Youth as Agents of Change
February 18, 2007

By: Leo Wong & Carlos Roca Pa

Youth as Agents of Change. That was the slogan of the IAVE [International Association for Volunteer Effort] World Youth Volunteer Conference, held in Delhi on November 9th and 10th, 2006. And sure enough, there were plenty of examples to go around.

Over 300 young people from 21 countries from all parts of the world came together in Delhi to discuss, deliberate and explore how their actions can affect positive social change. Hearing speakers, convening in workshops and presenting their messages formed the core of the conference proceedings, while evening activities such as dinner, songs and dance wrapped the event in a peaceful and welcoming manner.

Leaders in the voluntary sector served as speakers, moderators and facilitators in various sessions, including IAVE President Liz Burns and UNDP representative Jerome Sauvage. An address from Tara Ghandi Bhattacharya, a grand-daughter of the Mahatma Ghandi, was warm and welcoming as well. Among these highlights, the brightest were the youth of the conference who debated various issues related to volunteerism such as the role of media, sustainable development, humanitarian action, partnerships and peace. On the second day of the conference, workshop groups presented their discussion results and contributed towards a collective statement of youth volunteerism that has been published by IAVE.

We had delegates from all over the world, with especially large delegations from India, Taiwan and Korea, as well as youth from Uzbekistan, Egypt, Israel, Afghanistan, Syria, South Africa, Nigeria, Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, USA, Canada, Scotland, Spain, Bolivia, Panama, Venezuela, and Brazil. Our diversity proved to be a valuable asset to our discussions and the exploration of what peace and volunteerism really meant to each delegate. It was a wonderful gathering of youth who lived together, ate together and relaxed together at the Ghandi Darshan.

After two days of discussion and networking, the result was not only a lasting memory, but a vision for where youth volunteerism is today and where it should be headed to continue to foster social change. Thanks to our gracious hosts at the Gandhi Darshan and PIDT, especially to all our Indian volunteers as well as Vedabhyas Kundu and Indira Dasgupta for their leadership!

Leo Wong and Carlos Roca Parada