Showing posts with label youth. Show all posts
Showing posts with label youth. Show all posts
Friday, August 22, 2014
Child Abuse Fair
Friday, August 8, 2014
International Youth Day "Youth and Mental Health" Presentation
The Roseau Valley and Roseau North District Youth Council will be hosting a discussion on "Youth and Mental Health" in recognition of International Youth Day 2014. The activity will be hosted at the Roseau Youth Centre on next Tuesday (August 12) from 5:00pm.Two officers from the Acute Psychiatric Unit will be on hand to lead the discussions and also have an Question and Answer Session. The presentation will include:
What is mental health
How do I look after my mental health
What to do in case of an emergency/mental health attack
and other related issues.
See You There!
Friday, July 25, 2014
Fire! Did somebody say FIRE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
by Delroy Nesta Williams
Late yesterday afternoon, I got a call inviting me to a “lecture”
just as I was about to take a nap. It was at 7:30 at the Dominica State College
(DSC). My friend said something about “fire” so I figured it would be
interesting to attend. I dragged myself up and after taking a quick shower,
opened my eyes and made my way up to Stockfarm.
I was early, a big shocker since I had picked up the habit
of strolling in late, not fashionably though, to these types of activities. My
friend had said lecture and fire but what she should have said was a Holy Ghost
awakening.
 |
| God Sent warming up the crowd |
I was greeted by the sounds of God Sent as I made my
way to my chair; that was after wandering around the grounds of the Dominica
State College and taking in the view of Roseau. God Sent performed a few of my
favourite songs, Heaven to me, Pressing On and of course, I Know Who I Am by
Sinach, which happens to be a crowd favourite and literal anthem for Christians
on the island.
What I met at the DSC was a melting pot of Caribbean and American
youth, all gathered to praise the Lord. There were young people there from Dominica (obviously), the United States of America, St. Lucia, Barbados, Trinidad and
Tobago, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Grenada, Jamaica and a lone representative from the
Turks and Caicos Islands who did more than just represent her country, she
roared into action when she was called upon by lead singer of God Sent - Carlvin
Deravaliere.
The night featured a personal testimony by Emanuel “Manny”
Onhome, who spoke of his African upbringing and his encounter with an American missionary, that brought him to the United States through a basketball scholarship. He excelled
academically and in his personal business while in the US, eventually getting
married and raising a family. It wasn’t until his alcoholic father died though,
that he had an awakening and after the Lord put a few angels in his path to
guide him, that he founded Samaritan’s Feet.
Since inception Samaritan’s Feet has distributed shoes to
more than 4.5 million people, including Dominicans (the festival participants
had done a distribution drive across Dominica that very day). Basically, his
story involved a full circle experience that started from receiving a pair of
sneakers from the missionary to now providing shoes to millions, complimented
by his message of hope and betterment in the Lord.
 |
| Fully Ignited crowd reacts to God Sent |
As Manny said at end his testimony, “sometimes all it takes
is a little spark to create a raging inferno” and he proved it with his
demonstrative words and charisma across the stage. I particularly enjoyed how
he mingled with the French translator.
For more information on Samaritan’s feet and to read more
about Manny’s story, go to www.samaritan’s feet.org
The Caribbean Baptist Youth Fellowship, Youth Festival 2014
continues all week long with visits to the Princess Margaret Hospital, Chances
Children Home and Operation Youth Quake, a health fair, a sports day and a
gospel show, featuring His Excellency, a Barbadian-based Dominican gospel artist
(I am looking forward to seeing my schoolmate perform). The gospel show takes
place at the Newtown Savannah from 7:00pm
After being skeptical about the “lecture” and “fire” I must
admit that I left the “Fully Ignited, Radically Engaged.”
Thank you to my friend for the invite.
Monday, July 21, 2014
Youth Just Wanna Have Fun
Several vibrant young parishioners of the St. Patrick's Parish Youth Group along with Seminarian Frantzo Simbert were engaged in a fulfilling social activity: hiking.....to Boeri Lake. (NYCD) members: Nadege Roach, Deion Anselm and Malik Stuart also NYCD Media Team Members ; Khan Roach and Deeshawn George, among other young parishioners left for their destination at 10:00am and arrived at about 12:00pm.
It was organized by the group and took place on Sunday, July 13th
A coaster filled with excited young people including National Youth Council of Dominica.
The hike trail became more captivating with each step.
