Meeting of Youth Peace-Builders in Colombia
Antonio Sánche & Abigail Quic - SERES staff
Antonio Sánchez - SERES
Connecting as agents of change and architects of peace
SERES was part of a youth conference Oct. 27 - 29 in Montería, Colombia, where we had the opportunity to share with other Latin-American organizations supported by the Inter-American Foundation, and learn about social intervention methodologies to face violence that affects youth. The conference hosted delegates from 20 organizations from 11 countries in the region. Antonio Cruz -Co-founder of SERES- said: “"During this meeting there are two things that became very clear to me and had me thinking: First, there is a large percentage of the young population with the necessary academic skills and broad vision to make a better society, and they are doing what they love to do. No doubt that impact will create the changes needed at systemic levels of our society and the world. Second, the exchange and coexistence with passionate and committed people undoubtedly inspires us to continue doing what we are doing, and to trust more fully that we are a generation extended throughout the continent, and not just a group that wants to change something that may seem unchangeable.”
Participation from the SERES teamFacilitating the start: As delegates from SERES and ADESJU Guatemala, we facilitated a series of dynamic icebreakers to create the sense of community from the the start of the meeting. The message used was "WE ARE ONE"; as a region we must integrate what we do for the common good of youth, and we must think of winning for all to achieve the regional transformation we want. Esteban Sacalxot - SERES facilitator - "At various times as participants, we had the opportunity to exchange intervention methodologies against the violence we are facing, highlighting the strengths and collective efforts, such as the experiences of delegates from Paraguay who are promoting community councils, spaces for youth participation, and a high level artistic representation, as demonstrated in the Circus of the South in Argentina, and Teatro Esquina Latina in Colombia. In the case of Guatemala and El Salvador, leadership-skills empowerment programs and the great work of delegates, and Lakou Lapé of Haiti promoting entrepreneurship programs. Experiences Fair: This was a space that allowed organizations to share their greatest achievements, their work with young people, their challenges, and which strategies they are using to overcome them. SERES presented their experience on the series of Transformative Sustainability Leadership programs they’ve done, which was very well received by visitors to the stand.
Testimonial panel on violence affecting young people: Hearing four testimonials on the violence generated by gangs, discrimination against indigenous ADESJU women, and Afro-descendants. There are undoubtedly still challenges for the inclusion of all youth in the construction of a more equitable and fair region. Antonio Cruz shared his experience as an emerging youth leader and facilitator of the transformative SERES processes. In his words: "Gangs mainly affect youth and the economy but, in some cases, we’ve seen that entire communities have had to abandon their places of origin, their lands, their homes, and their way of life ... I believe and am sure that only this generation can transform our region; we are millions of young people with great abilities, great visions and great dreams to conquer. Together we can create… a fairer and, above all, more HUMANE...Central America and America.” Abigail Quic -SERES facilitator and coordinator of programs- said, "The biggest challenge during this meeting was to practice one of the parts of inclusion, that of Appreciative Leadership. I value the conversations both during group work and in informal moments, they opened my mind to real inclusion, to the different worldviews, spirituality, belief, and culture of each of the groups that participated, especially to the youth who belong to the LGBT community—hearing to their stories and really how to practice my evangelical Christian values of love and equality, and the challenge of having these conversations, taking each exchange of thought from its shared core, providing my comments to look for the common points where we can build. In returning to Guatemala, I have many questions about the reality of the youth in the country and especially about the "We are SERES" network, and I’m very committed to talking about this experience and put it into practice for the 7th youth sustainability meeting in December."
