I had the opportunity today to attend a luncheon with former prime minister of Haiti, Michele Pierre-Louis, who was prime minister until November of last year. Being interested in children and education, I looked into the fate of schools in Haiti in the aftermath of the January 12th earthquake and came across two interesting articles:
What struck me about the video was how some of the youth interviewed felt as though their dreams too had been toppled by the earthquake. A young man spoke of having a dream to be an engineer, but now he feels as though that dream is over. As Madame Prime Minister Pierre-Louis spoke about Haiti and the persistent issue of its "brain drain", his words came to mind, and I got to ask her about whether she currently sees or foresees any youth initiatives for rebuilding and restructuring Haiti so that Haiti's youth can feel as though there is a place for them and their dreams in Haiti. She answered that previously the Knowledge and Freedom Foundation (FOKAL), of which she is Executive Director, had partnered with the the Canadian organization Rights & Democracy, to create a Youth Leadership program that worked to increase environmental awareness in young children. She added that now such initiatives would have to be reworked and refocused on rebuilding Haiti.
Not only will Haiti's youth be given the opportunity to participate in reshaping their communities, but as seen in "Raising Money for Haiti is Child's Play", children in the U.S. are even playing their way to contributing to the relief effort in Haiti. Reading this article sparked a vision of many Yes We Can Lead! apprentices from several schools working together to organize an event for a larger cause such as the playathon in New York . As we expand to different age groups and different areas, such a project could be realized and would connect students from different parts of the city. Though this vision is grand and inspiring, we will have to keep in mind that we need to help the students achieve the visions they have for change. I was troubled by the fact that many of the children participating in the playathon did not understand the purpose of the playathon, which reinforces my belief that we need to help students realize which changes in their communities matter most to them and which they are most passionate about pursuing. Despite this fact, the playathon shows how even child's play can make a difference.
I'll leave you with this quote from Michele Pierre-Louis, "From my experience, the youth in Haiti are the ones with the most energy and the most will to contribute to the relief efforts. Unlike the civil servants, who are say, depressed, the youth have the drive".
All the best,
The Social Outreach Team
[posted by Sheba Mathew]
No comments:
Post a Comment