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!

Planning for the New YMCA Global Strategy

Preparing for the YMCA Global Strategic Plan

Between the 31^st October and 4^th November 2016 some forty people from across the YMCA Global Family gathered in the YMCA Europe Training Centre In a little place called Litomysl in Eastern Bohemia, Czech Republic to begin to formulate the drafting a new strategic plan.

This new plan will build on the two previous plans and will cover the period from 2018 to 2022.

There were six participants from England. Jason Stacey, Richard Hughes and Ken Montgomery from YMCA England, Dave Ball from Thames Gateway in his role as Chair of the World Urban Network Terry Radcliffe from Blackburn YMCA in his role as Chair of the John R Mott Fund in Geneva and Gerald Chifamba, formerly of Coventry & Warwickshire YMCA. Gerald, who is a YMCA Youth Ambassador, is the joint lead globally on the YMCA Resource Group on Health.

The participants divided into groups to cover various areas of the draft plan.

These area included, The overall strategy, the element which covered, engagement, the development of buildings on major Cities across the world, the second phase of ‘One Million Voices’ Research, Communication and Fundraising.

I will not go into detail at this time but some of the highlights will include.

Key Focus of the future plan to be on ‘Youth Empowerment’.

Internally we will concentrate on ‘Movement Unity & Sustainability’.

Externally we will concentrate on ‘Collective Global Impact’.

There is some really exciting elements in the details such as the next period of the research concentrating on qualitative research, the possibility of the Harlem Globe Trotters getting involved the next World Challenge and recruiting the next cohort of the Global Change Agents.

The plan time scale is to go out to consultation across global movements during the next few months with the final strategy going to the World Council in 2018 in Chiang Mai Thailand. 

Putting youth empowerment at the heart of our research

It's 11.30pm and I'm currently sat on a train home from airport after having spent the last four days in Litomysl at the World YMCA Strategic Delivery Summit. So what better time to reflect on my experience.

What I believe makes us unique (and excites me most about being part of the movement) is the sheer scale of young people we work with, from all backgrounds and from across the four corners of the earth.

It was this simple recognition at a local level in England and Wales that gave us a reason for starting to undertake research just three years about. Since coming to this seemingly obvious but truly mindset changing realisation at YMCA England we've built our research offer and programme built on the voices of these young people.

For this reason the potential of One Million Voices 2 excites me (as I write that, I am fully aware that sounds very sad, only someone that works in research would get excited by hundreds of managed group discussions!!!). OMV2 will put young people's voices at the heart of the global movement's research for the first time.

But it was listening to Peter Burns (YMCA Victoria) and Johan Vilhelm Eltvik (World YMCA) that challenged me to think how we can go deeper and further with our research, both nationally and globally.

Peter spoke brilliantly about the importance of letting go of control in succeeding. A scary thought, but a necessary action to innovate and grow While Johan spoke at length challenging us how we make youth empowerment more than just a statement and actually about everything we done.

It was with these two thoughts buzzing around my brain (along with some wine and inspiring conversations with Ken), I got to to thinking about how we can do this in my day-to-day work. What does letting go and embracing the concept of youth empowerment practically look like?

I came to the conclusion it was going beyond just gathering young people's voices as we are doing now. Letting go and empowering young people is about them setting the issues we research, designing how this research takes place, presenting not just issues but also their ideas for solutions, and finally getting the research to those that matter (decision makers, influences and other young people) to affect change.

I shared this when talking about where we wanted to be as a global movement in 2044. But coming home today enthused (if a bit tired) made me think why should we wait that long. Why can't this be part of OMV2 and why can't this be part of our research programme for next year?

The answer is there is no reason!

YMCA Discovery Visit Australia

Time with Victoria Y - from the first day staff and volunteers at YMCA made every meeting and site visit, exciting and informative, I am taking so many ideas home with me to improve and make positive change. I am absolutely blown away by the sheer size of Y Vic with 116 sites and 6000 staff and impressively 50% being under 30 years old.

The evident passion to keep young people active and healthy through the wellness programmes is inspirational and close to my heart, especially interested in the recreation and leisure programmes offered by the Y, who keep thousands of children and young people active and engaged in numerous activities.

Kings swim and YMCA swimming lessons Is such an inspirational swim and water safe initiative, 55,000 participants access swimming lessons each week , wow . We learned 372,000 people in the world die every year through drowning with 95% being in Asia. Drowning is a preventive death and  Y Vic have really taken on the role of making access to swimming  lessons available in areas of Asia, determined to save lives. 

The time spent with the youth development team informed us of the many programmes delivered to young people and I was particularly interested to hear how they had Set up a building maintenance social enterprise, giving training and employment opportunities to young people leaving prison. A very successful enterprise with fantastic results in participants not re offending.

The time spent with Y Vic finished with us attending the annual general meetings and annual staff awards. A glamorous and enjoyable evening learning of the dedication and passion of the staff going that extra mile for what they believed believe in, helping others to succeed and be the best they can.

