An empowering Massage (Message)

I was pummelled yesterday afternoon! Taking advantage of a break in the programme and inspired by Duncan and Emma (YMCA England and Wales Board members) I decided to go for my first Thai Massage. Entering the shop near to the conference centre I was ushered into the room where there were other people receiving their very own treatment. An hour later I had been pulled, pushed, thumped, twisted and stretched. I had bones crack that I didn’t know could be cracked and I found soreness that I didn’t know existed until it was worked on. However, despite the workover I emerged feeling relaxed, energised and motivated to return with vigour to the conference.

In some ways the World Conference has been a bit like a good Thai massage. We have been thrown into a room of people we don’t know, we have been challenged about youth empowerment and had our opinions stretched by people from different countries and cultures. We have learnt about things that we didn’t even know were issues but in so doing we have been motivated to return to the UK in the next few days with a fresh energy and vigour. 

So as we approach the end of this wonder World conference I wonder what your ‘take homes’ will be. What is it that you will return to your work in England and Wales with that you have learned and gained from your time in Thailand that you then want to share with your friends and colleagues. For me personally there have been several key things, some of which I thought I would share with you here:

1. This is an exciting movement to be part of. Whilst many of our Associations in the UK are over 100 years old the work of the YMCA is still expanding and reaching new countries and communities around the world. I was particularly struck by the story of the YMCA in Kosovo which is now older than the country itself, having been established by a 23 year old young lady just 10 years ago!
2. Mental Health is a global issue: In our small group we have shared the challenges around mental health and how different countries are trying to respond to the challenges. We have talked about how the YMCA can achieve a greater impact by working together, sharing resources as well as a focus to make a difference
   
3. Inspired young people create inspiring events: the opening ceremony and the facilitation of the small groups are just two ways I saw the global Change Agents add some creative skills and compassionate heart to the conference. As a English and Welsh movement we need to make sure we continue to put young people at the heart of what we do.
   
4. It is our turn next: the next global YMCA gathering is in London in just over 12 months time. YMCA 175 is set to be an important event in London that will connect thousands of young leaders from across the world. We need to follow in the footsteps of the YMCA Chiang Mai in looking to put on a quality event that will have a legacy that builds towards 2044. 

There is much more I have enjoyed, not least the many dozens of YMCA stories from people from countries such as Malaysia, Czech Republic, Canada, Brazil, Australia, Germany, Hong Kong and Japan.

Just as emerged from my Thai massage with fresh energy and I am now empowered to take the message from this land of smiles and conference back to my YMCA in London knowing that there are many others doing the same to all the continents across the world. I hope you do too!

My Story of the Global Gathering of World YMCA Change Agents

I should've mic dropped - next time.

150 plus young leaders, proudly representing 49 different countries from the regions of Europe, Africa, Middle East, Australia and Asia. So many personalities and values but we all share the same common love and common goal – the YMCA and empowering young people, we are ONE MOVEMENT. 

Our time in Portugal lasted 10 days in total, but those 10 days went by too fast, well I say 10 days, my time was extended to 13 days but more about that later oh, and the culture night that will come later too. The days involved stories, experiences, culture, sessions and interactive workshops. On Day 2, I myself presented a workshop on the theme of Young People and Civic Engagement which aligns with one of World YMCAs key areas of advocacy along with Health, Employment and Environment. 

I arrived in Lisbon a day earlier and took in some sights with another Change Agent from Czech Republic. The next day we travelled to our hosts in Setubal. YMCA Camp Alambre, a beautiful fit-for-purpose camp that was surrounded by the naturally beautiful Portuguese scenery and local vineyards that have produced award winning wines – what more would I need.

The Camp at YMCA Alambre

It was so uplifting to see familiar faces from previous Change Agent training in France, but more importantly the excitement of meeting and making new friends and networks was even more enriching. We were seen to our rooms and through prior information, I knew I was to share a bungalow with 5 other Change Agents from England. However, what some of us didn’t know is that they were to practice for the BBC Proms every night and on Day 2 they were dubbed by Joe as ‘the Sn-Orchestra’ - which still makes me giggle. Nevertheless, it was great to share a bungalow with some of the funniest people I have ever met. 

Arrivals

After the formal opening ceremonies and greetings, we dived straight into sessions around YMCA Research, the expectations of the gathering in addition to looking ahead to Word Council in Chaing Mai next year. 

