From India to South Korea: My experience at a UNOSDP Youth Leadership Camp

This is a blog by 21-year old Radhika Jeenwal's about her experience at a UNOSDP (UN Office on Sport for Development and Peace) Youth Leadership Camp in South Korea. Radhika is a Magic Bus Training and Monitoring Officer in charge of a team of 64 Community Youth Leaders who work in the field every day delivering the Magic Bus sport for development programme to 1800 children across South Delhi.

Radhika shares her experience of the camp here.

"The United Nations Office on Sport for Development and Peace (UNOSDP) organised its 12^th Youth Leadership Camp in Gwangju, a beautiful city in the Republic of Korea from August 19^th – 30^th 2014. I feel extremely happy and fortunate to have been chosen to represent Magic Bus at this camp.

               Youth Leadership Camp held in Gwangju, Republic of Korea               

Over 33 young boys and girls from all over the world participated in the Camp. In these 12 days, I learnt a great deal. I left the camp with a deeper understanding of how sport provides a forum to develop discipline, confidence, leadership, and other core principles such as tolerance, cooperation and respect. I learnt that sport is a powerful vehicle through which the United Nations can leverage as a tool to achieve its goals, in particular the 8 Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Sport should therefore be seen as an engine for development, not as a mere by-product.

The Youth Leadership Camp emphasised the potential that youth have to invoke change in their community. By helping youth develop their leadership skills in Sport for Development this programme not only contributes to the personal development of young people, it also contributes to community development. By providing opportunities for young people like me to develop and exercise our leadership skills, we are better able to build the capacity of our communities and respond to their pressing needs.

I have tried to capture the most significant learnings from my experience at the Youth Leadership Camp, below.

Day 1: Introduction, leadership and peace and Right To Play

It is important to know what kind of communication is needed for different situations. There are five basic types of communication:

·         Interpersonal

·         Intrapersonal

·         Group or team

·         Public

·         Mass media

Types of leadership:

•         Inclusive leadership
•         Authoritarian leadership

Day 2: Sports and peace-building with the International Table Tennis Federation

The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) is the governing body for all national Table Tennis associations. The role of the ITTF includes overseeing rules and regulations, and seeking technological improvement for the sport of Table Tennis. Table Tennis is one of the most popular sports worldwide. For many amateurs it is an economical and easy way of having fun and for professional players, it’s a passion.

Day 3: Adapting physical activities for those with a disability with Play&Train - partners of International Paralympics Committee

The International Paralympics Committee (IPC) has an exceptional track record of using sport to showcase what can be achieved by people with disability, on a global level.

Sport is a powerful tool for changing perceptions. It is an opportunity to recover/rediscover life.

Day 4: Leadership through Football with the English Football Association

The Association’s international leadership and volunteering programme, Changing Lives, was established in 2005 to provide an opportunity for young football leaders to experience volunteering abroad whilst leaving a legacy by sharing their own leadership skills with other young leaders from the host country.

The activities included:

•         Introduction about Football
•         Warm-up games
•         Organising and managing a Football activity session
•         Organising and running event with NW SWAGS Swimming Club, South Africa

Day 5: Swimming session and water safety games with NW SWAGS Swimming Club, South Africa

The first water experience of children is crucial, and therefore games play a big part during teaching. Knowledge of water safety games is very important for 'Learn to Swim' instructors.

Day 6: Peace and friendship in every corner of the global village through Taekwondo with World Taekwondo Federation

The World Taekwondo Federation works to provide effective international governance of Taekwondo as an Olympic sport. The federation helps promote, expand, and improve the practice of Taekwondo worldwide in light of its educational, cultural, and sports values and to promote fair play, youth development and education as well as to encourage peace and cooperation through participation in sports.

                                                   Taekwondo session led by World Taekwondo Federation

Day 7: Child protection/ Safeguarding youth and Sport for Development with Right to Play

This self-audit tool is an ideal way to measure how far (or near!) our organisation is from meeting international standards on safeguarding and protecting children in sport, and where we need to improve.