Saying goodbye to Victoria we moved on to YMCA Brisbane, the sun was out and we embarked on the second phase of the visit. lan Bray CEO and his team explained their approach to sustaining their operations to be unbreakable. We are Staying at the the George Williams hotel which is just one of the initiatives to income generate. I have to say the standards and professionalism at the hotel are very high and deserve a good trip advisor entry.

I applaud the "Head for business and heart of charity " as a strong approach to the new generation of the non for profit sector. To survive we have to change .

Today has been an unbelievable experience of learning , firstly at a YMCA school in North Lakes, accommodating 65 students needing an alternative to state education. Andrew and Stephanie at the school demonstrated the difference being made to young people who have experienced dramatic trauma in their lives who needed the additional support as well as education. Truly inspirational.

The afternoon took us to something unexpected and magical, Old Peitre Town , I can only describe as a Oz museum and fantastic venue for functions and weddings.

We were embraced by Terry, who explained the indigenous peoples  ways and got us involved tribal dance, music and art. To top it off a lesson in flying a boomerang. Some members of the team threw a good boomerang which actually returned, not me.

Posted on behalf of Anthea Clements - Barry YMCA

Discovering the wonders of YMCA Victoria

After a 24hr flight and arriving in Melbourne late on Sunday, Monday was pretty much consumed with jet lag, but the excitement of being on the other side of world kept me going so after touring the city on one of the oldest trams – something Melbourne is known for – I took myself off to the Melbourne Museum to see the First People’s exhibition.

First People's exhibition, Melbourne Museum

In recent years, the Australian Government has started to recognise the injustices inflicted upon Aborigines and many organisations have began to develop reconciliation strategies, including YMCA Victoria who start each meeting with an Acknowledgement of Country.

After managing to get about three hours sleep, the group were up bright, early and bushy tailed on Tuesday to visit YMCA Victoria’s central office. In our crisp white YMCA shirts, we certainly made an impression as we were welcomed by the lovely Ang, Manager of Global and Voluntary Services. As our host for the week, she made sure we were well looked after and couldn’t have been more helpful.

Suited and booted for our first day at YMCA Victoria 

The day included master classes from YMCA Victoria’s Services and Strategy Directors who took us through their approach. As a local YMCA with 6000 staff, they occasionally take the lead, working with YMCA Australia to develop the federation as a whole.

I was delighted to hear from Cinzia, Head of Engagement, who leads the brand team and spearheaded the Australian national rebrand.  The work they have done around segmentation, core messaging and brand awareness really enthused me and is something I’ll certainly be thinking about when we return.

After a full on day of presentations, and several cups of coffee, I was inspired but exhausted so after some delicious pasta in the Italian quarter, I attempted to get an early night.

Wednesday was all about youth services, a relatively small division of YMCA Victoria, which sits outside of their camping and recreation services. They presented some impressive projects, including Youth for Causes, a social enterprise programme for young people, and the hugely successful Youth Parliament programme which puts forward Bills to the Victorian government, such as the distribution of the morning after pill, which was recently passed.

Thursday was time to give back, so after three impressive sustainable project case studies – including unearthed, swim for safety and international camping – Gillian Sewell, CEO at YMCA Derbyshire, took the floor and gave a master class on social finance.

Both entertaining and informative, Gillian presented a thorough case study to YMCA Victoria about young residents who take part in a placement with key employers in the local area, resulting in enhanced employment opportunities.

The presentations took place at Carlton Baths, a centre run by YMCA Victoria on behalf of the City of Melbourne, which had an outdoor pool, fully equipped gym, café and various spaces to deliver activities.

It was interesting to see the City of Melbourne’s logo, which strangely resembled our new national brand! It was also exciting to see YMCA merchandise for sale, another thing I’ll be taking back to the UK.

YMCA branded merchandise and the City of Melbourne logo

After finally recovering from what I can only explain as ‘torture’, my sleeping pattern was back to normal and I was excited for the facilities tour which included a childcare centre and campsite – both key services delivered by YMCA Victoria on behalf of the local authority. The passion and dedication from the staff was prevalent and the sense of YMCA pride made me proud to be part of an amazing global movement.

After a dash back to the hotel to meet with marketing manager, Bec, we talked about our similar struggles and successes rolling out a national brand - another great global contact to add to my network and someone I’m sure to liaise with on a regular basis as we work together to raise awareness of YMCA locally, nationally and on a global scale.

Unfortunately, we didn’t have long to chat as we were expected at the YMCA Victoria AGM, followed by the Staff and Volunteer Awards. So after 15 minutes getting glammed up, we headed off.

Not knowing what to expect at the AGM, it was a slick affair and it is easy to see why the Chair, Anthea, who was stepping down, is loved and respected by all at YMCA Victoria. A natural public speaker and clear visionary, she has worked with YMCA Victoria over the past three years helping it become the dynamic organisation it is.

The AGM was swiftly followed by the awards and after some amusing and emotional performances, we heard about the amazing achievements of staff and volunteers, including a staff member who worked his sick colleagues shifts for months so he could continue getting paid.

Saturday was all about sightseeing and despite the torrential rain we visited the Hearsville Sanctuary and met Skippy the kangaroo. This was followed by some lunch, an informative wine tasting session and a trip to the chocolate factory.