According to Khan Roach, "When we got to the lake we took pictures, enjoyed the cool breeze, beautiful scenery and the great company of each other. We hiked back to the bus and made our way to the Freshwater Lake, ate some lunch and went onward to Ti Tou Gorge enjoyed the water and went on home."
What an experience!
All involved believes that The outing was a grand success and everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves.
Another one is being planned to hopefully take place soon.
Friday, June 27, 2014
Beating youth unemployment through entrepreneurship
By Carlos Pascal
In 2012, nearly seventy five (75) million young people between the ages of fifteen (15) and twenty four (24) were unemployed worldwide, and 14.3 percent of those young people lived in Latin America, including the Caribbean.
Considering this alarming rate of unemployment, Caribbean governments have put forth a number of initiatives to provide their youth with basic skills and opportunities to find gainful work.
However, there is still more to be done. At a time of considerable economic decline, youth entrepreneurship and careful monitoring of programs are promising solutions because these measures provide young people with the means to be self-employed and to remain so for an extended period of time.
There are numerous reasons why high unemployment rates exist among young people throughout the region.
First, the recent global economic downturn characterized by “recession, debt service obligations, and declines in development assistance” significantly decreased the number of job openings available.
For example, as a result of the crisis, Jamaica’s overall labor force decreased by 2.7 percent in 2010. This resulted in the loss of 16,000 jobs for youths between the ages of 14 and 24 from October 2009 to October 2010.
Meanwhile in Barbados, in 2011, while the overall unemployment rate was 11.2 percent, the youth unemployment rate was more than double that, at 28.9 percent. It is evident that youth are especially vulnerable to being out of a job during times of general economic hardship.
The problem here is that too many young people feel that they are “entitled” to a job from Government or some other institution.
Allow me for a moment to present you with a scenario. Let us say in 2013 1,800 students were enrolled in Dominica State College (DSC), now let us assume that in 2014 1,000 of those students will graduate. Out of that 1,000 let us make another assumption that 100 of them did Accounting and are now hoping to enter the world of work with their degree in hand.
Now this group of 100 will certainly expect that since they have endured the stresses of college life, their just reward would be a stable paying job which would aid them along the path of life.
Isn’t this what our parents taught us after all, to go to school, learn and get a job.
But, what this group of 100 Accounting majors will slowly realize after they have passed there resume around every bank, government department, etc, is that there are only a certain amount of accountants that a country can handle at a time.
Now, what happens to this group of 100 you may ask, sadly the majority of them will remain at home and call local radio stations and programs and say “the country tight”.
Then the cycle continues year after year after year.
What might be the solution to this enigma you might ask; there is one word for it - “ENTREPRENURSHIP.”
In political economics, entrepreneurship is a process of identifying and starting a business venture, sourcing and organizing the required resources and taking both the risks and rewards associated with the venture.
But, for the sake of this article let us say it is the ability to identify a problem faced by a large group of people and find a way to make a profit by solving it.
This, my friends, should be the future of our country. It is through this that we can take control of our financial destiny.
Now you may be asking, how can I be an entrepreneur when I do not have capital? Well my friends there are programs put in place to solve that problem.
Institutions such as the Dominica Youth Business Trust (DYBT) and the National Development Foundation of Dominica (NDFD) are waiting on young, aspiring entrepreneurs.
If after reading this you are still doubtful or second guessing yourself, then let me leave you with a few wise words from the immortal Nelson Mandela "It is always impossible."
In 2012, nearly seventy five (75) million young people between the ages of fifteen (15) and twenty four (24) were unemployed worldwide, and 14.3 percent of those young people lived in Latin America, including the Caribbean.
Considering this alarming rate of unemployment, Caribbean governments have put forth a number of initiatives to provide their youth with basic skills and opportunities to find gainful work.
However, there is still more to be done. At a time of considerable economic decline, youth entrepreneurship and careful monitoring of programs are promising solutions because these measures provide young people with the means to be self-employed and to remain so for an extended period of time.
There are numerous reasons why high unemployment rates exist among young people throughout the region.
First, the recent global economic downturn characterized by “recession, debt service obligations, and declines in development assistance” significantly decreased the number of job openings available.
For example, as a result of the crisis, Jamaica’s overall labor force decreased by 2.7 percent in 2010. This resulted in the loss of 16,000 jobs for youths between the ages of 14 and 24 from October 2009 to October 2010.