Opening statements from Johan Eltvik, Secretary General, World YMCA

Environmental Immersions and Social Action was the main theme on the Monday. We were split up into different groups and split up around Setubal. As a total, we gave 19 days of volunteering and took part in cleaning up areas in the national park, renovation of Santa Margarita Chapel, restoration of the “Patience Fountain”, recuperation of a hiking pathway and where I was stationed, the rehabilitation of the oceanographic museum. 

Alli - Painting in Setubal

After our volunteering, we had free-time, and what a way to spend it, on the luscious golden beaches of the Setubal region. The heat of the sun was melting, but if you were crazy enough you could easily cool down in the water which was at an estimate around -50 degrees – Baltic.

Thanks to Igor; my face tells the picture of the freezing waters

Health and Employment was the focus of the next day, which took us into some of the social injustices that face young people today. Employment issues that were risen from the previous day steered us nicely into the topic of the next day where we would visit the Portuguese Parliament and meet with MPs of the Portuguese Government. Just like domestic politicians they evaded most of the questions but it was still an experience I will never forget, especially being given the honour to ask my groups question to the parliamentarians.

Portuguese Parliament

Question Time

Thursday was all about the 19th World Council which is held next year – it will also be the graduation of our Change Agent cohort. We also looked at the roles most of us may play next year from facilitating more sessions and workshops, being able to play a part in the opening ceremony and much, much more. I can easily say I am already looking forward to World Council.

Friday and Saturday was the backdrop for Youth Empowerment, we visited the region of Cascais, specifically Estoril. The region is to become the European Capital of Youth In 2018 – Stoke’s turn soon, maybe? The last full day began with more sessions being led around youth empowerment. In the evening, we were treated to locally produced sustainable food that was cooked and presented to us by the different YMCAs from the Setubal region. 

Cascais

The cultural night is by far one of the highlights for me. Every time I have been on international gatherings they never fail to amaze me. This cultural night was the best yet in my opinion. Like I said at the start of this blog, we were representing 49 countries, 49 cultures of food, dress, drink and 49 arts of music and dance. The different foods that burst the palette of your tongue into joy, the drinks we sampled – some you needed to be courageous to even smell never mind taste.

The night started with a fashion show that featured different countries traditional clothes, most countries paraded down the red carpet, Cambodia, Japan, Cameroon, Malaysia and Ghana just to name a few. We were also graced with the presence of Hotu who hails from Easter Island – he showed us a traditional war dance of the Rapa Nui people. It was so captivating to learn the history of his home. Near the latter part of the night we all engaged in something that is turning to be a tradition from Team England, we got everyone in a circle and brought the Hokey Cokey to the people once again and this time it was bigger, better and more chaotic than ever before. 

Hotu (middle) - Easter Island/Rapa Nui

By now we have all reached home with the learnings and stories we’ve all shared, new friends and new connections that spread across the globe. We are better prepared now more than ever to empower young people within our respected communities. ‘Be The Change’ a term we all know, use and all endeavour to be.

Portugal it has been a pleasure, special thanks to YMCA Alambre Camp for the hospitality, the smiles, the music, the coffees and your service. Also, special appreciations to the staff and volunteers of World YMCA for their knowledge and challenging work over the weeks and months; Romulo, Adi, Karina, Sharnelle, Maricris, Jose, Andrew and Johan, you guys are inspiration to us all.

There are no goodbyes in YMCA – only “see you again soon”. Thailand is our next gathering but the work and the CHANGE has already begun.

Look how close i got to the cancelled plane :(

P.S I mentioned 13 days instead of 10. My flight got cancelled, the reason, oh and what a reason it was, it beggars belief. RyanAir couldn’t locate the Pilot – seriously.

Change Agent……. over and out.

From Stoke to Geneva and the World

From Stoke to Geneva and the World.

Swiss flag flies with Jet d'Eau on Lake Geneva

World YMCA is proud to support four key areas of advocacy to support its goal of empowering young people all over the globe (Health, Environment, Employment & Civic Engagement). These areas involve a ‘World Resource Group’ where leaders and young people share best practices and knowledge to succeed in spreading and supporting YMCAs global youth empowerment impact.

YMCA North Staffordshire

That’s the world, but a little bit about me and maybe, why me? I started in humble beginnings volunteering in my local YMCA (YMCA North Staffordshire) buttering up sandwiches for young people. Eight magnificent years later here I was in Geneva, sitting at a table at World YMCA, meeting with other YMCA leaders from different areas of the world and also in attendance was World YMCA Secretary General, Johan Vilhelm Eltvik. For more than a year, I have been privileged to call myself a YMCA Youth Ambassador. It is a role that has taken me to noteworthy events and places of global importance with an overarching goal of advocating on behalf of all young people.

