It's obvious that Boubker has contributed a great deal with youth locally, but he also remained committed to a global experience with his efforts to bring Moroccan students to our annual Youth Leadership Conference in the U.S. year after year. Bravo Boubker!
Showing posts with label youth. Show all posts
Showing posts with label youth. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Making a Difference in Morocco
From time to time, it's rewarding to see a person or organization recognized for their tireless work. Last week, NBC featured the Chicago-Casablanca sister city program in their 'Making a Difference' segment. The sister city hero mentioned in the story, Boubker Mazoz, is a former board member of Sister Cities International. Take a look.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Toxic Waste Off Africa, Confidence & Diplomacy
So with a title like this, I must be writing about the our Youth Conference. Right? Of course! I plan to provide space for a few voices to tell you about our conference experience in Northern Ireland, but this first one is from a star intern who joined us over the summer.
Guest Blogger: Sarah Gardiner
Written August 10, 2009
As a college student in Washington, DC studying international relations, a lot of my time is spent learning about conflict: which groups are fighting, who is denied access to resources necessary for their basic needs, how current institutions are are ill-equipped for the many problems facing the world. I spend a lot of time learning about the way things are. It isn’t often that there is space set aside to think about the way things could be and how we could get there.
This summer, I hit the undergrad internship jackpot, and began work as the Young Artist and Authors Showcase intern at Sister Cities International. At the end of July, I had the opportunity to travel with the art I’d spent the summer organizing to Belfast, Northern Ireland. While there, I helped to staff the annual Youth Conference. Exactly 142 youth from the United States, Northern Ireland, Russia, Mexico, and France came together to reflect on the theme, Bridging Differences: Building a Peaceful Future.
The morning the kids were due to arrive; I was true butterflies-in-my-stomach nervous. I’m sure some of it had to due with feeling out of my element as a visitor to a city with a very recent conflict history. A lot of it had to do with the fact that high school students are never an easy group to work with and once you throw in different languages, nationalities, and socioeconomic backgrounds, you just really don’t know how it’s going to work out.
Five whirlwind days later, my boss and I sat exhausted in our make shift office incredulously repeating to each other, “It’s over…” and then, “Everything went … really well.” Pause. “That was just amazing.”
Although a lot of the credit for the success of the conference goes to the talented team of youth workers facilitating the workshops, as well as the hospitality of our host city, the participating youth were what really made it a success.
It’s not often that anyone is given the opportunity to take a few days to truly reflect on who they are and how this fits into a broader context. The participants of this year’s youth conference did not squander this opportunity. They were honest, open, and willing to discuss their differences and identities. Some of the participating youth had traveled extensively, some had never left their home country. However, no one adopted an attitude of superiority. Everyone had something different to bring to the table, and this was respected.
There were several times during the course of the week where I had to take a step back to make sure what I was seeing was really happening: kids getting heated about toxic waste dumping off the horn of Africa, a beat boxer from Craigavon starting a call and response of ‘Sister - Cities!’, and a very enthusiastic conference wide Cupid Shuffle dance off.
At the end of the five days, students went their separate ways with the parting words, “See you in Alberquerque,” the location of next year’s annual and youth conference. In the week since we’ve been back, the Facebook group has been buzzing with youth eager to continue the conversation they started in Northern Ireland.
All this means that this year’s youth conference participants really internalized the principles of citizen diplomacy they were taught. They comprehend that true understanding and respect can’t come through one meeting, but must be continually nurtured. Even though my role in the youth conference was consumed with behind the scenes logistics, I feel like this rubbed off on me too. As a college student, it’s easy to think of my life post-university as when I will begin to truly work toward change. This is a flawed perspective – all of us have the capacity in our daily lives to build new connections.
One of the best conversations I had at the conference occurred with a youth worker from Northern Ireland. We discussed how confidence levels affect various aspects of a youth’s life. Ultimately, lack of confidence inhibits individual ability to dream past immediate reality. The point of citizen diplomacy is to expand individual world views, to widen the sense of what is possible, to enable the tools needed to dream, and, ultimately, to act.
Guest Blogger: Sarah Gardiner
Written August 10, 2009
As a college student in Washington, DC studying international relations, a lot of my time is spent learning about conflict: which groups are fighting, who is denied access to resources necessary for their basic needs, how current institutions are are ill-equipped for the many problems facing the world. I spend a lot of time learning about the way things are. It isn’t often that there is space set aside to think about the way things could be and how we could get there.
This summer, I hit the undergrad internship jackpot, and began work as the Young Artist and Authors Showcase intern at Sister Cities International. At the end of July, I had the opportunity to travel with the art I’d spent the summer organizing to Belfast, Northern Ireland. While there, I helped to staff the annual Youth Conference. Exactly 142 youth from the United States, Northern Ireland, Russia, Mexico, and France came together to reflect on the theme, Bridging Differences: Building a Peaceful Future.
The morning the kids were due to arrive; I was true butterflies-in-my-stomach nervous. I’m sure some of it had to due with feeling out of my element as a visitor to a city with a very recent conflict history. A lot of it had to do with the fact that high school students are never an easy group to work with and once you throw in different languages, nationalities, and socioeconomic backgrounds, you just really don’t know how it’s going to work out.
Five whirlwind days later, my boss and I sat exhausted in our make shift office incredulously repeating to each other, “It’s over…” and then, “Everything went … really well.” Pause. “That was just amazing.”
Although a lot of the credit for the success of the conference goes to the talented team of youth workers facilitating the workshops, as well as the hospitality of our host city, the participating youth were what really made it a success.
It’s not often that anyone is given the opportunity to take a few days to truly reflect on who they are and how this fits into a broader context. The participants of this year’s youth conference did not squander this opportunity. They were honest, open, and willing to discuss their differences and identities. Some of the participating youth had traveled extensively, some had never left their home country. However, no one adopted an attitude of superiority. Everyone had something different to bring to the table, and this was respected.