Day 8: Gender equality in sport with Korean Air

Gender is a social construct that outlines the roles, behaviours, activities and attributes that a particular society believes are appropriate for men and women. Gender differences between men and women do not necessarily imply inequality. However, globally, women are particularly disadvantaged by gender constructs which prevent them from fully realising their rights, accessing resources, and harnessing opportunities.

Day 9: EPICS Forum

This forum is organised every year in Gwangju and is based on the concept of ‘Sports meets Art & Culture’ aimed at University students and other youth. At the end of this forum, Wilfried Lemke, Special Adviser on Sport for Development and Peace to the UN Secretary-General, asked all of us if we were aware of the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). It was a proud moment for me since I was the only one amongst the 33 participants who knew all the 8 MDGs and earned Mr. Lemke’s open appreciation along with a UNOSDP badge. This moment was really special. :o)

Day 10: Excursion day

We went around the city to explore and understand the culture, tradition, cuisine and rituals of South Korea.

Day 11: Action Plan/ prevention of HIV-infection and HIV-related discrimination among young people with AIDS

We were given some basic knowledge about HIV and AIDS, after which we took part in a quiz on the same topic. I scored well and was also rewarded with special appreciation.

Day 12: Promising practices

The concluding session saw representatives from each participating organisation demonstrate the work that their organisation does on Sport for Development. Like everyone else, I took this opportunity to share a glimpse of the innovative activity-based sessions that the Youth Leaders at Magic Bus hold every week with children from marginalised communities on the Magic Bus programme.

Certificate of participation in the Youth Leadership Camp

This was a 12-day journey in my life which I feel has really changed me, not only as a youth leader but also as a person. I would like to express my gratitude to Magic Bus once again for giving me the chance to take part in this camp. Last but not the least, I would  like to thank our Magic Bus CEO, Pratik Kumar, who left me with very encouraging words that filled me with a sense of confidence and ownership just before I departed from Delhi to South Korea.

Inauguration of Youth Development Centres for our Karnataka programme

Our world is fraught with social, cultural, political and environmental challenges. This scenario is an opportunity for societies to transform their value systems and create a more sustainable and equitable present and future. In this context, the role of youth is of critical importance, as young people are the most important building blocks of a society: They are an important source of creativity and enthusiasm, and are drivers of social change.

Towards this, Magic Bus, through nurturing one of its impact areas – livelihood, is striving to improve disadvantaged youth’s economic and social well-being by empowering young people to identify their targets, develop themselves personally and professionally, and ultimately take up and sustain employment.

The Magic Bus programme in Mysore has around 650 Community Youth Leaders. In light of this, a youth development programme was required to help young people visualise and achieve their goals, and move into employment, training or higher education. Taking this into consideration, two Youth Development Centres were inaugurated in Mysore on March 8 and 9, 2014, in Shanthi Nagar and Haleem Nagar respectively.

MV Krishnan from Vodafone, in collaboration with Magic Bus, supported the centres with computers and furniture. Hinduja Global Solutions (HGS) extended their support by engaging their trainers who will train enrolled youth in spoken English and basic computer skills. Roshan School and Milath Trust provided space for the youth development centres in the two communities.

The programme in both communities started with cultural performances by children, which included singing, a fancy dress competition, group dances, quawwali performances and skits on the importance of education.

In their speeches at the inauguration event, the guests mainly emphasized the need to empower and create a group of youth leaders who can positively explore themselves and are commit to making changes in their community. Guests also pointed out that youth need a positive and constructive environment where they can develop themselves socially and economically, and can ultimately lead successful, independent lives.

Youth Development Centre – Shanthi Nagar
The inauguration programme started with a great buzz in Roshan School, where 120 children, 80 parents, 60 youth and 20 teachers participated.

Inauguration event guests included Ayub Pasha, Corporator, and Raju Desai from Ace Foundation, and Amith, Aafaq and Chandini from Hinduja Global Solutions

At the opening of the Youth Development Centre in Haleem Nagar, around 150 children, 80 parents and 60 youth participated.