Back - (Daniel, Myself) Front (Carlos, Lisa, Johan, Nader Lloyd) Outside World YMCA

The next step of my YMCA journey was to join the World Resource Group for Civic Engagement and through my years at YMCA, I have produced a strong passion about young people; how young people engage civically in their local and regional community in addition to their involvement with democratic processes. All the above has been strengthened through my visit to the United Nations ECOSOC Youth Forum in New York as well as attending a World YMCA Programme Innovation Camp (Youth & Parliament).

Swiss National Day celebrations

After a manic rush that preceded my landing in Geneva, I was finally there. From the airport to our meeting point, I was greeted in central Geneva with a carnival atmosphere – literally. Fireworks, people in the streets singing and dancing, a park full of people hovering around a large fire and a small concert. Clearly Geneva and Switzerland put out all the stops as they knew I was arriving, all the fuss wasn’t for the fact it was to celebrate Switzerland’s national day, it was just my welcome party. 

Why play one traditional Swiss horn, when you can play two

Geneva to the World 

We all arrived at World YMCA full of vibrant ideas and concepts that can help shape the way YMCA impacts and supports young people to engage in ethical social action, such action that develops and strengthens young people but also the communities and societies those young people live. We are a small, but growing group, Nader (Middle East), Lisa (USA), Daniel (Mexico), Carlos (World YMCA) & Lloyd (Africa) and I (Europe). We all support and advocate Youth Empowerment: To give youth the platform and tools they need (whatever that may be, depending on the young person’s starting point) to feel needed, trusted, and able to believe in possibilities, to further trust themselves to lead and believe they can make a difference, thereby becoming a change maker in the world. 

Stand and Deliver

The question may be simple but the answers are not, how do we get young people to engage civically? We didn’t converse around a table to make young people see civic engagement as a tokenistic opportunity. We deliberated on how young people need to be better equipped to create positive change through ethical action and how we (YMCA) one of the largest youth organisations in the world can aid young people to achieve that feat. 

A photo in the room, if ever we needed inspiring - 1894 YMCA Jubilee Celebrations at Windsor Castle, England 

It is early days for this Resource Group, but the journey has started. YMCA has a proud and strong history which has created the foundations for present. Now I look to the future. The future is uncertain, the future always will be, however with young people being active in creating positive change, I am optimistic that the future will be a positive and inclusive one. My fellow colleagues and I will take an active approach in making sure this is achieved – buckle up, I’m ready!! Are you? 

Sir George Williams

The life of a World YMCA Change Agent Trainee

Engaging with YMCA on an international capacity always captivates me. I find the mixing of shared values and diverse cultures incredibly powerful, to the extent where I become extremely proud and honored to be involved in such a movement. A movement which while 173 years old, is still as significant as the day it was founded in 1844. Avignon, in France, was the setting for a group of European Change Agents to train as global leaders to be the change, communicate the vision and inspire action, so that the next 173 years of YMCA is just as momentous.  

Palais de Papes, Avignon

The time came for me to venture from YMCA North Staffordshire, in Stoke-on Trent. France was the destination for the start of our two-year journey, a journey which will see my fellow Change Agents and I from across Europe, and the world, embark on a shared mission to create change, and spread the positive messages that surrounds YMCA’s movement. 

For the first couple of hours I was making new friends, in total there were 50 young leaders from 22 countries including  Kosovo, Armenia, Syria and Palestine to name a few. It is so powerful to share stories, significant past moments, moments that have moulded us as people and our YMCAs. We were all welcomed pleasantly by YMCA Avignon and YMCA France, we all enjoyed their hospitality, and the interactions with the volunteers of YMCA France.

Welcome message from YMCA France and YMCA Avignon

A session and reflection led by Romulo (World YMCA)

The Change Agent programme is organised by World YMCA. It was introduced in 2012 and is a Youth Empowerment Leadership programme. I am one of hundreds of Change Agents in the 2017-18 cohort. This event in Avignon wasn’t just a big meet and greet, its purpose was to share knowledge of our practices in the countries we represented. We worked in group sessions on issues such as political injustices, global issues (Health, Youth Employment, Civic Engagement, YMCA global governance, our identity as a movement, leadership and strategy planning. Some sessions were led by World YMCA’s Romulo and Adi as well as other leaders in Cedric (YMCA France), Sofia who is a World YMCA Change Agent graduate and fellow YMCA Youth Ambassador, Gerald (YMCA Europe).