There were several times during the course of the week where I had to take a step back to make sure what I was seeing was really happening: kids getting heated about toxic waste dumping off the horn of Africa, a beat boxer from Craigavon starting a call and response of ‘Sister - Cities!’, and a very enthusiastic conference wide Cupid Shuffle dance off.
At the end of the five days, students went their separate ways with the parting words, “See you in Alberquerque,” the location of next year’s annual and youth conference. In the week since we’ve been back, the Facebook group has been buzzing with youth eager to continue the conversation they started in Northern Ireland.
All this means that this year’s youth conference participants really internalized the principles of citizen diplomacy they were taught. They comprehend that true understanding and respect can’t come through one meeting, but must be continually nurtured. Even though my role in the youth conference was consumed with behind the scenes logistics, I feel like this rubbed off on me too. As a college student, it’s easy to think of my life post-university as when I will begin to truly work toward change. This is a flawed perspective – all of us have the capacity in our daily lives to build new connections.
One of the best conversations I had at the conference occurred with a youth worker from Northern Ireland. We discussed how confidence levels affect various aspects of a youth’s life. Ultimately, lack of confidence inhibits individual ability to dream past immediate reality. The point of citizen diplomacy is to expand individual world views, to widen the sense of what is possible, to enable the tools needed to dream, and, ultimately, to act.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Sister Schools featured in International Education Week
By Guest Blogger: Erica Sewell, Youth & Education Program Manager for Sister Cities International
Every November the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Department of Education team up to celebrate International Education Week. As manger of Sister Cities Youth Department this is a very exciting week for me because it speaks to the core of the department - promoting international education and exchanges. This week is about learning something new about other cultures without actually traveling to another country.
This year Sister Cities International was invited to speak at the kick off event for International Education Week on November 17 at the U.S. Department of Education. The topic of the event was school-to-school partnerships and we highlighted our Sister Schools program. This program is a perfect fit because it focuses on pairing schools in the United States with a school overseas to encourage collaborative projects between classes. The program allows schools to connect with a school in another country without international travel by getting youth engaged, interested in global issues, and by adding an international component to the curriculum. Not only were colleagues Jim Doumas and Jennelle Root able to present on Sister Cities and our Sister Schools program but so were several students. Students at Walter Payton College Preparatory High School in Chicago and their Sister School at Ben M’Sik High School in Casablanca, Morocco were able to share their experiences about their exchanges via audio and video conferencing. Faculty and staff from Woodrow Wilson High School in Washington, DC and their partner school Lycee Jean Jaures in Montreuil, France also participated—again recognizing another form of a school partnership.
The highlight of the presentation was hearing from the students and listening to the things that they learned and what surprised them. A common theme was how wrong their prior conceptions were, how their host families made them feel right at home and how warmly they were welcomed when they arrived in Casablanca. The impact and life changing effect can best be summed up as a student from Morocco put it, “the 2008 Sister Cities youth conference were the best days of my life!”
A totally unexpected common theme was squirrels. Sometimes it is the little things that you take for granted, such as frequently seeing squirrels that remind you of the first time you traveled abroad, the life lessons you learned, and how you were amazed by something that was second nature to others. The first time I studied abroad I was in London and I can still remember how great I thought their telephone booths were. Yes, I still have the pictures of me standing next to one. I am sure the locals were wondering why I never went inside the booth but to me that was something new and exciting! Every time I travel I discover something new and that is what international education is all about. So what are you waiting for? Encourage your school to form a Sister Schools relationship. Life is truly a journey and not a destination.
Every November the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Department of Education team up to celebrate International Education Week. As manger of Sister Cities Youth Department this is a very exciting week for me because it speaks to the core of the department - promoting international education and exchanges. This week is about learning something new about other cultures without actually traveling to another country.
This year Sister Cities International was invited to speak at the kick off event for International Education Week on November 17 at the U.S. Department of Education. The topic of the event was school-to-school partnerships and we highlighted our Sister Schools program. This program is a perfect fit because it focuses on pairing schools in the United States with a school overseas to encourage collaborative projects between classes. The program allows schools to connect with a school in another country without international travel by getting youth engaged, interested in global issues, and by adding an international component to the curriculum. Not only were colleagues Jim Doumas and Jennelle Root able to present on Sister Cities and our Sister Schools program but so were several students. Students at Walter Payton College Preparatory High School in Chicago and their Sister School at Ben M’Sik High School in Casablanca, Morocco were able to share their experiences about their exchanges via audio and video conferencing. Faculty and staff from Woodrow Wilson High School in Washington, DC and their partner school Lycee Jean Jaures in Montreuil, France also participated—again recognizing another form of a school partnership.
The highlight of the presentation was hearing from the students and listening to the things that they learned and what surprised them. A common theme was how wrong their prior conceptions were, how their host families made them feel right at home and how warmly they were welcomed when they arrived in Casablanca. The impact and life changing effect can best be summed up as a student from Morocco put it, “the 2008 Sister Cities youth conference were the best days of my life!”
A totally unexpected common theme was squirrels. Sometimes it is the little things that you take for granted, such as frequently seeing squirrels that remind you of the first time you traveled abroad, the life lessons you learned, and how you were amazed by something that was second nature to others. The first time I studied abroad I was in London and I can still remember how great I thought their telephone booths were. Yes, I still have the pictures of me standing next to one. I am sure the locals were wondering why I never went inside the booth but to me that was something new and exciting! Every time I travel I discover something new and that is what international education is all about. So what are you waiting for? Encourage your school to form a Sister Schools relationship. Life is truly a journey and not a destination.
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