Summer Youth Camp on Charter Diffusion Project among Youth Leaders

The Charter Diffusion Project among the Youth Sector is an activity aimed at searching together the meaning of Human Responsibilities in the light of the present adverse social realities. This is translated in the context of global co-operation and governance as advocated by the Alliance for a Responsible, Plural and United World.

The assumption here was that global conditions today have placed the people of the world, especially the youth, on a common ground to fight injustices as well as social, human and ecological decay. That this fight is not only to restore the sanctity of human life, but of all life. If we want to survive, live together in dignity and in mutual respect, we need to take individual and collective responsibility wherever we are.

Concretely, this project was implemented through a Summer Youth Camp held on May 10 – 12, 2006 in Tanza, Cavite, attended by 40 youth leaders. Discussions on the need for a Charter on Human Responsibilities was highlighted by the group’s reflection and insights on the Code of Ethics as previously formulated by the grassroots leaders. It is important to know where the youth are coming from and their perspectives. In the process, they realized that despite the crisis today, people must learn to build confidence and foster unity with one another.

Objectives

1. To raise the awareness of the Youth sector on the Charter of Human Responsibilities and its relevance and applicability to the sector;

2. To promote a deeper understanding of the Code of Ethics in responding to the call of genuine service and solidarity;

3. To foster cooperation and fellowship among youth leaders/participants through sharing of experiences, learning and involvements in community/societal concerns;

4. To search together for the concrete and relevant Code of Ethics applicable in addressing their personal and organizational needs; and

5. To form a Council of Leaders in response to the challenges and support efforts for campaigns, alliance work and solidarity among youth leaders and the various sectors of our society.

Participants

40 youth leaders from ten people’s organizations in Metropolitan Manila participated in the project. Their age range is 15-21. The forty youth participants were divided into 5 working groups with eight members each for the workshop sessions. But these groups also met in the plenary sessions. Adult leaders were invited to facilitate in the group discussion and workshop sessions.

Prior to the implementation of the project, a Profile of the Participants was conducted for baseline information as input in the development of the module. Many of them are also involved in the parishes and in the Sangguniang Kabataang Barangay (local youth council). A significant number of the participants are children of organizers and grassroots leaders in their locality.

Program Flow and Activities

The Summer Youth Camp on the Charter Diffusion Project among the Youth Sector is essentially a capacity building project designed to strengthen the Alliance’s information and dissemination on the Charter. Likewise, the promotion of the Code of Ethics should highlight the role of youth leaders in identifying their concerns so as to organize relevant actions and responses.

The project’s strategy to organize the youth in their communities is also linked with the existing programs and services of the people’s organizations and NGOs.

An offshoot of the project will be the formation of Council of Leaders and planning of common tasks in pursuance of the mission and goals of Sanlakas Youth.

The session started with the Getting-to-know Activity where participants chose an object that best represents themselves. They were asked to share their expectations for the three days summer youth camp and to recite their group chant as they ended their presentation.

Later on, the participants were informed on the House Rules, Schedules, Management and Security Team as well as the Host Teams for the three-day seminar.

As part of the orientation, Mr. Wilson Fortaleza, Chairman of Sanlakas was invited as Guest Speaker. His topic was about the role of Sanlakas in Youth Development. He further explained the current political situation and its impact on the youth.

Moreover, there were several workgroup sessions where participants had the opportunity of sharing their views and responses to the issues being discussed. The first workgroup was on the Vision of New Persons and Society. They were asked to prepare a mural and their group’s chant. The second workgroup was on the role of the youth in the people’s struggle and hope. They were assigned to prepare a poster and an Organizational Plan of this year’s programs/projects for the Youth based on the following groupings: COVYO and SKYO (Bagong Silangan), SKB and PYC (Kapiglas), Anak ng Manininda and Philcoa (Luzon) Likhad and Ian ( Samana) and Batasan – Culiat Group. The last workgroup was on the Code of Ethics and its relevance on the youth sector. They were asked to present their workshop sharing through role-playing and Commitment of Support.