Sofia, leading a session on Day 2

The days were long, we started early and finished late but the passion and information sharing  meant that time was well devoted. Even after the official programme was over for the day, conversations and stories ran further into the night. The diversity that runs through YMCA is truly immense. The cultural evening also proves this, this is where we have a chance to engage in songs and dances from across Europe, as we did at another event last year. England’s contribution was a good ol’ hokey cokey, which judging by participation and the smiles on people’s faces, it went down well. 

One of the many traditional dances from the Culture Night

I return to YMCA North Staffordshire with pride, inspiration and hope for the future. I look back through my book that is bursting with notes, ideas, concepts and thoughts. I can sit here reflecting and easily recognise I have developed as a person in less than a week. I know that I can say, evidenced by what I saw and heard that we as a group of leaders can be the change not only around Europe but around the world. 

Some story sharing after dinner with Jonas (Czech Rep), Emma (Greece), Chloe (Sweden), Mike (England), Yauheniya (Belarus) and myself 

Out and about around Avignon with volunteers from YMCA France

In Avignon, we were just one group of Change Agents, we are joined by fellow Change Agents from around the world (Asia, Africa, Pacific, Latin, South and North America) and I can’t wait to meet these fellow colleagues September 2017 in Portugal. 

 

The whole team in Avignon. World YMCA Change Agent trainees and YMCA France volunteers

P.S Always double check your train journey, so when you board a train anywhere or in my case Marseille, you make sure you don’t end up 214km away and again as in my case in Valence - the complete opposite direction. Four Change Agents leading by example. #BeTheChange 😊 

You can keep up to date with my progress by following me on:

Facebook - Jerahl Django Hall Twitter - @JerahlHall  Instagram - @Jerahl92

You can also follow my local YMCA (YMCA North Staffordshire) 

Facebook - @ymca.northstaffordshire  Twitter - @ymcans Instagram - @ymcans

Thanks for reading, have a great day! Jerahl

YMCA Youth Ambassador posts from Bulgaria

I'm in Varna, Bulgaria as the official delegate for YMCA Europe to the European Youth Forum along with Ana Sofia Abreu from YMCA Portugal. We are tasked with representing the position of YMCA as a full member of the YFJ with voting rights. We will engage in the amendment of the YFJ strategy and work plan, vote on new members and a new board for 2017-19. We will also have opportunities to gain more insight around the work of YFJ and other member organisation through workshops on migration, youth rights, youth advocacy and much more.

This was the view from my morning jog after a very long first day at the European Youth Forum (YFJ) General Assembly in Varna, Bulgaria. This is the only glimpse of the outside world I will most likely see so I'll savour it.

Our journey here was slightly tricky but we made the most of it, even allowing Ana to have the quickest tour London at midnight on our way from Heathrow to Luton. I was unsure about the scale of the Forum but once we arrived it became clear the importance and responsibility that we had be trusted with. After settling in the hotel, we were taken to a large venue in Varna where we received a keynote speech from an executive in the UNFPA on our part in delivering the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development. Very inspirational is an understatement.

Already overwhelmed, we were then lead to a “room” where 2000 people were waiting for us and received an almost Olympics style welcome. We were honorary  guests to the selection of the next Youth Capital, a prestigious award for a city working to empower young people. What then transpired was incredible (see images!). Performance after performance, with each one surpassing the last.

The next day marked the beginning of official  proceedings. Ana and I, being the newbies, were apprehensive to say the least but we have had amazing support from the many other youth organisations like the Scouts and Girl guides and of course Ilenia, Heidi and Tinna from YMCA Europe.We got our head around the online system, voted, listen, fought for our amendments and made some new friends. We watched a debate from all the candidates for the Presidency, Vice presidency and Board members. There is strong political machine at work and I hope we come out of it unscathed. We are make YMCA proud and represent them well and have already managed to get some amendments accepted after some gruelling debates and look forward to more. The day ended at 11pm and a cold Bulgaria beer in true YMCA fashion. We are thoroughly enjoying the experience and grateful for the opportunity to represent YMCAs across Europe to empower young people.

Bring on Day 2!