Guests at the event included Nagraj, Secretary of MESCO School, Shafi from Milath Trust, Shree Krishnan from the Vodafone Foundation who played a vital role in making it possible to open the two centres, and Kusum Mohapatra, State Head for the Magic Bus' programme in Karnataka.

Children, youth, parents, teachers and other community members came forward and supported the inauguration of both the youth development centres. The event was solely supported by the communities.

Thank you to all that made this happen!

To find out more about Magic Bus and how you can help us to make changes in communities like these, visit our website at www.magicbus.org/donate

Magic Bus Trainers at EMPOWER 2014 Youth Conference

EMPOWER 2014 is ROTA’s (Reach Out To Asia) sixth annual 3-day Youth Conference on Leadership, Service Learning and Global Citizenship, Qatar. In the last 5 five years, EMPOWER has gained a reputation as the first youth-led conference in Qatar. It focuses on equipping young people with skills to take active roles in building their communities, as well as and having a voice on global issues. [1]

Our CEO Pratik Kumar (second from right) participating in one of the panel discussions

The main aim of the event was to raise awareness and build knowledge and capacity to enable young people to take leadership roles in addressing local and international developmental issues of concern to them.The three-day event included a combination of seminar, panel discussion, power speeches, keynote speeches, small group workshops, off-site visits, and a youth panel. The major theme was Sports for Youth Empowerment. [2]

Two of our Magic Bus Trainers, Aman Sharma and Subhomoy Bhaduri, took part in the conference. Their role involves recruiting and training youth to deliver the Magic Bus programme in the field to children from some of the poorest communities across India. At Empower 2014, Aman and Subhomoy conducted a workshop on leadership, exploring the advantages and disadvantages of various leadership styles through an experiential activity, encouraging young people who took part to develop their own styles.

They demonstrated how sport can be used to address “socio-emotional learning”. A group activity began after some ice-breakers. The group played “touchdown handball”, a game where players pass the ball among their team with the overall objective of touching the ball down on their opponent’s line. [3.1]

The game was played with a difference as there was no referee during the game, the players were responsible for keeping score, penalising unfair play and resolving disputes. The reason for this gets to the heart of the socio-emotional learning curriculum by Magic Bus. Playing sport can lead to strong emotions, both positive and negative. Without the presence of a referee, participants need to confront those emotions, find a resolution and manage the way they behave. [3.2]

Emotions experienced on the sport field can mirror those felt in everyday life. People experience conflict or anger at school, at work and at home: by learning to deal with these situations and manage emotions in a controlled environment, difficult day-to-day situations can become less challenging. [3.3]

The relationship between sport and everyday life.

The final activity brought the group together to discuss the game and situations that arose. Participants highlighted a range of situations which caused conflict or anger, and skills, such as teamwork, communication and negotiation, which were needed to navigate these potential flash points. A central component the of Magic Bus programmes requires the facilitator to relate the activity to participants' daily lives, highlighting the need to manage emotions and negotiate – both on and off the sports field. [3.4]

Photo 1: Review on different Leadership Styles                          Photo 2: Ice-breakers before the group activity

Photo 3: Group activity in progress                                               Photo 4: Post-activity discussion

"There was great participation from different countries. This exposure gave us an understanding of the cultural aspect to sport, though there were leaders from various organisations present, one would notice that some would not get involved with the opposite gender whilst taking part in a group activity," shared Aman.

Subhomoy added that the participation at this conference was interesting to note. Although there was a language barrier, the enthusiasm shown by participants to learn and be involved in all the activities and discussions were evident.

They said they found, amidst the gathering of great young minds, a network of skills and talents, and felt encouraged by the spirit of the EMPOWER initiative.