Meanwhile in Barbados, in 2011, while the overall unemployment rate was 11.2 percent, the youth unemployment rate was more than double that, at 28.9 percent. It is evident that youth are especially vulnerable to being out of a job during times of general economic hardship.
The problem here is that too many young people feel that they are “entitled” to a job from Government or some other institution.
Allow me for a moment to present you with a scenario. Let us say in 2013 1,800 students were enrolled in Dominica State College (DSC), now let us assume that in 2014 1,000 of those students will graduate. Out of that 1,000 let us make another assumption that 100 of them did Accounting and are now hoping to enter the world of work with their degree in hand.
Now this group of 100 will certainly expect that since they have endured the stresses of college life, their just reward would be a stable paying job which would aid them along the path of life.
Isn’t this what our parents taught us after all, to go to school, learn and get a job.
But, what this group of 100 Accounting majors will slowly realize after they have passed there resume around every bank, government department, etc, is that there are only a certain amount of accountants that a country can handle at a time.
Now, what happens to this group of 100 you may ask, sadly the majority of them will remain at home and call local radio stations and programs and say “the country tight”.
Then the cycle continues year after year after year.
What might be the solution to this enigma you might ask; there is one word for it - “ENTREPRENURSHIP.”
In political economics, entrepreneurship is a process of identifying and starting a business venture, sourcing and organizing the required resources and taking both the risks and rewards associated with the venture.
But, for the sake of this article let us say it is the ability to identify a problem faced by a large group of people and find a way to make a profit by solving it.
This, my friends, should be the future of our country. It is through this that we can take control of our financial destiny.
Now you may be asking, how can I be an entrepreneur when I do not have capital? Well my friends there are programs put in place to solve that problem.
Institutions such as the Dominica Youth Business Trust (DYBT) and the National Development Foundation of Dominica (NDFD) are waiting on young, aspiring entrepreneurs.
If after reading this you are still doubtful or second guessing yourself, then let me leave you with a few wise words from the immortal Nelson Mandela "It is always impossible."
Saturday, June 21, 2014
Sustainable Development and Young People
The National Youth Council Media Team would like to shed light on the issue of sustainable development among young people. In that bid, below is an interview conducted by Edona Jno. Baptiste with sustainable development advocate Eardley Pierre. Pierre who hails from the community of St. Joseph is the president of the St. Joseph Youth Empowerment Committee and a member on the Dominica Youth Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Working Group.
Q: What is sustainable development?
A: Sustainable development is the kind of development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. A key element in the definition is the unity of environment and development, placing emphasis on the environment not only being physical but should include social, cultural and political spheres. It also insists that development is not just about how poor countries can ameliorate their situation, but what the entire world, including developed countries, can do to achieve our common goal which is the survival of the our Planet Earth and our existence as human beings.
Q: Where did the concept of sustainable development stem from?
A: Sustainable development came from the concept of sustainable forest. The foresters in 17th and 18th century Europe developed a system where they could estimate the annual forest timber output. They calculated stem girth, spacing, climatic factors as well as the vertical growth to determine how many trees they could cut down while ensuring sustainability of the forest. This is known as Sustainable Forest or Sustainable Yield.
Q: What sparked your interest in the sustainable development platform?
A: I first got involved during the UNESCO-funded Parle Kwéyòl Project in 2005. It was implemented by Youth Culture and Heritage Movement in an effort to revitalize the speaking of the Kwéyòl language amongst the youth of Dominica. Core pillars of the project included training and certification of young people to teach Kwéyòl ; Kwéyòl Classes; Kwéyòl Speeling Bee; Kwéyòl Marché and Extravaganza.
Q: How do you contribute to advocacy towards sustainable development in your community?
A: Through the St. Joseph Youth Empowerment Committee, which I am the president of. Its primary objective is to empower the community’s youth to use our resources in a sustainable way to develop our community.
In 2013, the group developed the Feast of St. Gerard Community Project which covered a beach clean-up, youth debates, educational workshops, a poster competition and Family Fun Day. At the end of the project, a cadre of 75 primary school students in St. Joseph was certified in basic sustainable development concepts. A compost heap project was established at the Kaleb Laurent Primary School and a small hut was erected at the St. Joseph beach to enhance the area.
Currently, members of the St. Joseph YEC are undertaking projects in rabbit and poultry rearing as well as horticulture.
On a national Level, in 2012 I joined the National Apiculture Planning Committee established by the Global Environment Faculty (GEF) to develop a National Apiculture Strategy.
