DPI/NGO - stories from the participants- Youth the way forward

Youth – the Way Forward for Our Organisation?

This was my first UN DPI/NGO Conference. What a great event to be part of and thank you to Soroptimist International for allowing me the opportunity to go. What was absolutely fascinating for me was the large numbers of young people who attended, young people from NGOs or those who had formed their own based on an idea, a vision, or looking to make an improvement in their world. They participated fully, were able to get their point of view across succinctly– unlike several of the older members in the conference, who spent their minute of question time telling us about themselves in great detail, and also get their question out to the panel. One of the most interesting sessions that I attended was the one where it was run by delegates from the youth NGOs – such as Oaktree Foundation and YEAH! Listening to them and how they view the world is a real eye-opener and perhaps if we understood how they operated we would find a way to turn around our organisation into a positive force that welcomes these younger people rather than turns them off!

The current CEO of Oaktree said that young people are anxious to be involved, they see that if they don’t the world they know will not change and therefore the mistakes of the past will continue to haunt these younger generations. He also stated that young people are activists, they like to rush in, do the job and then move on. However, he also conceded that they made mistakes, after-all how do you learn if you don’t make mistakes. He also stated that if they are going to make a mistake they like to do it quickly so they can move on, rather than dwell on what went wrong. He also spoke of the importance of the older generation working with the young people, mentoring them into roles that would not normally be open to them, again how do they get experience if we do not allow them to try. The Founder of YEAH also spoke on the need for organisational structure which would enable the NGO to have a form and substance but also freedom to do what they as young people felt was necessary to achieve.

The vibes in the room during this session were fantastic. What positive energy flowed from all the young ones in the room – we need to harness this energy and enthusiasm and find a place for it in our Organisation and Clubs – these young people are the life-blood for the future, and if we don’t find a way to use them in our Clubs, then our organisation will wither on the vine and die.

Theresa Lyford- Delegate
SISWP Federation Assistant Programme Director
SI Victoria Inc - President