Article source:
[1] ROTA website: http://bit.ly/empower2014conference
[2], [3] Sportanddev.org: bit.ly/socioemotionallearninghttp://

http:/bit.ly/empower2014conference

Magic Bus Delhi gets its first Community Resource Centre

"A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step," LAO-TZU

Our North Delhi Youth Mentoring Team at the inauguration of their new Community Resource Centre

Passionate and enthusiastic youth mentors and staff from our North Delhi Programme Team were overjoyed when their efforts and work in the field was recognised by a local community resident. Mr Manoj was so impressed and touched by Magic Bus' work and the impact created in the Bakkarwala community relating to promoting gender equity, education and health, that he provided a free space for us to open a Community Resource Centre, and supported it's inauguration.

Magic Bus will always be grateful to Mr. Manoj for making the dream of having a Community Resource Centre a reality.

Magic Bus' North Delhi District Programme Manager, and Magic Bus' Delhi State Head acknowledging special guests and youth present at the inauguration of the Community Resource Centre, including our donor Mr. Manoj

The advantages of having a local community resource centre are significant.

Located in Bakkarwala, this Community Resource Centre will serve as a gateway for partnership opportunities with existing NGOs/institutions, new collaborations and initiatives, and enable the provision of Partnership Advisory Services and Outreach to a variety of entities.

The Centre provides a powerful platform through which to foster our connection with the local community, an element that is critical in making a Magic Bus programme successful.

Since its' inauguration in September 2013, the Bakkarwala Community Resource Centre has been host to several inter-community meetings, parents' meetings, painting competitions for children, activity-based seminars and a visit by important partners such as Barclays.

 Periodic training for our Youth Mentors has been made easier by removing the challenges of having to find a venue, the funding to cover the fees and the long distances that our mentoring team often had to travel to.

In the coming months we are planning to start our Livelihood programme called 'Connect' which prepares our Magic Bus Community Youth Leaders to go into employment. The Connect programme aims to bridge the gap between employers and young people by training them in Functional English, Computer Literacy & Work-readiness skills.

Magic Bus' North Delhi Youth Mentoring Team excited at the opening of their new Community Resource Centre

Insights into a Youth Development Camp

A Youth Development camp was held for 100 Community Youth Leaders (CYLs), who volunteer to deliver our Thane programme in Maharashtra. The camp took place at our Magic Bus Learning Centre on the outskirts of Mumbai.
  

The primary objective of the camp was to allow our CYLs to focus on issues relating to youth development and career planning in a concerted and uninterrupted manner.

The topics covered over the 3 days included:

·         personal and social development

·         individual and group values

·         managing one’s strengths and weaknesses

·         various dynamics of leadership

·         career planning

The first four modules created a sense of self-awareness, a pre-requisite for the concluding topic of career planning.  The methods employed to help us reach this goal was not that of a lecture, but activity-based. This provided an impetus for the CYLs to express their ideas and understandings. The emphases of these activities were to allow the CYLs to vigorously debate the philosophies that resulted from the introspection drawn on the topics discussed.  Packed with interactive outdoor exercises and role plays the programme provides experiential learning on the challenges of leadership, prioritisation of values, and assessment of one’s strengths and weaknesses.

One could visibly note the behavioural change the CYLs went through over the three days. They learned to develop an inherent sense of responsibility, team spirit and understood what it takes to be a leader. They also further developed abilities of how to communicate effectively, think strategically and solve complex problems. The distinction in the responses provided by the CYLs in the pre- and post-assessment forms of the topics covered indicated maturity and understanding of the topics.

Recognising the importance of career planning, the CYLs formed area-specific youth committees. The objective of these youth committees is to create a grouping for the CYLs to collectively voice their career requirements and to create a sense of ownership of the youth development programme.

The youth development camp is an important step in allowing the CYLs to single-mindedly deliberate on their personal and professional growth. The ideas expressed by the CYLs formulate the core and direction for the Magic Bus’ Youth Development programme, ensuring orientation with their requirements.

• If you'd like to know more about the Magic Bus programme, visit www.magicbus.org
• To sponsor the training of a Magic Bus Community Youth Leader (CYL) to become a change-maker in a poor community, visit www.magicbus.org/donate.