Skippy the Kangaroo

After arriving back at the hotel, there was just enough time to pack and get ready for our flight to Brisbane the next day. With so much learnt and experienced, it’s hard to imagine what more I can take back, but I’m excited to see what YMCA Brisbane has planned for us – and of course get some sun. The weather in Melbourne has been shocking!

Jade Asije, YMCA England

Social impact Australian Style

Well it's the last full day in Melbourne with time to reflect on yesterday's (Friday) full on schedule with YMCA Victoria. I could begin my reflection by diarising the day, starting with a visit to one of their  childcare facilities where I met truly outstanding staff whilst learning about the Reggio Emilia style of nursery, a style I will certainly be exploring back home, or I could tell you about the amazing Camp we visited called Lady Northcote

where again learning will be drawn or I could talk about the YMCA Victoria's AGM or the outstanding, inspirational, sparkly, humbling, funny, tear jerking, team uniting, alcohol available! YMCA Victoria awards ceremony, all extremely beneficially with lots and lots to take back. However, I want to use this blog to tell you about my experience of Victoria YMCA , an inspiring YMCA true to its vision - "everyone can be healthier, happier and connected to their community; and help those who are not". They embody their understanding "together anything is possible". They believe in healthy living, empowering young people, social impact, youth justice, civil engagement , civil leadership and social enterprise. They challenge one another, they support each other and  they truly believe in the unity of the Y with the attitude knowledge is not power but a learning tool they are happy to share with others.

Many people look at "YMCA Discovery Visits" as a jolly, I experienced it as a privilege and opportunity to learn from world leaders in health and well being, youth empowerment, experienced sector leaders able to sustain and grow their organisation whilst walking the fine line of community access and sustainable development. I heard of their calculated risk taking, their monitoring and evaluation to ensure informed services, their determination to prevent drowning in Australia and Asia Pacific, their drive to assist developing countries through sustainable tourism, tourism such as YMCA Unearth in Cambodia. I am blown away by the fact 50% of their 8000 staff are under 30! I leave Victoria humbled by such a determined and united team and if I'm honest envious of their ability to continuously grow thorough sustainable and targeted development whilst employing and enabling young staff.

New gym programme and global initiatives

Discovery Visit Day 3

After 2 days meeting at YMCA Victoria office locations it was great to visit one of their centres - Carlton Baths in a suburb of Melbourne - and meet some of the staff there. Carlton is one of 7 large multipurpose leisure or 'rec' Centre's owned by local authorities in the state of Victoria and operated by the YMCA (or the 'Y' as they say here) on a lease. There is a big focus on 'aquatics' or swimming in what the Y does here. Carlton Baths is the name of the original open-air (I don't think you will find that in England!) public baths which have stood on the site for over a 100 years. The facilities have been expanded since then to include a fitness centre, sports hall, crèche and various multi-purpose rooms

We learned from this YMCA's Health and Wellness Strategy Leader, Troy, that just as in the UK over the last couple of years they have seen intense competition from 24 hour and budget gyms. They had also see competition from a range of High Intensity Training (HIT) physical programmes - many of them derived from one called Reebok Crossfit. As a result they have seen their membership levels dropping. In response to this they have developed their own high intensity trademarked programme called 'Adrenaline Hit' which they intend to licence to both YMCAs and other operators

Much of the day was spent learning about various global initiatives that YMCA Vic (Australian's seem to shorten everything) is involved in. It was amazing to discover what this YMCA was doing in this area, or space, and how they were aligning what they do with global YMCA initiatives. Much of this work seemed to have its origins in the YMCA World Council in Colorado in 2014, which I was privileged to attend, and to World Urban Network (WUN) conferences. Many of the people who presented to us had been to one or both of these and had come back inspired to make this YMCA more globally relevant

YMCA Vic is a massive organisation with a large workforce - over 6000 people. Many of these are casual workers and over 50% of them are under 25. It has learned from external research that a high proportion of young people (87%) expect their employer to provide international opportunities and is working hard to make this a reality. As a result they are developing peer to peer relationship with other YMCAs particularly within the Asia Pacific YMCA region and creating 3 month internship opportunities for many of their young staff with these YMCAs.  At the same time they are creating reciprocal internship opportunities in Victoria

We were given two other fantastic case studies of global initiatives:

YMCA Unearth

We learned from Linda that Y Vic has partnered with the YMCA in Cambodia to develop a volunteer tourism programme called 'YMCA Unearth' which is currently being piloted with Y staff and volunteers. Participants pay for a 2 week trip or holiday to Cambodia. Under this scheme not only do they get to see amazing tourist sights like the sun rising at the 8th wonder of the world, Ankar Wat, they get to be involved in some genuine volunteering opportunities as part of the work that YMCA Cambodia is doing. This project is a triple win: the travellers contribute through their volunteering in Cambodia, YMCA Cambodia receives a % of the cost of the, very good value, price they have paid for the holiday, the travellers return to Australia enthused by their experience and wanting to volunteer further for the YMCA 

Global drowning prevention

To

Tim Fallon