Summation Plenary

The outcome of the discussions on the workgroup reports were synthesized and summarized in the form of a statement and recommendations adopted during the focus group discussion. All workshops and reports after presentation are compiled on the basis of deliberation in the plenary session.

The final plenary was the Assessment Proper (Highlights and problems encountered) held on the third day of the summer camp. It was also at this juncture that the formation of the Council of Leaders was formally organized. The first meeting was set on May 24, 2006 at UP Hotel in Diliman, Quezon City.

HIGHLIGHTS AND LESSONS LEARNED

The Charter Diffusion Project among the Youth Sector is a crucial response to the growing awareness of the moral responsibility of upholding the quality of life, particularly the future generation. We have been torn between the problem of caring for the earth and the crisis of development. Events of our times are too demanding and dehumanizing. The issues of social and human development are influencing the lifestyle, behavior and values of the generation to come. It served as the venue of sharing valuable lessons learned based on the Code of Ethics. It also provided a venue for the youth to meet each other, thus seeing their efforts as part of a national initiative. It was also a validation activity to determine the effectiveness of the Code of Ethics in the context of the youth’s involvement in social transformation. It also provided a venue for the youth to have fun.

The session started with an activity called, “Birds of the same feather, flock together”. The participants were divided into 5 groups. They were asked to imitate the sounds and gestures of each animal. For 30 seconds, they were asked to look for their common animal sounds and gestures. Later, they were instructed to discuss the following concepts:

1. A true leader is analytical in all the challenges and problems confronting the Organization;
2. A true leader recognizes the skills and potentials of other members;
3. A true leader is strong and vigilant in facing one’s responsibility;
4. A true leader recognizes and respects the equal rights of all gender, race, and religion in a society; and
5. A true leader is one who values, respects and preserves the Ecological source of the natural resources for long-term development.

The Workshop Proper was guided by two important questions:

1. What is the relevance of the Code of Ethics in your life?
2. What is the relation between this Code and your role as a leader?

The Code of Ethics defines the essence of the new social contract among leaders and followers in an organization.

Some of the learnings and insights of the workshop were:

1. The support of community leaders as well as barangay officials are necessary for the effective program development because these people have the power to provide resources and other needs. This also involved the use of power and influence that benefit the greater majority.
2. Re-orientation of the thrust and direction on the youth development program for leaders, specifically on ecological concerns should be properly made in order to solicit support and advocacy. The use of the natural resources must be integrated to the care and management of the environment.
3. Cultural orientation and training are effective means of communication since they are expressions of one’s views, feelings and reactions that the youth can relate more to the issues being presented. The highest utilization of these knowledge and skills are only achieved when it is shared in pursuance to the culture of peace.
4. Ownership of the project begins in the planning stage and made it more acceptable. Thus, the people (youth leaders) are participating openly amidst threats and hindrances.
5. A closer coordination and comprehensive planning of youth programs is important to effectively address the issues and challenges affecting the youth sector. Thus, a true leader is creatively responding to the needs and demands of the times.

The sharing was informative and it affirmed the messages learned from this project. The Code of Ethics stressed on the importance of giving correct information and services to the youth. It stressed the importance of the participation of the youth in all phases of the project. It also maximized the significant support of adult leaders. Lastly, it stressed that a collective approach to youth empowerment is most effective which Sanlakas had implemented through the years.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The staff and participants of the Charter Diffusion Project among Youth Leaders would like to present their recommendations, as follows:

1. Youth organizations should give priority to programs on conscientization/ awareness building of its members and the community in order to lead them for social action on issues affecting them.

2. There is a need to re-orient the thrust and direction of program development for a self-reliant people’s movement and shared leadership in the youth sector.

3. Youth organization strategies should be adopted to the sector’s issues and concerns (issues of justice and development) to effectively respond to local and national campaigns /advocacy work.

4. Youth leaders should establish cooperation with other organizations with similar concerns and work towards solidarity actions at the national level for greater impact (human rights violations, care of the environment, exploitation of human and natural resources among others).