I’m also a member of the Dominica Youth SIDS Working Group working towards education of young people on the issues of sustainable development, as well as initiatives on how to mitigate the effects of climate change. The group is also trying to achieve a consensus among Dominica youth as to their vision ahead of the third International Conference of SIDS, which will be held in Samoa, September 2014.
The Dominica SIDS Working Group is working with the National Youth Council to implement a Sustainable Development Education Program, to help spread awareness about sustainable development
Q: What are your expectations?
A: It is my hope that Dominica’s youth will be able to capitalize on signing of important documents such as the Jamaica Declaration and implementation of the National Strategic Program for Climate Resilience (SPCR). Ultimately, realizing that the future of our Country is in our hands by being able to use our environment (which includes the physical, social, cultural) to allows us a comfortable and fulfilling life.
Q: What is sustainable development?
A: Sustainable development is the kind of development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. A key element in the definition is the unity of environment and development, placing emphasis on the environment not only being physical but should include social, cultural and political spheres. It also insists that development is not just about how poor countries can ameliorate their situation, but what the entire world, including developed countries, can do to achieve our common goal which is the survival of the our Planet Earth and our existence as human beings.
Q: Where did the concept of sustainable development stem from?
A: Sustainable development came from the concept of sustainable forest. The foresters in 17th and 18th century Europe developed a system where they could estimate the annual forest timber output. They calculated stem girth, spacing, climatic factors as well as the vertical growth to determine how many trees they could cut down while ensuring sustainability of the forest. This is known as Sustainable Forest or Sustainable Yield.
Q: What sparked your interest in the sustainable development platform?
A: I first got involved during the UNESCO-funded Parle Kwéyòl Project in 2005. It was implemented by Youth Culture and Heritage Movement in an effort to revitalize the speaking of the Kwéyòl language amongst the youth of Dominica. Core pillars of the project included training and certification of young people to teach Kwéyòl ; Kwéyòl Classes; Kwéyòl Speeling Bee; Kwéyòl Marché and Extravaganza.
Q: How do you contribute to advocacy towards sustainable development in your community?
A: Through the St. Joseph Youth Empowerment Committee, which I am the president of. Its primary objective is to empower the community’s youth to use our resources in a sustainable way to develop our community.
In 2013, the group developed the Feast of St. Gerard Community Project which covered a beach clean-up, youth debates, educational workshops, a poster competition and Family Fun Day. At the end of the project, a cadre of 75 primary school students in St. Joseph was certified in basic sustainable development concepts. A compost heap project was established at the Kaleb Laurent Primary School and a small hut was erected at the St. Joseph beach to enhance the area.
Currently, members of the St. Joseph YEC are undertaking projects in rabbit and poultry rearing as well as horticulture.
On a national Level, in 2012 I joined the National Apiculture Planning Committee established by the Global Environment Faculty (GEF) to develop a National Apiculture Strategy.
I’m also a member of the Dominica Youth SIDS Working Group working towards education of young people on the issues of sustainable development, as well as initiatives on how to mitigate the effects of climate change. The group is also trying to achieve a consensus among Dominica youth as to their vision ahead of the third International Conference of SIDS, which will be held in Samoa, September 2014.
The Dominica SIDS Working Group is working with the National Youth Council to implement a Sustainable Development Education Program, to help spread awareness about sustainable development
Q: What are your expectations?
A: It is my hope that Dominica’s youth will be able to capitalize on signing of important documents such as the Jamaica Declaration and implementation of the National Strategic Program for Climate Resilience (SPCR). Ultimately, realizing that the future of our Country is in our hands by being able to use our environment (which includes the physical, social, cultural) to allows us a comfortable and fulfilling life.
Monday, May 26, 2014
Are young women the key to curbing the drug lifestyle?
by Delroy “Nesta” Williams
I must tell you that this article isn't against women or a part of the blame game. It is merely an insight into the mind of men, more particularly disadvantaged and marginalized young men.
The Caribbean has been plagued with an increase in crime and violence, something that has been outlined in numerous reports and more recently in the Eye on the Future Report - a report of the CARICOM Commission on Youth Development supported by the United Nations Development Programme in January 2010. A significant portion of those negative actions have been targeted towards and perpetrated by youth, and more particularly young men. A statement in the report indicates that in 2005, Dominican youth were 46 percent of homicide victims, yet represented only 38% of the general population. So in truth and in fact, we are hurting our own selves.
