Regional Conferences Reunite Alumni
Pakistan alumni Haider and Masood
sing and play with the children at the orphanage in
Faridabad India |
Alumni from selected countries recently
participated in two regional conferences that promoted leadership
and community service, and also gave the participants a
chance to reunite with their fellow alumni from neighboring
countries.
The Pakistani and Bangladeshi alumni from
the AYUSA YES consortium joined alumni from other programs
and consortiums at the South Asian Regional Youth Leadership
Conference held on April 15th-18th at the American Center
in New Delhi, India and the Vidya Sanskar School in Faridabad,
India. The conference was organized by the American Embassy
in New Delhi in collaboration with the U.S. Educational
Foundation in India. Conference partners were the Vidya
Sanskar School, the nongovernmental organization Haryana
and AFS/India. The sixty-four participants included alumni
from YES, the Future Leader Exchange program (FLEX) and
the South Asia Undergraduate Students Leaders Institute
(SAUSLI), and came from regional states including India,
Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan.
Muzammil Hussain `05, Mirza Haider Ali `05, Masood-ur-Rehman
`06, and Sania Ali Khan `06, represented Pakistan at the
conference. Bangladeshi participants were S.M. Fahad Bin
Kamal '05, Masaba Adneen '06, Rubaiyat Kamal '06 and Maheen
Mahjabeen '06.
The conference began on April 16 with welcoming
remarks by Mr. Adnan Siddiqui, Counselor for Cultural Affairs
from the U.S. Embassy. A video address from Mr. Robert Persiko,
Chief, Youth Program's Division at the Department of State,
was shown. He highlighted the importance of alumni activities
and expressed his best wishes for the success of the conference.
The conference covered several topics, including
a panel discussion on Youth and Leadership, as well as workshops
on building leadership skills, adaptation, communication
and ethics, working in groups, building citizenship through
diversity and project preparation and planning. One of the
most popular workshop sessions was the planning of community
service projects for the participants to implement back
home. Participants broke up into country groups to design
projects addressing environmental, social and health issues,
which they then presented to the entire group.
Participants at the conference with their certificates |
The workshop sessions were led by various
representatives from AFS. Mr. Nalin Kohli, Director of the
Vidya Sanskar School who is also a political leader, gave
a speech on political issues in India and answered the participants'
questions about Indian politics.
One of the highlights of the conference
was a visit to a girls' orphanage in Faridabad as a community
service activity. The YES scholars organized activities
for the girls and engaged them in singing, dancing and games.
Everyone enjoyed the activities and felt uplifted by the
event.
The conference ended with a lunch in a restaurant
in New Delhi which was arranged by the U.S. Embassy. After
lunch, participants were taken sight-seeing and shopping.
The conference provided a unique opportunity
for the YES alumni to interact with alumni from different
countries and programs, and to learn about other alumni
activities being carried out in neighboring countries. This
conference also helped participants learn about Indian culture
and people, and to break down stereotypes some of the participants
may have had about each other. Pakistani and Indian students
participated together informally in discussions on political,
social and economic issues of local and global importance.
They had substantial dialogues on democracy, poverty alleviation
and the need to have better relationships between India
and Pakistan. The Pakistani participants in particular were
overwhelmed by the hospitality and enthusiasm of their new
Indian friends.
Workshops sessions took place in a traditional bedroom
tent. |
Workshop in the Desert
A slightly different venue was selected
for a workshop/reunion held for Jordanian, Israeli and Palestinian
alumni from April 12 - 14. Thirty-five participants convened
in the majestic desert of Wadi Rum, Jordan, for a two-day
workshop designed to assist them in developing an active
alumni network. The conference covered topics directly related
to their work as an alumni group.
Participants came prepared to camp out in
the desert. The sessions were held in tents set up Bedouin-style,
and were conducted by Mr. Mahmoud Hishmah, who is a trainer
at the Queen Zein Al-Sharaf Institute for Development. The
topics of discussion included community service, creativity,
team building, volunteerism and proposal writing.
Upon arrival in the evening of April 12,
the group attended a welcome dinner and was given instructions
for how the workshop would be conducted. After breakfast
and an ice breaking activity the following morning, the
group was divided in two. While one group attended workshop
sessions, the other group participated in activities arranged
to provide them with a unique experience in the desert.
They took jeep tours, participated in a treasure hunt and
enjoyed a camel ride, the first for most of the participants!
The two groups came together for meals and
evening wrap-up sessions to discuss the events of the day.
At the conclusion of the conference, the alumni expressed
enthusiasm for the event and were eager to begin putting
their new skills and knowledge to work.
Camel rides in the desert! |
Some of the alumni described their
experience:
"I never expected this to be so much
fun. I thought it would be boring sessions, but I really
enjoyed this conference very much."
Haifa Saleh '05, Jordan
"The idea of staying in tents in the
desert had never crossed my mind until the camp in Wadi
Rum. There we experienced what it is like to live in an
under-populated area with no electricity. It was unique!
Now I am enthusiastic to begin alumni projects that build
upon the leadership skills that I developed during the conference."
Marleen Milhim `06, Israel
"The conference was a wonderful combination
of hands-on activities. We attended a session about the
importance of being goal-orientated. The session facilitator
taught us how to put together community service activities
on a professional level. The camel and Jeep tours were incredible.
I cannot believe that we did not get lost being surrounded
by all the sand and rocks out here!"
Katreen Milhim `06, Israel
"After almost a year of being apart,
it was an awesome idea to gather all of us together again
in such an amazing place. We had the chance to meet up with
old friends, have an incredible adventure out in the desert,
and of course we improved our leadership abilities and skills
at the same time. Riding camels was the most amazing part
for me along with sleeping in tents in the freezing cold
desert temperatures! "
Mona Shimi `06, Israel
"Wadi Rum was not an experience,
it was THE EXPERIENCE! Burning hot days, freezing nights,
sand all around, even in the bed, and all over our pillows!
That was a blast! The workshop sessions also took me for
surprise as they got me into this AH-HA moment, that was
my wakeup call, to do more leadership work here at home.
Now I know that we all can make a difference. And yeah I
enjoyed riding SHLOMO -that was our camel's name!"
Nadin Qais`06, Israel
Workshop attendees at Wadi Rum |
"I have never thought that living in
the desert would be fun. It's amazing to sit around a campfire
at night and have conversations with your friends, or see
the rain falling in the desert or sleep inside a Bedouin
tent. It's really a different life! We all learned how to
be a leader, how to have patience, and how to be responsible
as a result of this experience."
Muna Milhim `06, Israel
"The YES alumni meeting in Wadi Rum
included a plethora of exciting and educational activities.
The primary purpose of the meeting was to emphasize the
significance of communal and group work. The entertaining
nature of the activities made us realize that community
service activities are not only meaningful to our community
but something that motivates and interests us as young people.
The facilitators helped us to recognize that one can help
his or her community in several imaginative ways. Most importantly,
they taught us that community service activities aren't
insipid in anyway whatsoever. Instead they should be entertaining,
delightful and most importantly, relevant to our lives!"
Said Zagha `05, West Bank
"The Wadi Rum regional conference experience
was awesome! Before the trip I was trying to organize community
service projects but these ideas didn't pan out well. Thanks
to the sessions
I attended during this conference, I gained the knowledge
that I needed to turn my ideas into concrete actions and
future projects. In doing so many hands-on activities, I
learned the value and importance of teamwork and creativity."
Razan Halawa`06, West Bank
