lives of many including my self. I am indeed grateful for the
opportunity given to me by Dr Birch to come to London for the youth
conference based on observation of my poem on suicide. Going on this trip is
one of the biggest opportunity been granted to me, to travel from Jamaica to
London England, reason of is the biggest opportunity because I have never
travel before, and thus has open a lot of doors for me, going on this
conference help me to have a more developed leadership skill.
This trip help
me to be realistic with people who speak different languages. Italians to
share things that you wouldn’t think to share personally, to give your view
without fear, favour or partiality. To be able to see another side of the
world how they dress, walk, talk. To enjoy and accept other dishes to feel
vital uplifted and spirit filled with joy to meet new friends, that may lead
to long lasting friendship, to experience to broaden your knowledge, to tour
and to create an atmosphere of togetherness to visit historic sights and to
sail to new heights.
I would like
for others to be able to attend the conference being put on by Dr Birch and
her team every other year to be able to taste the real side of exploring and
bring things they had only dreamed to realty.
My God
continue to bless Dr Birch and the Youth Support team.
Report Written
by
Omar C.
Richards
Re World Youth
Conference 2002
October 31st
2002
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