Many academics have spent many an hour and much money delving into the reasons why young people get involved in criminal behavior and it has been ascribed to a number of issues including socio-economic background, peer pressure, influence of American media, etc. However the role of young women and their acceptance of deviant behavior haven’t been exposed as a contributing factor to this phenomenon.
Young men, and more importantly Caribbean men, have always sought acceptance from young women. I would go as far as saying that their every action is directed at attracting the opposite sex. In the tradition of things, young men go to school, to get an education which would lead to a secure job in other to attract their partners but now with modernization and the “fast” money lifestyle, young men have been magnetized towards drugs and crime to fulfill their lofty ambitions. The end-goal though, is still the same – to attract the female partner(s).
Our society has shifted a lot of its core values; more “deviant” behavior is accepted than would have been the case several years ago - for better and for worse as well. The acceptance of the “Papas” into our society has created a certain security and economical gateway for the “ghetto” youth but for only a few. However it is that few, that seems to be the greatest influence, marshaling the onlookers to want to emulate them. The drug lifestyle in itself has brought a wave of crime and violence, like something out of the “New Jack City” movie where Wesley Snipes as Nino Brown, easily turned a New York City block into his own drug fortress. Our own versions of this television character now runs our communities, maybe not with the precision and tenacity as in the movies, but from all indications this is what it is developing into right before our own eyes.
However in New Jack City, we saw how Snipes had a change of heart, influenced by his love for the female gender and how that love was even greater than his love of the criminal lifestyle. He ended up being wheelchair-bound but still with the love of his woman and son. Maybe that should be the lesson we learn from that movie, the role and influence of a woman on man’s ambitions.
If our women, our young women disassociate themselves from the criminal element, this could prove an eye opener for them and spur them to change from this negative lifestyle but that is a big IF, because the young women themselves seem to love and flourish from the gains thereof.
It’s a vicious cycle, this drug problem and more complex than could be tacked from a mere article but it is my hope that I have raised some level of awareness and opened up an area for discussion.
The Caribbean has been plagued with an increase in crime and violence, something that has been outlined in numerous reports and more recently in the Eye on the Future Report - a report of the CARICOM Commission on Youth Development supported by the United Nations Development Programme in January 2010. A significant portion of those negative actions have been targeted towards and perpetrated by youth, and more particularly young men. A statement in the report indicates that in 2005, Dominican youth were 46 percent of homicide victims, yet represented only 38% of the general population. So in truth and in fact, we are hurting our own selves.
Many academics have spent many an hour and much money delving into the reasons why young people get involved in criminal behavior and it has been ascribed to a number of issues including socio-economic background, peer pressure, influence of American media, etc. However the role of young women and their acceptance of deviant behavior haven’t been exposed as a contributing factor to this phenomenon.
Young men, and more importantly Caribbean men, have always sought acceptance from young women. I would go as far as saying that their every action is directed at attracting the opposite sex. In the tradition of things, young men go to school, to get an education which would lead to a secure job in other to attract their partners but now with modernization and the “fast” money lifestyle, young men have been magnetized towards drugs and crime to fulfill their lofty ambitions. The end-goal though, is still the same – to attract the female partner(s).
Our society has shifted a lot of its core values; more “deviant” behavior is accepted than would have been the case several years ago - for better and for worse as well. The acceptance of the “Papas” into our society has created a certain security and economical gateway for the “ghetto” youth but for only a few. However it is that few, that seems to be the greatest influence, marshaling the onlookers to want to emulate them. The drug lifestyle in itself has brought a wave of crime and violence, like something out of the “New Jack City” movie where Wesley Snipes as Nino Brown, easily turned a New York City block into his own drug fortress. Our own versions of this television character now runs our communities, maybe not with the precision and tenacity as in the movies, but from all indications this is what it is developing into right before our own eyes.
However in New Jack City, we saw how Snipes had a change of heart, influenced by his love for the female gender and how that love was even greater than his love of the criminal lifestyle. He ended up being wheelchair-bound but still with the love of his woman and son. Maybe that should be the lesson we learn from that movie, the role and influence of a woman on man’s ambitions.
If our women, our young women disassociate themselves from the criminal element, this could prove an eye opener for them and spur them to change from this negative lifestyle but that is a big IF, because the young women themselves seem to love and flourish from the gains thereof.
It’s a vicious cycle, this drug problem and more complex than could be tacked from a mere article but it is my hope that I have raised some level of awareness and opened up an area for discussion.
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